This film was featured on the Decades You Were Born in 1970s. While the film could be forgettable, Harvey Keitel stands out as Coleman Buckmaster, a New York City music producer. The film has a largely forgettable storyline and romance between Coleman and Amanda. Coleman's entire life was dedicated to music. He goes to a party with music industry people. He wants to promote his group over a lily white singing group from Florida. His relationship with Amanda grows from their first meeting. The film is satisfactory overall. I enjoyed seeing New York City in the 1970s. Other then Keitel and Earth, Wind and Fire, I don't see many familiar names in the cast. If you're a devout Harvey Keitel fan, you will see this film as his breakout as a leading actor.

Okay...it's 2005 and when you finally get to look at this film, you will probably exclaim that it is dated. But here's the thing, the screenplay was bold, the exposure of the music industry at that time was as bold as well...and it took some time for this to get music that was created by African Americans to be promoted on the same level as white acts. In some cases it still is - but back in the 70's this film addressed some of the "background" many never knew. Now we've got "American Idol" - "Pop Idol" and other such things that allow us into the minds of the "record execs" and how they think they should market something that sells and not market talent.When I was a kid, I loved the Earth, Wind and Fire release of "That's the Way of the World" which contained some of their biggest hits: "Shining Star", "Reasons", "Yeanin', Learnin'" and the title. Little did I know this was a SOUNDTRACK of a MOVIE...until I moved to Los Angeles and got the wonderful "Z" Channel.The "Z" Channel showed this film as part of a "Harvey Keitel" retrospective. Gee, I had no idea Harvey Keitel DID so many movies -- and when I saw this one, I was surprised. This movie is not a cinematic masterpiece, but it does deserve more merit than it got. It's a nice little film. More than a "vanity piece" for Earth, Wind and Fire, Harvey Keitel does a great job as a torn record executive trying "to fight the system". There are a lot of lessons to be drawn from this, and a lot of "insider" trade that was exposed.If you can find this uncut...it's worth a look.

While it has been more than ten years since I have seen That's The Way of The World, I can say that anyone who sees the picture will appreciate it, and its view of the music industry. Harvey Keitel plays a record executive who appreciates the talent of a band played by Earth Wind and Fire. However, the record company is forcing him to promote a white popular act(based primarily on The Carpenters). While Keitel's character stays true to his heart, the overall message of the movie is that popular culture, expressed by music and images, maintains a discriminatory profile of American culture. If you see this movie, realize that it was made before disco became truly popular in the USA.Another point to mention is that the movie deserves a look, but suffered because it was hard to market. Yes, unfortunately in 1975, American society was still segregated. Black music was marketed to blacks only, while popular music was either rock/heavy metal or melody music. Because white audiences were not as familiar with EWF, they did not care that they were in the picture. On the other hand, this was at the climax of the blaxploitation era, and the soundtrack and appearance of EWF were hyped to black audiences. However, when people saw the film and realized that the group only make brief appearances, they turned away.My point is that because of the racial attitudes of American culture in 1975, the movie was not appreciated as it should have been. So when you watch it, please do so with an open mind. One of the more refreshing things about it is that it is a drama with more substance than style, and easy to get into without always being reminded that you're watching something from the 1970s.Charles Stepney, who was involved in the making of the motion picture, was a close associate of Maurice White. He was involved in EWF's music leading into this project.

This is an often amusing insider look at the music business. Keitel plays a producer who is saddled with a G-rated group and is expected to make them popular with the public. There are lots of satirical in-jokes about the egos of recording stars, their managers and the people who run the studios. It has a lot of 70s nostalgia value and many of the philosophies spouted by the characters are still en vogue with the music biz today. All in all, a good job by all involved.