The Hardest Working Band in Show Business!
Written: Oct 21 '00
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Product Rating:
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Pros: An insightful look into the Ladies personalities!
Cons: Only 90 minutes long!
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| teddford's Full Review: Barenaked in America |
If James Brown is the hardest working man in show business then The Barenaked Ladies have to be the hardest working band. Thanks to fellow Canadian Jason Priestly of 90210 fame, you can now get a behind the scenes look into the band.
It is a mystery to me why the popularity of The Barenaked Ladies spreading southward in the United States has been as slow as the migration northward of killer bees to the northern United States. Cooler climates explain the killer bee migration but I am mystified by the band's slow rise to popularity in the southernmost United States.
Living in Austin, Texas, it has been a real joy over the past few years following the Barenaked Ladies. I have had the joy of seeing 3 of BNL's live performances over the years in intimate venues here, thanks in part to Mix 94.7 and their decision to introduce the group to this market.
This film was shot during the band's 1998 Stunt tour of America and concentrates on the northernmost stops in Boston and Buffalo primarily due to the fact that their fans are most rabid there and have known them longer.
I took my 14 year old son to see this movie since he is a die hard fan of the group. I warned him up front the there would most likely be some nudity like women flashing their breasts at the band. Sure enough, there were two brief shots of this and a guy far off in a concert crowd briefly showing his "wanger" so be aware of this if you are easily offended. The band members also give a humorous take of life on a bus during a long tour and they give strong hints about having to ease their sexual frustrations via masturbation. These scenes are very brief though and do not detract from the overall quality of the documentary. In a couple of humorous scenes you will have a view of Ed Robertson sitting on a toilet as well. You will find a little mild language in the film but for the most part, it was very well received. Luckily, there is nothing shown and the film does not have Dolby Aroma! Being a documentary film, it did not have a rating at the theatre in Austin but it would probably be rated PG-13.
For true Barenaked Ladies fans, we were thrilled with footage that the band made very early on in the group's formation of "Be my Yoko Ono" in Toronto. This alone will be worth the cost of purchasing the VHS Video which will be shortly follow this movie's box office run. Comedy Central's Jon Stewart and film star Jeff Goldblum are two of the notable stars giving their takes on the band throughout the movie.
The most touching part of the film dealt with keyboardist Kevin Hearn's battle with cancer. While my son and I have proclaimed to know a lot about the root meanings of some of the bands lyrics, we were able to learn the meaning of another song entitled "Straw Hat and Old Dirty Hank". The song tells the story of a man stalking a singer, as told from the stalker's point of view. The song was inspired by a similar event that happened to Anne Murray, another Canadian that the Ladies revere.
If you are fortunate enough to have this movie appear in your vicinity, go see it. No doubt, you will be in the company of other BNL fans which will make your viewing all that much more enjoyable. If not, after the box office run, it will be made available on VHS tape for purchase, according to BNL lead singer Stephen Page.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
teddford
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Location: Austin, Texas
Reviews written: 19
Trusted by: 7 members
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