Radiohead - Meeting People Is Easy
by Grant Gee
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: Colin Greenwood, Ed O'Brien, Jonny Greenwood, Radiohead, Thom YorkeDirector: Grant Gee
Brand: Capitol Entertainment
Cinematographer: Grant Gee
Editor: Jerry Chater
Producer: Dilly Gent
DVD: Region Code 0
Audio: English (Unknown), Unknown; English (Original Language), Unknown
Format: Color, DTS Surround Sound, DVD, NTSC
Picture Format: 1.33:1
Running Time: 99 minutes
DVD Release Date: 1999-05-18
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Studio: Capitol
Movie Reviews of Radiohead - Meeting People Is Easy
Movie Review: Not your typical band DVD (and that's a good thing)
Summary: 5 Stars
For those of you expecting tons of live concert footage, unreleased songs, and lots of insight into the thought processes of one of the greatest bands of all time, you may be disappointed. That's not to say there isn't any live footage or interviews. There's quite a bit, actually, but it's not the focus of the film and most, if not all, of the songs and interviews are not shown in their entirety. Instead you get snippets. There is some interesting footage that shows the origins of songs on Kid A/Amnesiac, such as the piano part of "Life in a Glasshouse" being written, and Thom Yorke soundchecking "How to Disappear Completely" alone with an acoustic guitar (an amazing scene). I think "Big Ideas" is in there somewhere too. That being said, this film/documentary is much more of a story about the impact of stardom on otherwise ordinary people than an in depth look into the workings and dynamics of the band. That is why so many were disappointed with this, and that is also what makes it so damn interesting.
I think this film can best be explained by describing one scene: the movie fades from live footage of the band (playing "Lucky", my favorite Radiohead song) into a bunch of press clippings about "OK Computer", most of them claiming to know exactly what the band was thinking behind each song. The preeminent (and least pretentious) one says something like this: "You're a band. You've had some moderate success with your first 2 albums. You release your third album, which you quite like. No big deal, that's what bands do. Then, out of nowhere, you're being hailed as the saviors of rock n' roll." That is what this film is about.
Almost overnight, Radiohead went from cult favorite to some and "that band that wrote Creep" to many, into musical gods. Love the scene where they're playing "Creep" in Philly and Thom looks incredibly disinterested as he limply holds the mic to the crowd as they're singing along. Then the camera beautifully pans all the way back from a zoomed in shot of Thom to a view of the stage through one of the entrance/exit tunnels, complete with a hired goon (also known as security) in the shadows of the tunnel watching out for riff-raff. Then Jonny's "jud-jud" part kicks in and the goon is rocking out while he looks for said riff-raff. Sublime.
The most poignant scenes are not the concerts, but those of the band being interviewed. Again, and again, and again, and again. At one point they play about 5 different clips of people asking "What does music mean to you?" back to back without playing their responses. The point is not to give you some kind of insight into the people who comprise the band, but to show the effects of stardom on people who are not consumed with being stars. The sheer banality of it all must be quite tiring.
All of the hype and attention starts to crack some members of the band. They are all very uncomfortable with their new found celebrity status, and it shows. One interviewer continually badgers Thom Yorke about all the celebrities attending their shows, in an unintentionally amusing, ESPN anchor/radio DJ-esque tone of voice: "So you're not impressed when, say, Tom Cruise is at your concert?" Thom does not look (nor act) impressed and then calmly explains that in England they do not quite comprehend the God-like status given to celebrities here in America. In the end, celebrities are people like everybody else, just as fallible as you and me.
This film is about so much more than music, and that is what makes it worth watching. It is about fame and celebrity, about the loss of privacy, about having to live up to unrealistic expectations from people who know next to nothing about you, yet they feel they understand you completely. The title itself speaks volumes. Meeting people might be "easier" for the members of Radiohead now that they are famous, but are they really meeting anybody worth their time? This film was not what I expected but I was more than pleasantly surprised. It may take a couple viewings for it to sink in, but this film is amazing. It seems fairly obvious why "Kid A" sounds as claustrophobic as it does after watching this documentary. If you were in a band that went through this, you would make claustrophobic sounding music too.
I've read through some of the negative reviews and their complaints aren't totally without merit. Still, I can't help but think that most of them are simply missing the point. If "artsy" films aren't your thing, you might not get it. If you're one of those people who needs everything spelled out for you and doesn't understand subtlety, you might not get it. Even if you fall into one of those categories, at least give this film a try. I don't think you'll be disappointed, but you might. If you do like artistic films and you understand what the filmmaker is doing, you will love this movie.
Summary of Radiohead - Meeting People Is Easy
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