Now streaming: Netflix’s ‘Trainwreck: Woodstock ’99,’ a can’t-miss look at the infamous carnival of mayhem
Woodstock ’99 has clearly been on many people’s minds lately.
Last July, HBO Max premiered Woodstock 99: Peace, Love and Fury, a new documentary directed by Garret Price and produced by Bill Simmons as the first entry in MUSIC BOX, “a collection of documentaries exploring key moments in the world of music.” The document pulled no punches in detailing the significant logistical issues and circumstances that played a role in moving the weekend from a planned celebratory review of the original 1969 Woodstock concert and its 1994 follow-up, both of which had the problems of theirs, but they seemed like utopian perfection when compared to the events of 99.
Last August 3, Netflix debuted its look at the infamous three-day festival in Rome, New York — and Trainwreck: Woodstock ’99 is not only a perfect complement to last year’s doc, but it’s perhaps even more detailed, split into three episodes that dive head first into the rampant chaos of it all.
The impact of Train wreck hits particularly hard in light of last November’s tragic events at Travis Scott’s Astroworld festival in Houston, where 10 concertgoers died of “compression asphyxiation” after being caught in a large, inescapable and terrifying crowd.
all the time Train wreck, many say “this was bad, but it could have been a lot worse” – which is certainly true, given the dire conditions of more than 200,000 mostly drunk people crowding the 3,600-acre site of the former Griffiss Air Force Base. in Rome, New York. While many (mostly avoidable) aspects of Woodstock ’99 were indeed disastrous, it somehow avoided circumstances like what happened to Astroworld, but that lingering “what if?” makes the questions posed in the Netflix series that much more devastating to consider.
In addition to many interviews with people on the production side of the festival, Train wreck features stories and reminiscences from Jewel, Korn vocalist Jonathan Davis, Bush lead singer Gavin Rossdale, Fatboy Slim, late Woodstock co-founder Michael Lang and more, each offering first-hand recollections of their experiences as part of mess. The whole thing contextualizes all the elements that went into the planning, development of the show, and its impact on pop culture at the time, and it’s a wildly entertaining — and, at times, harrowing — viewing experience.
Watch the documentary series via Netflix.
