Kraftwerk: Minimum-Maximum
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Movie Reviews of Kraftwerk: Minimum-Maximum
Movie Review: Crafty Kraftwerk
Summary: 5 Stars
Plain and simple, if you are a serious fan of Kraftwerk this DVD will not disappoint you.Movie Review: somewhere between minimum and maximum...
Summary: 4 Stars
At long last... the reclusive mensch-machines from Dusseldorf have assembled an official "MusikFilm produkt"... Like the 2-CD collection of the same name, Minimum-Maximum was recorded live during Kraftwerk's 2004 world tour. The DVD has the same track listing as the CDs, in fact (with one "bonus track" on the DVD)... and yes, even the exact same cover art... just as you might expect from the "inventors of techno" who have embraced, emulated and literally embodied high technology, mass production, and robotic coolness for over 30 years.
I was fortunate enough to see Kraftwerk's live "produkt" in Chicago earlier this year, and the Minimum-Maximum DVD is indeed an accurate document of the concert experience -- only without the sticky floors, brain-melting volume, sweaty audience, and overpriced beer.
Of course this is a technical improvement over the bootleg DVD I've seen of a 2004 London Kraftwerk show (although the shaky digital camerawork added a somewhat welcome human element...) The graphics and menus are sleek, simple, and streamlined. There are Stereo and DTS 5.1 Surround sound options, and as you would expect, both mixes are clean, clear, and precise (with crowd sounds and applause present when appropriate... just like on the Minimum-Maximum CDs.)
Could a live performance by an electronic band possibly be that interesting to watch? Well, Kraftwerk's unique (and strangely irresistible) stage presence has to be seen to be believed: the band (four middle-aged, clean cut German guys identically dressed in a variety of subdued yet strange outfits) stand behind laptops and synthesizers doing whatever they do back there (maybe playing Solitaire or balancing their checkbooks? we never do get so see those laptop computer screens on the DVD...) and the one on the left (Ralf) adds minimal vocals now and then. You know it's 90% pre-recorded/pre-programmed music, but watching these four guys up there tapping their feet and bobbing around is somehow quite adorable and engaging. The big "theatrical" moment comes when the band members are replaced by creepy/kitschy robot versions of themselves performing the song... yes, you guessed it: The Robots. If you expect stage diving and guitar burning, though, you've definitely come to the wrong place.
Visually, the DVD is mostly a standard "concert video," with frequent wide shots of the stage area and the all-important visuals projected behind the band... essentially you'll see the show as if you had been there... sitting in the best seats in the house. Maybe this is as it should be -- just don't expect an electronica Woodstock or a techno Gimme Shelter... (wouldn't that be great, though?)
There are some occasional close-ups and attempts at "production touches" that are a bit awkward, such as showing the band members' hands and heads on the buttons of the "Pocket Calculator" (resulting in sort of a Brady Bunch/Hollywood Squares effect.) There's also a rather amateurish digitally pixellated pseudo-psychadelic freak out during Home Computer (do not adjust your DVD player...) Now and then there are split-screens and cross-fades, and when the background videos are in black and white, the band is also (not sure if that's supposed to be "artistic" or some kind of mistake...) And I noticed only one crowd shot during the entire two hour concert. Overall, in contrast to the highly stylized, synchronized, and very professional projected films used by the band, the production, direction, and editing of the concert itself has a surprisingly (and slightly embarrassing, especially for Kraftwerk) low budget digital video look to it (the credits list a three man camera crew, which is very obvious...) It's almost like they got a few of those bootleg camera guys and gave them a couple thousand bucks to improve upon their earlier efforts.
I would nevertheless recommed this release as an entirely functional live concert DVD of a legendary band... but I do have a few more gripes: Most importantly, why isn't there more bonus material? Yes, it's fun and weird to see Krafterk performing at the MTV video awards... but surely there are plenty of rare video goodies in the KlingKlang vaults that could have been included (like we got on Led Zeppelin's amazing double DVD.) And why not release the CDs and DVDs at the same time (or packaged together) rather than hitting the fans with the ol' "double dip" a few months after we've already bought the CDs (and possibly a concert ticket too)? It also doesn't indicate anywhere on the packaging or credits where any of this was actually filmed... it looks like it's all the same venue, but who knows (I guess who cares when the show is pretty much the same everywhere... but this info is to be expected on a live concert release -- and besides, the Minimum-Maximum CDs list the city and venue for each track!) ... sigh... well, let's wrap this up...!
Are you new to Kraftwerk? You need this: it's a good way to immerse yourself in the band... The less memorable new material (Expo 2000, Vitamin, an overlong Tour de France sequence) is much more enjoyable with the visuals, plus you get all the classic Kraftwerk hits (albeit in their digitized The Mix versions) and all the fabulous retro-futuristic imagery from the band's past and present all in one shiny package.
Are you a longtime Kraftwerk fan? You need this too (actually you probably already have it): True, you'll feel shortchanged by the lack of bonus material and surprised that the video produciton quality isn't at the same meticulously professional level you have come to expect from Kraftwerk. Regardless, you're grateful there's finally an official KlingKlang DVD, and if you've never seen the band live, this is the next best thing.
