MOVIE REVIEW With good vibes, 'Dave Chappelle's Block Party' rocks

The 80-minute movie is full of music and energy.
By CHRIS HEWITT
ST. PAUL PIONEER PRESS
If only movie theaters would supply tasty beverages and maybe some of those water chestnuts rolled up in bacon, "party" would be exactly the word for "Dave Chappelle's Block Party."
A good-timey vibe lasts from beginning to end of "Party," which is mostly musical performances but also mixes in segments in which Chappelle does his thing. Chappelle is effortlessly hilarious, whether he's chatting with lucky Dayton, Ohio, residents who snagged all-expenses-paid trips to the concert, rehearsing deliberately awful jokes (with Mos Def providing rim shots) or meeting kids at a day-care center whose rooftop is used for filming.
Director Michel Gondry ("Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind") has such graceful instincts that even when he cuts away from the open-air concert in Brooklyn to show us something else, we're always delighted to follow along.
Musical notes
And the music is wall-to-wall wonderful, highlighted by a riveting "Jesus Walks," performed by Kanye West with Common, John Legend and a very enthusiastic marching band and a reunion of the Fugees.
Singing a goose-bumpy "Killing Me Softly," the Fugees' Lauryn Hill is so relaxed and full of joy that she's like an instant happy pill. She even eases the audience's (and our) frustration that it has been so long since she recorded anything by pointing to the project that kept her busy: her beaming, toddler son.
Surrounded by all that music and energy, it's no wonder the kid is smiling. "Dave Chappelle's Block Party" is 80 minutes of positivity, summed up by our host, who enthuses, "This is the concert I've always wanted to see."
Who knew? It's the concert I always wanted to see, too.