The Greatest Night in Pop 

Directed by Bao Nguyen
Released on Netflix Jan 19, 2024

Watch Time: 2 hrs, 37 min

The Greatest Night in Pop is a documentary about the making of “We Are the World” – a behind-the-scenes look at what happened when, in 1985, 40 of pop music’s biggest stars got together to record the song to raise money for starving children in Africa and the US. (It raised more than $80 million, $214 million in today’s dollars.)

What I Liked About It 

The extraordinary talent, tenacity, and cooperation that was needed to record the song in a single night. They started on it after a music awards show in LA that had ended at about midnight, and the challenges were enormous, not the least of which were the competitive egos of the performers.

The star of the documentary turns out to be Lionel Richie, who, with the initial assistance of Michael Jackson and Quincy Jones, got so many celebrities to participate, and then kept everyone working together for more than seven grueling hours of production, until after seven in the morning.

Critical Reception 

* “Director Bao Nguyen is wryly bemused by the now historic celebrity assemblage and thankfully intrigued by the logistical and creative demands of creating an anthem.” (The Age/Australia)

* “The Greatest Night in Pop is one of those wonderfully wish fulfilling, ‘man I wish I could’ve been a fly on the wall…’ documentaries.” (Baltimore Magazine)

* “It’s almost like they knew there’d be a film eventually made of this. They have an incredible amount of footage.” (NPR/Los Angeles)

You can watch the trailer here.