A final note for avid collectors, obsessed fans, and/or the independently wealthy: There's a deluxe limited edition "Notebook" Minimum-Maximum box set packaged as a fake laptop computer... it includes the DVDs and CDs plus an 88 page book of tour photos and technical data... (technical data...? would anyone really pay extra for that...? and who needs photos when you have the DVDs...? I think I'll pass, guys.... maybe next time...)
Movie Review: 4.5 Stars... The reclusive Kraftwerk finally on DVD
Summary: 4 Stars
Let me state upfront that I have been a life-long fan of Kraftwerk, starting with the "Autobahn" album days way back when. The 2004 album "Tour de France: Soundtracks" was an unexpected and very strong album, showing that these guys are STILL making relevant and exciting music. Then the band decided to tour, which they don't do much, resulting in the "Minimum Maximum" CD, which I bought when it came out, followed by the DVD, which I now finally bought, as I finanlly have a decent "home theater" set-up.
"Minimum Maximum" (2 DVDs, 126 min.) brings you the Kraftwerk live experience as if you were there. You may ask why it is exciting to see these 4 guys on stage behind their laptops, realizing that much of the music is probably pre-recorded, but there is an unquestionable mystique about the band. The visuals displayed behind the band on stage are very nice and let's be clear, this is not an MTV-like experience: the camera angle doesn't change every 2 seconds or so, so it feels like you are watching what the audience is watching. The very best of this set is at the end of show, with the 1-2 punch of "Areo Dynamik", an irresistable electro-stomper from their 2004 "come-back" album, followed by an even better (and concert-closer) "Music Non Stop", miles better than the album version ever was. The guys eventually leave the stage one by one, and most intruiging it shows them actually seemingly playing their keyboards to the music: you can see Ralf Hotter even do a "solo" of some sorts. When Hotter closes with shouting out "Guten Nacht, Auf Wedersehn!" as the track finishes, it is just nadir.
What stops me from giving this a 5 star rating is that there are absolutely no bonus materials whatsoever. No interviews with the band, no additional clips from the past or anything. Given that this a 2 DVD release, there was obviously plenty of space for that, but no, alas. For whatever reason (and there are many), I have never seen Kraftwerk in concert myself, but this DVD gives me a pretty good idea of what I have missed (sigh). Essential for any Kraftwerk fan.
Movie Review: Kraftwerk's 1st DVD release
Summary: 4 Stars
With todays technology and Kraftwerk's vision you would think that the band would come up with a fantastic, ahead of our time product. True that their music is unique, very imitated and sampled by other bands but they were never very original in their videos. Many bands have refused to make the necessary music videos that became a necesity since the 80's. An example of how new technology can be used to improve work is The Mix where old songs were redone and remixed, made 200% better than the originals. So why wouldn't Kraftwerk hire a superb company to do their first music DVD ever? The sound is superb with DTS Digital Surround Sound. True fans will love the product regardless of how good or bad it is. The DVD menu was amateurish. There are glitches in some of the transitions from one song to the other. Camerawork could have been better. The image was grainy. The videos are not the same list as on the Minimum-Maximum cd list. On the cd, the tracks list where they were recorded, as on the DVD they were omitted. From all the videos in DVD i would say half are very good, specially when their graphics are incorporated and mixed in. What was supossed to be the highlight of the product, would have been seeing the robots, but the video was sorta lame compared to seeing them live. The worst video is track 03 HOME COMPUTER on disk 2, very amateurishly pixelated throughout.The list of Kraftwerk songs is long, too bad some of their other great songs wasn't included either in the concert, live cd or live DVD(Electric Cafe, Metropolis, Sex Object). So for those of you fans who didn't see Kraftwerk live, this is the best next thing to it, I would know, I saw them twice at Coachella and The Greek Theatre in LA. The product is good but not ahead of it's time. True fans will get goosebumps out of this DVD while others will go "hmmmm, ok"Movie Review: Learn to Love Technology
Summary: 4 Stars
I am taking away one star because most of the "live" playing is on laptops (with a controller synth). When I saw them live in 1998 they used actual synths throughout the whole show. Okay once they found their style their live show was basically preprogrammed (they even tossed around the idea of having remote controlled robots play their music live for them) but watching someone play a laptop is far less interesting than a synth (which is the reason why most of the great electronica groups can't hack it live-see Do You Know Squarepusher for evidence of that). However, the background videos that overwhelm the viewer more than make up for it. Some of them (such as the Model and Autobahn) use the same footage they've been using for years (using archival footage makes it more interesting with nostalgia for a past workshop of techonology). However, the pieces off Tour De France (except for the title track) are not very creative and are only saved by the video footage. And quoting anti-nuclear disasters in Radioactivity is an unnecessary piece of revisionism, the song was always anti-nuclear, its like the Cure leaving Killing an Arab off the re-release of Three Imaginary Boys. Other than that heck its Kraftwerk live(to an extant, I'm sure there was post production work on the music)and for a group that next to the Beatles were the most influential musicians in history, that is something to be thankful for.