Madonna - Truth or Dare (1991)

Norman Mailer may have come up with the title Advertisements for Myself, but in this case, Madonna is the one who really wrote the book. Truth or Dare, an engaging behind-the-scenes look at the pop star's Blonde Ambition tour, is a feature-film advertisement for herself that Roger Ebert cleverly dubbed "an authorized invasion of privacy." How much of it is calculated and how much of it is genuine, what Madonna chooses to reveal about herself and what she actually reveals in the process, are up to the viewer to decide. Patterned in part after the classic D.A. Pennebaker documentary of Bob Dylan Don't Look Back, the black-and-white sections of Truth or Dare offer glimpses into her offstage life, while excerpts from the show are seen in color. Madonna's relationship with her father and brother, the maternal control she wields over her dancers, her giggly friendship with Sandra Bernhard, her crush on Antonio Banderas (later to become her costar in the movie version of Evita), the waning days of her relationship with Warren Beatty (who accuses her of wanting to exist only for the camera)--all of it becomes self-conscious fodder for a fascinating examination of modern pop stardom. --Jim Emerson Amazon.com

A new DVD release PLEASE

I bought this years ago on VHS....(enough said?). It deserves a DVD release and some extras. I saw Madonna in Philly in 1989 and I loved it. I still remember the opening act...Technotronic(they sucked). The songs are still good. I didn't even know who Antonio Banderas was then. January 18, 2008

Is this DVD out of stock?

I'm not lucky enough to own this product, but I just did a search on it to compare its contents with those of the I'm Going to Tell You a Secret, which I do own, and realized that the DVD is currently only being sold by external users and sellers, and not by Amazon itself.

So I'd like to know, cuz this has got me thinking that maybe we'll see a re-release soon? I'm really hoping for a new DVD, with remastered sound and video. It would be so great it they would release it this year, to go along with the more recent documentary. September 28, 2006

A Document for Madonna's Times

16 years after this documentary was released, and Madonna is still with us. Has anything changed? She's had kids, maintained musical mastery of her work and kept on chugging.

Truth or Dare is a very well made 'fly-on-the-wall'document that has not dated in my opinion. Then, as now, Madonna was ahead of the curve in doing this. Her chameleon like makeovers make her a more riveting subject. And as an icon for her time, she makes for great tv. The slice of life approach integrates well and viewing it 16 years later - it's as fresh as it ever was. Better than the Osbournes.

One thing is I always wondered what happened to the director of the film: Alek Keshishian. They should consider doing a follow up.

PS - Blond Ambition was my favourite Madonna tour on video, and I hope they release it again on DVD. This release features a few performances. April 18, 2006

Truth or dud is more like it

I saw this movie (for free) in the theater when it came out and if I had to pay good money to watch it I would have demanded my money back. It has to be one of the worst films I have ever seen! I was so bored I almost fell asleep watching it. This movie is a waste of good hard earned money and I would not recomend buying it or wasting your time watching it. December 31, 2005

"She doesn't even want to live off-camera"

"Truth or Dare" is supposedly a no-holds-barred behind-the-scenes look at Madonna during her Blond Ambition tour. Nowadays, Madonna sports a faux-British accent and writes children's books and sometimes goes on TV to rail against the dangers of ... TV. But back then (1991) Madonna thrived off shocking people with her racy videos and even racier live shows.
Despite the fact that at one point (in Toronto) Madonna gets into hot water for performing a masturbatory act onstage, the real-life Madonna Louise Ciccone is about as sexy as a can of baked beans. Loud, pushy, demanding, and above all phony, rarely has a celebrity seemed so utterly dislikable on-camera. She plays mother-hen to her entourage of dancers and make-up artists, but when one makeup artist is sodomized in New York, Madonna simply whines that "it's so hard" to do a show in the Big Apple. A childhood friend comes to visit Madonna backstage and is given the polite brushoff. Kevin Costner describes one show as "neat" (he clearly didnt enjoy it) and Madonna mimics throwing up. Then-boyfriend Warren Beatty has a priceless moment when the producers ask Madonna if she wants to take her throat culture off camera. "Why?" snaps Beatty. "She doesn't even want to live off-camera."
But perhaps the most surreal and funny moment is when Madonna invites her dad to one of her shows in Detroit. Her dad is clearly disgusted by the raciness of her shows (at one point she kneels by her dad onstage, and looks ready to give him a ... well, use your imagination). Backstage her dad weakly says the show is "arty" before Madonna gives him a huge smackdown about her artistic conscience. At another point, Madonna lies on her mother's grave, limo waiting, while her brother Christopher hides behind a tree, clearly embarrassed beyond words.
So this is Madonna: rude, demanding, pushy, self-righteous, and pretty much insufferable. Depending on your taste, you can either view this as a hysterical chronicle of appalling celebrity behavior or simply a PR-job gone awry. September 28, 2005

More reviews at Amazon.com ...