More than just a touching tribute to the indelible popular music of pre-Castro Cuba, Buena Vista Social Club is a generous act of resurrection, a project that effectively propelled forgotten artists back into the spotlight. Playing the role of ardent, self-effacing fan, Wenders brought guitar maestro Ry Cooder with him to Havana to unite musical giants from the country’s midcentury golden age (Ibrahim Ferrer, Compay Segundo, Rubén González and Omara Portuondo, among others) for a one-off collaborative album, an initiative that resulted in breakthrough commercial success and a North American tour. Rehearsals, recording sessions, and live performances dominate the film, taking precedent over expository talking heads. What little we learn of the musicians’ personal lives comes through in snippets of casual banter, while the rest is expressed through song. Liberated by the pre-millennial influx of low-resolution, relatively inexpensive digital cameras, Wenders shoots entire performances in fluid, fawning Steadicam shots, and he misses no opportunity to soak in Havana’s sights and sounds, as alive and exotic to him as the hubbub of Times Square proves to be for the visibly moved aging entertainers.