NEW ORDER - ITEM (A COLLECTION and NEW ORDER STORY) (2005) |
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Starring
Bernard Sumner, Peter Hook, Gillian Gilbert, Stephen Morris, Ian Curtis,
Tony Wilson, Bono, Arthur Baker, John Barnes, Rob Gretton, Quincy Jones,
John Robie, Jon Savage, Peter Saville, Neil Tennant, Pete Tong and the
voice of Jenny Seagrove.
Screenplay by
Pascal Laugier.
Directed by
Kevin Hewitt (New Order Story) and Various (A Collection).
Distributed by Rhino Home Video. 280 minutes. Not Rated. |
 
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New Order - Item
Item
is not so much a new video from pioneering synth-pop band New
Order as it is an updated repackaging of two older videos, the clips
compilation A Collection and the documentary series New Order
Story.
The music has aged
incredibly, but as A Collection shows, the videos not quite as well.
The goofy people bouncing around dressed like the Michelin Man may have been
hip back in 1987 (although I thought they were goofy even back then, even
when they reappeared in Fine Young Cannibal's "She Drives Me Crazy" video)
but they just look goofy now, and because of this, the video to the band's
most perfect song "True Faith" looks silly. The clip for "Ceremony"
looks like it was filmed for ten quid (and probably was) and the hair
metal parody of "Touched By the Hand of God" looks horribly dated now.
The band's music worked much better with the workmanlike no-frills clips
like "Shellshock" and "State of the Nation" or slightly arty, colorful
shorts like "Bizarre Love Triangle" and "Blue Monday '88."
Still it is nice that they have updated the collection to include three
clips from this year's terrific comeback CD Waiting for the Siren's Call.
New
Order Story holds up better, giving an interesting (if very British)
overview of the band. Originally filmed for TV (and broken up into
specific episodes), it is a pretty standard rock documentary, though it does
dig a little deeper than the old VH1 Behind the Music series.
Talking head interviews with band members, friends, execs and the others
that lived through the band's career give you a nice hands-on feel for the
recording of the songs while rock journalists and fellow musicians
(including the ubiquitous Bono) pay tribute to the musical revolution which
New Order jump-started.
If you
are looking for a concise and intriguing history of this seminal band,
you're not likely to do better.
(10/05)
Jay
S. Jacobs
Copyright ©2005
PopEntertainment.com. All rights reserved.
Posted: October 22, 2005. 
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Copyright ©2005
PopEntertainment.com. All rights reserved.
Posted: October 22, 2005. |
