The Boston DVDs sucks.

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Johnny Swallow

Johnny Swallow

Bad Daddy Johnny
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This DVD should have been much better.

I hate the cinematography, I REALLY REALLY don't like it. To many close-ups, too many crowd shots, too many quick cuts one after the other. You never get a chance to see the band play as a whole or indivdually for long.

I don't like that it's not the entire concert. I mean what's the point of leaving hours of empty DVD space? Leave on the 20 minutes or so that might have been saved.

I think the show itself was pretty good, but Bono's voice was sub-par. And the WOWY was really bad. That I can over look because you can't change what show was shot after it's all filmed and done.

But still, I think that the way in which this concert was captured was poorly done. The style in which the Sydney video was filmed has spoiled me forever. Nice long shots, wide views, steady shots that actually show the band playing, you can see the band relate to eachother, you can watch each member of the band play during several different parts on the show. I don't want to see manic cuts going back and forth between Bono running around and back to a close-up of Edge's face that fills the entire screen back to Bono in close-up. I mean this isn't MTV, don't try to make it like we're attention starved BSB fans.

The intimate/insane view of the band playing a club show for 80,000 people during Angel of Harlem and Stay walks all over the crap on the Boston DVD.

So much wasted opportunity. I hate you, directormanofthebostondvdwhomakesmewanttovomit.
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This post brought to you by: Me "Don't hate me because I'm bitter."

AIM: JuanSwallow
 
I'm just pissed that he had to act like he was making some kind of editing masterpiece...just keep it simple and show what the band does. Let us watch something for more than 5 seconds at once with out showing me Bono or Edge's nasal cavity. I want to see the band banging out their rockers, a little bit of sweat and muscle just makes them human. Show a few zits to us, cutting and cutting just shows that the director is an ADD case.
 
Overall I like it, but it dosen't blow me away the way the Sydney video does. I agree with you on the point of it not being a full concert, like that tainted it in some way because they cut out 'one'.

I think it had such momentum that began it, and almost fell off when they went into 'desire'. Then it was back to liftoff with 'bad'.

Actually that reminds me (for some odd reason) of the first Dallas show back in april 2001. I was in line in the concession for a beer behind 2 guys, and they were talking to the girl serving and asking her if she liked the band. She obviously wasn't a big fan, but they kept on, telling her to listen towards the end of the show for a song "called bad".
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I never saw ZOOTV, so the Sydney video was it for me. But after seeing 4 shows last year, the Boston dvd dosen't even come close to capturing that experience. Nothing can compare to the band coming out onstage with the house lights on, to the beginnings of 'elevation'
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Z69Edge@aol.com <<<<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>>>>

Every dog has it's day
 
Originally posted by Johnny Swallow:
Show a few zits to us, cutting and cutting just shows that the director is an ADD case.
Click to expand...

Check out Bono's neck during With or Without you, lol...

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Such a nice day
Let it go...
 
I just don't like that 2 shows were spliced together. Each U2 show should stand on it's own and the magic of editing should be minimal. I have the pro shot Popmart Edmonton show on video and for part of the second half the camera is just focused on the full stage. For some reason I just like that even though it sounds boring.
 
I agree with all of your points, but I still like it. It's different and innovative. I for one think the ZooTv video is way too ammateur like, though it does capture the show. It's hard to say really. On one hand it would be nice to have longer shots and more full band angles, yet on the other, I think what Hamish has done is beautiful. He has given us a real cinematic experience.
 
Swallow alot of your complaints are valid, but these days you complain too much. Do a thread where youre thankful for something.
 
Originally posted by brettig:
Swallow alot of your complaints are valid, but these days you complain too much. Do a thread where youre thankful for something.
Click to expand...


I'm thankful for the freedom to complain.
 
I've got to disagree with you Johnny. I think the Boston DVD is one of the best concert videos I've ever seen. With this show, you are not just watching a concert (even though it is U2), but you are witnessing an event. I thought the Bono Cam intro was great. This really gives us a sense of being right there with the band. Plus, how ofter do you get to experience walking out on stage with 20,000 screaming at you? With the DVD, you get to do that everynight (if you have no life). I also really love the way they shot Bad. All those hands raising into the air are beautiful. Great idea and great shot.

As far as the Sydney show wide shot vs. the Boston show wide shot, I think the reason they didn't do that many wides is because quite frankly, the show looked rather ordinary from a distance. ZooTV looked great from miles away. But when you're in an arena on a small stage, you may not want to go wide too often.

I do agree with you that they should have put a whole concert together. I don't know what their logic was behind that. Also, they left off one of U2's best songs ever, One. That would be a great question the next time the band is doing an on-line chat.

I think the band took a gamble with this director and I think they won, bigtime. However, it is very stylistic so I could see why some people dig it and some don't.
 
Hmmmmmm

Maybe we are the ones fooled here. I mean we have grown accustomed to seeing the band in a stadium with that giant stage and all of those TVs, or that giant tv, and lemons and olives and things. They have to do those wide far away shots with all the little people in between so you can understand the magnitude of the whole thing.

