Erasure - Hits! The Videos

Erasure - Hits! The Videos

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Movie Reviews of Erasure - Hits! The Videos

Movie Review: Nevermind the bad videos, just enjoy...
Summary: 5 Stars

There are plenty of good videos scattered throughout the first DVD. The first two, Who Needs Love Like That? and Heavenly Action, are campy and rather amateur, but are still very charming. Sometimes, even with its cluttered camera angles, is memorable for Andy Bell dancing in the rain. Other early favorites of mine include It Doesn't Have to Be, Ship of Fools, and A Little Respect. Starting with Chorus, the videos seem to be a little more "polished." After scoring some moderate pop success, they no doubt got bigger budgets for their videos. In Chorus, seeing Andy Bell in a sea of sunflowers, dressed in overalls, is wonderful. Love to Hate You also has a great scene of Andy marching with some flamenco dancers, clapping his hands. The two other videos from the Chorus album are also good. Am I Right is beautifully shot in black and white. Andy really does seem to emote what he is singing, making you wonder how autobiographical the song is. Breath of Life is a spin on Alice in Wonderland...who can forget those girls dancing in circles, dressed as oysters?

From the Abba-esque EP, there are two good videos, and two duds. Others here complain about Take a Chance on Me, but I think it's brilliant. For once, Vince really gets "into" the video, instead of looking zombified...I guess it had to be "dragged" out of him, lol. Besides, after that, he's missing from most of the videos. Likewise, Lay All Your Love on Me features Little Red Riding Hood finding Snow White poisoned by the apple. Andy and Vince, dressed in gold lame, arrive on golden motorcyles to help her. The riding through the forest is reminiescent of Star Wars. The duds are Voulez-Vous (too dizzy), and S.O.S., which is marred by jittery camera angles, not to mention that by then videos shot in houses was really becoming a cliche for Erasure.

From the rest of the collection, my favorites are the oriental-themed Always, the wonderfully shot Run to the Sun, I Love Saturday (Andy looks tasteful instead of campy/trashy, for a change), Fingers and Thumbs, which is set in a carnival park, and Rain (a live video, with the crowd really getting into it.

A special mention should be made for Rock Me Gently. Another reviewer here gripes about not "getting" why Erasure did a video about Marilyn Monroe. I strongly disagree. Shot in sepia tones, it is a touching tribute to one of the greatest icons in cinema. The tragedy of her premature death still haunts Hollywood. It was very brave of Andy to dress up like Marilyn, and the "special effects" they used on his face make him look almost like the real thing, really flooring you when you hear "Marilyn" sing lines like, "And there's more to life than thrills, and spills, and dollar bills." Marilyn is every gay man's saint, and this video does well by her. Bravo, Erasure.

As for the really bad videos, my top three picks for real stinkers are 1) Oh L'Amour- Andy is drenched from head to toe in sweat, wearing a kind of wife-beater and old-man white shorts, with socks to match...for this reason, I also hate the Leave Me to Bleed live clip...thank God there is the "hidden" European video, where at least Andy isn't sweating; 2) Don't Say Your Love Is Killing Me- what an awful concept, Andy being dragged around on a carpet; and 3) In My Arms- one of my favorite songs, and they had to ruin it by putting out this bluish/greenish live clip that looks all too much like the videos for Victim of Love and Chains of Love.

Solsbury Hill is in a special, awful catagory of its own...Andy is too old by now to be working that tired drag!

As for the second DVD, the interviews are let-downs. Granted, I haven't seen them all, but at least three of them go on and on about the formation of Erasure, and why they don't like to make videos, etc. They don't actually discuss much about the respective album being promoted!!! The live clips are a mixed bag...only Waiting for the Day really stands out. I wish they had included a live clip of Heart of Stone, one of their best non-singles. From the bonus videos, Too Darn Hot isn't well sung by Andy, but it is an important public service annoucement for a disease that is still ravaging the human race.

Sorry to have gone on for so long, but there really is much to cover here!!!

Summary of Erasure - Hits! The Videos