The Big Picture

“We Are the World” was recorded in one night by a lineup of musical legends, resulting in a historic charity single. The Greatest Night in Pop captures the organization and collaboration of this massive undertaking, with Lionel Richie as a key figure. The film showcases the human side of these iconic artists, as they interacted as fans and displayed vulnerability during the recording process.

Over the course of one night in 1985, some of the world’s greatest musicians united to record “We Are the World,” a song that would become one of the best-selling physical singles of all time, the first single to be certified multi-platinum, and would win four awards at the Grammys—including Record of the Year and Song of the Year. The recording was a who’s who of musical geniuses, with a song written by Lionel Richie and Michael Jackson, 46 different artists including everyone from Stevie Wonder to Bruce Springsteen, united over one long night to create the charity single. While the new documentary, The Greatest Night in Pop, isn’t a groundbreaking film by any stretch of the imagination, it is an often intriguing chronicling of how this massive single came to be, and the remarkable artists that were a part of it.

The Greatest Night in Pop On January 25th, 1985, dozens of the era’s most popular musicians gathered in Los Angeles to record a charity single for African famine relief. Setting egos aside, they collaborated on a song that would make history. Release Date January 29, 2024 Cast Lionel Richie , Michael Jackson , Harry Belafonte , Cyndi Lauper , Bruce Springsteen , Tina Turner , Kenny Rogers , Dionne Warwick , Bette Midler , Stevie Wonder , Kenny Loggins Runtime 1 hr 36 minutes Main Genre Documentary

‘The Greatest Night in Pop’ Shows Just How Incredible This Recording Was
Probably the most fascinating aspect of The Greatest Night in Pop is the organization of this gigantic undertaking. Envisioned by Harry Belafonte, with the help of fundraiser Ken Kragen, “We Are the World” was scheduled so that it would occur on the night of the American Music Awards, where after the Richie-hosted awards, the incredible lineup of musicians would unite at a secret recording studio to make this single overnight. Bao Nguyen’s documentary features talking head interviews with quite a few of the people who were there that night, including Springsteen, Sheila E., and Huey Lewis, but the best of these comes from Richie, who was almost a ringleader for the event. From writing the song to hosting the awards, then wrangling up all these celebrities that night, it not only seems like “We Are the World” wouldn’t have happened without Richie, but it also seems like he had a ball getting this all together, despite the undertaking it would become.

Before these artists entered the studio, producer Quincy Jones put up a sign stating “Check Your Ego at the Door,” and some of the most delightful moments of The Greatest Night in Pop revolve around these gargantuan stars simply acting as fans of each other and as uncertain, nervous human beings. Several of these artists point out their insecurities in this situation—surrounded by legends—and we get to see them interact as fans, rather than as icons themselves. At one point, the singers end up taking their sheet music and asking for autographs from one another. In another scene, we see Lewis worry about being the last person to record his solo, and the playful nature of Wonder as he lightens the mood during recording. In one of the more delightful moments captured in the film, we watch as a clearly nervous Bob Dylan struggles with his own solo. But after finding support from Wonder, who mimics Dylan’s singing style to get him back on track, Dylan returns to the mic with a newfound confidence thanks to this group. It’s the more humanistic, simple moments among these stars that make The Greatest Night in Pop such a delight.

‘The Greatest Night in Pop’ Is Still Too by the Numbers
Image via Netflix

Much like Nguyen’s 2015 documentary Live from New York!, which chronicled the creation of a single episode of Saturday Night Live, The Greatest Night in Pop isn’t trying to break any molds structurally. Instead, Nguyen is simply attempting to document the moment as-is. Even though the story itself is compelling in its own right, the form itself is fairly standard, complete with talking heads, archival footage, and a very basic, direct presentation of what happened that night that could likely be put together from existing footage and knowledge. There’s nothing necessarily wrong with how Nguyen presents this story, but there’s also nothing that really jumps out about it either. The Greatest Night in Pop is hitting the notes one would expect from a film like this, and not stretching outside of that in any way.

Thankfully, the story itself is (mostly) enough, but considering how strong the solo stories about this event are, it’s a shame that Nguyen’s doc doesn’t explore this a bit more. We only get bits and pieces about Sheila E. being used as a way to convince Prince to come to the recordings, or slight comments from Springsteen about flying to the recording session right after finishing the “Born to Run” tour. Considering how many perspectives there are to this one night, it’s a bit disappointing that we don’t get to see more of what happened from the viewpoint of the individuals.

The Greatest Night in Pop allows the story to tell itself, without bells and whistles. While that’s mostly fine here, this documentary is a bit too by the numbers, and it’s easy to see how a few flourishes and extra interviews could’ve made Nguyen’s doc really pop. Much like his Live From New York! documentary, The Greatest Night in Pop is a worthy story in its own right, but a bit more of the director’s touch could’ve done justice to this gigantic achievement of pop music history.

The Greatest Night in Pop REVIEWThe Greatest Night in Pop chronicles a fascinating night in music history, but the documentary from Bao Nguyen leaves more to be desired. Release Date January 29, 2024 Cast Lionel Richie , Michael Jackson , Harry Belafonte , Cyndi Lauper , Bruce Springsteen , Tina Turner , Kenny Rogers , Dionne Warwick , Bette Midler , Stevie Wonder , Kenny Loggins Runtime 1 hr 36 minutes Main Genre Documentary ProsThe recording of “We Are the World” is a remarkable event in music history, one that deserves to be chronicled in a documentary. By focusing on the vulnerabilities of these artists, The Greatest Night in Pop becomes about more than just a collection of great artists. ConsDirector Bao Nguyen’s approach, however, leaves more to be desired in terms of how this story is approached. More interviews with people who were at the recording would only improve this already incredible story.

The Greatest Night in Pop had its World Premiere at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival. It is now available to stream on Netflix in the U.S.

Watch on Netflix