With the elevation setup, they really focused more up-close on the band and the fans in both the concerts themselves and the dvd. This is what we wanted, isn't it? At least this is what the media told us to want.
 
I wouldn't say the DVD sucks, but I've watched the ZooTV video about a thousand times. Yet I haven't been able to sit through the whole Elevation DVD more than once.
And why they would cut out 'One' I'll never understand.

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You're my girl (I don't wanna discuss it!)
 
I love both shows, but there's one reason why I'm more pleased with the Elevation from Boston video than Zoo TV from Sydney:

No bloody stupid words flashing across the screen during the songs! I can't express well enough how much I hated that gimmick. It completely ruined The Fly and Until the End of the World for me on the ZooTV video...
 
I really think it's dumb how he laid down with her, I don't think it fit with how the show felt but whatever.

And Sydney is their best concert video, that's why it won a grammy.
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Originally posted by candyfloss:
I wouldn't say the DVD sucks, but I've watched the ZooTV video about a thousand times. Yet I haven't been able to sit through the whole Elevation DVD more than once.
And why they would cut out 'One' I'll never understand.
Click to expand...
They cut "One" because it leaves us wanting more. I don't know about you, but it sure as hell worked on me. After I saw the DVD for the first time I ran home and watched "POPmart". If I didn't already have other videos, I would have bought one!!
 
I think overall the POPmart video is the best of them all. POPmart just seemed to lend itself to watching on video. I love the shots of the crowd and of the entire LED screen as it's changing with the song. Bono and especially Edge look like they are having a lot of fun with the show. Elevation isn't as fun to watch, but I don't think that the shots take away from the overall effect of the dvd. The sound quality is very good. I would have like to have Mysterious Ways and One make an appearance, but oh well. BTBS and The Fly are just amazing. As for ZooTV, i think the video and audio quality are rather poor. The color seems to be off a little and most of the audio just falls flat at times. Although it's enjoyable to watch the band just going crazy with all the cool stuff they did for ZooTV, i think the poor quality takes away from it a lot.

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"I swore to my father I'd never do hamster-style again."

"looking for the sound thats gonna drown out the world
looking for the father of my two little girls
got the swing got the sway got my straw in lemonade
looking for the face i had before the world was made." - MOFO
 
Originally posted by Achtung Zooropa:
I think overall the POPmart video is the best of them all. POPmart just seemed to lend itself to watching on video. I love the shots of the crowd and of the entire LED screen as it's changing with the song. Bono and especially Edge look like they are having a lot of fun with the show. Elevation isn't as fun to watch, but I don't think that the shots take away from the overall effect of the dvd. The sound quality is very good. I would have like to have Mysterious Ways and One make an appearance, but oh well. BTBS and The Fly are just amazing. As for ZooTV, i think the video and audio quality are rather poor. The color seems to be off a little and most of the audio just falls flat at times. Although it's enjoyable to watch the band just going crazy with all the cool stuff they did for ZooTV, i think the poor quality takes away from it a lot.
Click to expand...

yay
smile.gif
 
ZOO Tv is the best by spirit, looks , POP MaRt is best by special effects
and Elevation boston doesn't have any pluses , but only one - sound itself ( however editing all crowd off was a bad thing )
 
Does the DVD contain songs from both shows? Which one is from which? And what songs didn't make it?

Andy
 
well there is the punter cam on the Boston DVD if you don't want to watch the "normal" version! It probaly didn't matter how it was filmed, there would still be people slagging it off! just no pleasing some people, for me, it was like being there again!
 
Johnny-I felt exactly like you did after watching the Boston DVD the first time. Since then, I have come to appreciate it for some of the positive things mentioned above. I really like that flawless DVD quality actually. I think the lighting is brilliant. However, I really hated the quick shots, and closeups, and how there were very few stage shots. I agree with that. Bono doesn't sing to well laying down either. I've come to like it more as time goes on though.
 
The DVD definitely has its pros and cons.

Everytime the DVD gets to the point where One should be, I get really angry that they cut it out. What the hell happened that they would completely take that song out of the film?

Also, I wish there were more crowd noise. Some of the most breathtaking moments are when the crowd is singing along and you can really hear it. There's a little, but not as much as say, during Stay of ZooTV. I've also found that non-U2 fans are really impressed by the sections where the concert is a giant sing-a-long.

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U2 @ The Blooming Heart
 
I have the Smashing Pumpkins DVD and the short film Try is i dunno how to say this...weird. The whole thing is just basically gross. The only redeeming part is the minute near the end when all that crazy shit happens. Thats kinda funny. Other than that I didn't like it. All in all though it's a great DVD full of interesting stuff and good videos.

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"I swore to my father I'd never do hamster-style again."

"looking for the sound thats gonna drown out the world
looking for the father of my two little girls
got the swing got the sway got my straw in lemonade
looking for the face i had before the world was made." - MOFO
 
Why are you all moaning about One not being on it? If you have either Zoo TV or PopMart, then it is on there, so shut up.

The only thing that has annoyed me is that they didn't film it in widescreen format as well. So much for up to date technology!
 
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