Pink Floyd - Live at Pompeii (2003)

Can Pink Floyd be any less than fantastic?

Compared to the original version of "Live at Pompeii" this one has more material in it, without anything dropped. There are some more interviews, where Roger makes fun of the interviewer, that's so much fun! And some Odyssey like video parts have been added to the songs that looks pretty cool. June 23, 2008

Too much tampering with a good thing

"Pink Floyd Live At Pompeii - The Director's Cut" could have been a better film than it is, even with the extra and new footage, if Adrien Maben hadn't tried to run the gamut here. It's total overkill. The audio is now more clear sounding, and the picture is now sharper than it was, and some alternate footage from the time is included to enhance the experience, but there is some serious inconsistency in the bigger picture.

In its original form, the viewer gets an opening sequence made up of some eerie music the band recorded for the film, some shots of the Roman ruins, and the preliminary stages of the road crew setting up the equipment. Now, there is a black screen, with a heartbeat and some heavy breathing. I felt like I was watching "Friday The 13th." You then get some nice spacey images during the first bars of "Echoes: Part One," looking suspiciously like Stanley Kubrik's "2001: A Space Oddessy." It does fit the music, and it's probably what the band would have shown on "Mr. Screen," as they called it, in the shows from those days, so I took this in stride. It is, after all, a new version. The visuals are really very beautiful during this, but the majesty of this performance is belied by footage of David Gilmour and Rick Wright recording the vocals to the original version in the studio. The sound itself is from the "concert," but seeing them fumble through outtakes during this, takes the covers off them. And even though there is no acting, per se, Gilmour does what every film director says not to do; he looks directly at the camera between lines. But even with these glitches, the film still does look and sound good.

And even cleaned up, the original footage, already in existence, as well as some other exposition, has a slightly gritty look to it, causing the "documentary" feel, and it works. But there is some computer-generated imaging which jars the viewer out of the lull they achieve while enjoying the band's performances. Time and circumstance do not allow a complete play-by-play in this forum, but if the original footage had a digital-era clarity, or the segments of new digital-era footage were slightly grittier looking, the transitions would have worked wonderfully. This is only my opinion. But, usually, new treatments are supposed to fit seamlessly into the original piece; here, it's the metaphorical "sore thumb." And too bad, because it is a very ambitious cut, worthy of watching anyhow. The scenery shots, previously unused, are unbelievably beautiful. The landscapes, from the original cut, and the shots taken from the vault and added in, are breathtaking. For real.

Certain things I wouldn't have done (I know, this is Adrien Maben's film, not Jerry H's film) if I were the director, though, include one thing I didn't care for, in the original film. It's not bad, but not what I would have done. In some of the outdoor footage, there are some stunning landscapes, with the band members walking through it, on an outdoor hike, looking something like The Beatles in "Yellow Submarine." These shots should have been done without Waters, Wright, Mason, and Gilmour, out on some nature-hike. It's just pointless. They only worked together, they didn't go hiking and whatnot, but this is only a viewpoint. And the other thing: The newly included black-and-white footage of the interviews from the cafeteria. The only saving grace here, is some conversations with Rick Wright, conspicuously absent from the original cut. But, really, watching Roger Waters eat oysters for lunch, is one of the most disgusting things I have ever seen. I cringe at the sight of this, and even writing about it. And he obviously has a holier-than-thou attitude as well. He makes some very valid points in his conversations, but here, he is showing just how boorish he can be. But I guess, these parts show us that they are just a bunch of regular guys who laugh and joke with one another, they aren't embassadors from another planet. I just wouldn't have included these clips.

But, as I have said earlier, sometimes the new edits work very well. During the climax of "A Saucerful Of Secrets," there is some stock film of a volcano erupting, and the flooding of a city with hot lava, including a shot of a horrified little girl watching her home town being destroyed by one of God's temper tantrums. But, some of the additional visuals look like something you'd see while using a Play Station video game. This is what cost this video a star for me.

Also, as a gift to the purist, the original "concert" is included in the bonus features, in tact, the first of the three releases, no interviews, no toying with the running order, just the band playing their best material of the day for the camera crew, and this is a 5-plus rating on the 1 to 5 scale available here.

My favorite bands are Pink Floyd, The Who, Steppenwolf, and The Mothers. Videos like this are the reason. June 16, 2008

Two Movies for the Price of One

One evening in 1973 I was watching reruns of 'Night Gallery' on my 10 inch black and white TV and I began flipping channels during the commercial to see what else was on. On PBS I couldn't believe what I was seeing, PINK FLOYD! I looked at the TV Guide and saw it Pink Floyd Live at Pompeii. Needless to say, I did not go back to my other show and I looked in vain for years for a repeat of the show. Well, now it is on DVD in color on my big screen TV and is an instant nostalgia device. One thing I don't understand though is why everyone complains about the director's cut. I agree that it isn't necessary since it detracts from the power of the original which launches right into the music without the 'fan club sentimentalities' and dressings of the director's cut. But BOTH VERSIONS are on the disk, so watch the ORIGINAL CONCERT MOVIE first if you just want the simple truth and later watch the DIRECTOR'S CUT if you want more, but please don't whine. May 26, 2008

This is creative trash

Hey, Pink
I hope I am not being presumptuous by using your first name, but familiarity seems appropriate in this case. I have a question for you. Exactly what were you trying to prove in Pink Floyd: Live at Pompeii? I have been to Pompeii. I have been to the mountaintop of Vesuvius. The souls of those who died in the volcanic eruption one millennium, nine centuries, one score and five years ago heard your performance and they are groaning.
You were given four pieces of electronic equipment and told to do something with them. The implication was that you were going to do something musical with them. What you concocted was a piece of work that only someone savoring the effects of an ecstasy-marijuana-crack cocktail could begin to understand.
Pink, that was not music. Count Basie was music. Frank Sinatra was music. The Beatles were music. Pavorotti looks like music. The Miracles and the Temptations were real music. Aretha Franklin defines music. What you presented will probably cause Vesuvius to come to life again.
You are beginning to make me think that Camille Paglia was correct when she said rock musicians should be forced to have classical training before they are allowed to create their own art. I will take it one step further. I say artists such as Pink Floyd should be forced to sit at the feet of the classical artists to learn a thing or two. Since the classical artists are all dead, that will solve the problem.
Pink, I suggest you relinquish your rights to the name. You are an insult to all that is pink. Even the panther is having second thoughts about being associated with the color.

Sincerely


Loup April 24, 2008

Like All Legends, Time Adds To The Telling

First off, I am listening to 'mometary lapse' whilst writing this, so yes I 'like' Floyd. As with most things, floyd are divided into two categories, those who love them and those who haven't spent time listening to them. If you're considering buying this dvd or are reading this, then you fall into the former. Therefore it really means that a true review is irrelvant to a certain extent, as like me, you'll want to see this, irrespective of opinion to a large degree.
With that I mind I keep this review simple. The music is floyd, the cinematography is excellent, yes it is old and therefore not as 'flashy' as newer music videos, or even waters concerts for those lucky enough to have seen them. But it's floyd, their music, their personas on screen and we get what we floyd fans want.
One thing I will say is that this movie is better for time, to see the band talk and interact with each other at a time when they worked together and had a lot of common musical goals is incredibly interesting, especially in light of where they are now, the issues, the 'reunion' and the ongoing solo works.
This is a movie worth watching for them music, the people and the history. April 6, 2008

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