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About this movie

Genres:
Documentary, Drama
Language:
English
Running time:
1:23:35
Partner rating:
PG
Released:

Cast & Crew

Cast

  1. Conrad O. Johnson, Sr.
  2. Craig Baldwin
  3. Craig Green
  4. Bruce Middleton
  5. Timothy Thompson
  6. Gerald Calhoun
  7. Gwen Walker
  8. Kirbyjon Caldwell
  9. Martha Samson
  10. Gaila Mitchell

Directors

  1. Mark Landsman

Producers

  1. Keith Calder
  2. Mark Landsman
  3. Jessica Wu

Thunder Soul

Thumbnail Play video in overlay2:22

Trailer for Thunder Soul

Most fans of classic soul and funk don't spend much time listening to high school bands, but mention the Kashmere Stage Band and they'll sit up and take notice. In the 1970s, the jazz band at Houston, Texas' Kashmere High School was one of the best in the nation, and even scored regional hits with their recordings. Comprised of students from one of Houston's roughest neighborhoods, the Kashmere Stage Band was the brainchild of Conrad O. Johnso... Most fans of classic soul and funk don't spend much time listening to high school bands, but mention the Kashmere Stage Band and they'll sit up and take notice. In the 1970s, the jazz band at Houston, Texas' Kashmere High School was one of the best in the nation, and even scored regional hits with their recordings. Comprised of students from one of Houston's roughest neighborhoods, the Kashmere Stage Band was the brainchild of Conrad O. Johnson Sr., the school's band director who replaced the band's staid repertoire with a mix of lively jazz and funk tunes and current R&B favorites, and instilled a powerful work ethic in his students that turned the ensemble into an award winner. Johnson, known to his students as "Prof," transformed an otherwise ordinary band into something ground-breaking, and in the documentary Thunder Soul, filmmaker Mark Landsman offers a telling profile of Johnson and his band, featuring photos and footage of the band in their heyday as well as interviews from a recent reunion in which the Kashmere alumni paid tribute to Prof with their first concert in decades. Thunder Soul received its world premiere at the 2010 South by Southwest Film Festival.

Trailer for Thunder Soul

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Reviews by Rotten Tomatoes

Scored 'fresh' by Rotten Tomatoes

100%Tomatometer score: 100% positive reviews from professional critics.

percent positive reviews

  1. Positive review
    Tom Long, Detroit News There's a purity -- sense of righteousness and reunion and optimism -- that makes Thunder Soul galvanizing. Also, the music is smoking hot, which is pretty amazing, considering it comes from a high... – Full review External link
  2. Positive review
    William Goss, Film.com All of the agreeable ingredients are there, but director Mark Landsman doesn't coast on the built-in feel-good factor. – Full review External link
  3. Positive review
    John DeFore, Washington Post Arguably, the current generation of funk and soul revivalists owes a debt to musicians who forged their astonishing sound in between Algebra study sessions. – Full review External link
  4. Positive review
    Sheri Linden, Los Angeles Times Though it sometimes overplays the sentimentality, "Thunder Soul" gets not just the music but also the sense of possibility for this post-civil-rights generation. – Full review External link
  5. Positive review
    J. R. Jones, Chicago Reader A precious scrap of American history. – Full review External link
  6. Positive review
    Roger Moore, Orlando Sentinel An uplifting and entertaining film... – Full review External link

Read more reviews on Rotten Tomatoes

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YouTube Movie Extras

  1. Thumbnail Play video in overlay8:06

    Mark Landsman - Director of THUNDER SOUL (2011)

    Reelblack had a chance to chat briefly with filmmaker MARK LANDSMAN. The AFI grad's award winning debut feature, THUNDER SOUL, is an amazing tribute to Prof...

    by reelblack

    Mark Landsman - Director of THUNDER SOUL (2011)

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  2. Thumbnail Play video in overlay2:35

    Conrad "Prof" Johnson Tribute at HISD's Kashmere High School

    Hundreds of current and former Kashmere High School students along with the Fifth Ward Community turned out at the Houston premiere of the new documentary "T...

    by Houston ISD

    Conrad "Prof" Johnson Tribute at HISD's Kashmere High School

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    Thundersoul

    http://www.lafilmfest.com/2010/

    by filmindependent

    Thundersoul

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  4. Thumbnail Play video in overlay1:16

    HISD Kashmere High School "Thunder Soul" Stage Band

    Several generations of Kashmere High School's jazz stage band recently performed at a special concert at the Houston premiere of the documentary "Thunder Sou...

    by Houston ISD

    HISD Kashmere High School "Thunder Soul" Stage Band

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