Pink Floyd Live at Pompeii MCMLXXII, in IMAX

Unfortunately, David Gilmour announced his retirement from public performance after the “Luck and Strange” tour. Of course there was no-way, no-how he would ever share the stage again with Roger Waters, who now appears in hate rallies instead of concerts. From now on, this film will be the closest many fans will get to experiencing a Pink Floyd concert, especially if they see it in IMAX. Recorded before the release of The Dark Side of the Moon, a more balanced, less Waters-centric band was captured for posterity in Adrian Maben’s Pink Floyd Live at Pompeii MCMLXXII, which is now playing in theaters.

Ironically, Pink Floyd never thought much of this film in any of its various cuts (this is the longest one yet, at 92 minutes). However, it sustained their fans for years, often screening at a time their live shows were relatively limited, especially internationally. While it lacked the extravagant lights and spectacle their live shows became famous for, the surreal setting of the ancient Pompei amphitheater perfectly suits the band’s aesthetic. Likewise, the band looks extremely Floydish strolling through Pompeii’s geothermal steam, as they explore the ancient site.

The Wall came ten years later, so this film is free of its grimness. In some ways, Nick Mason emerges as the star at Pompeii. His deeply resonant drums sound primal and even otherworldly. The opening and closing “Echoes Part 1” and “Part 2” have a vibe reminiscent of the Grateful Dead’s spacey extended jams.

Floyd sounds very Floyd on “Careful with that Axe, Eugene,” “A Saucerful of Secrets,” and “One of These Days,” but they still have an extra trippiness that seems inspired by the location. Maben augmented the later cuts with footage shot in the storied Abbey Road studio, where the band had recently finished their defining Dark Side album. However, for the benefit of the cameras, the band pretends to return for some last-minute touches.

Weirdly, some of Maben’s candid footage became the stuff of band lore, like Mason asking for apple pie “without the crust.” Perhaps the funniest soundbite is their denial Pink Floyd is a “drug” band. Okay fine, now tell that to every stoner ever. On a more serious note, when the band discusses their groundbreaking use of synthesizers, specifically the notion they consciously decide how to use the instruments as a tool rather than letting the technology control how they make music, it eerily parallels similar debates regarding AI today.

In fact, the band displays quite a healthy sense of humor, which maybe produces the quirky highlight of the film. Adapted from their blues-inspired tune “Seamus,” “Mademoiselle Nobs,” features the titular Nobs, a friend’s Russian Wolfhound, howling pretty much on-cue, while accompanied by Gilmour on harmonica and Waters dabbling on one of Gilmour’s guitars. It is charming and gosh-darned bluesy.

Indeed, we often forget the band conceived their name as a tribute to early bluesmen Pink Anderson and Floyd Council. The film still looks a little grainy or hazy, even in IMAX, but that also rather suits the band’s dreamy aesthetic. More importantly, the big rumbling sound is what makes the film a decent live concert substitute. Recommended for fans, Pink Floyd Live at Pompeii MCMLXXII is currently playing in New York, at the AMC Empire.