Barbara Kopple, the two-time Oscar-winning documentary filmmaker who most recently directed Woody Allen's Wild Man Blues, gives us a striking look at the three Woodstock festivals in My Generation.  Originally meant to be a comparison between the 1969 and 1994 concerts, Kopple didn't need to wait long for the 1999 fiasco to provide an apocalyptic end to her picture.

The fun starts in February 1994 and shows the behind-the-scenes genesis of the 25th anniversary show, from the Saugerties town meeting to get the permit (set to Primus' "Here Come the Bastards") to the merchandising efforts to provide consumers with everything from Woodstock condoms to Woodstock dog tags. There are nice segues between people proudly stating that "it isn't about the money" and giant, baby-killing corporate sponsors selling $20 slices of pizza.

There are some truly interesting musical moments in Generation, like when Kopple cuts between Joe Cocker's performance in 1969 and 1994, or Melissa Etheridge's Janis Joplin cover in '94 juxtaposed with a clip of Joplin from the original concert.  The 30th anniversary show in 1999 showed the difference between quietly raging against the machine and the misguided, fire-stoking anger of Limp Bizkit's "Break Stuff," as three days of peace, music and love turned into three days of fire, rape and looting.

A big chunk of the film focuses on Michael Lang, the perpetually calm producer of all three events.  Nothing seems to faze the guy, even though he claims the original Woodstock concert has just broken even within the last few years (which is why you had to be bombarded with Pepsi advertising just to see DMX).  There isn't one mention of the rapes in '99 but plenty of coverage of various security check problems (people weren't told metal tents weren't allowed until they were at the gate), drugs, injuries and, of course, mud.

If anything, the film is a great way to catch a wide variety of music from the likes of Green Day, Metallica, Nine Inch Nails, The Who, Country Joe and the Fish and a pre-pop-chart Santana.