U2 - Best of 1990-2000 (DVD 2 DISC)

Quick Overview: This DVD is both an excellent survey of U2's music during the past decade and a fascinating anthology of music videos, both conceptual and performance. Musically, it contains all of the songs from the regular release of the CD "U2: The Best of 1990-2000", with the exception that "For the First Time" is replaced by "The Fly". In addition, it contains seven bonus tracks, songs lamented by many for not being included on the CD. Cinematically, it boasts both performance and conceptual videos of varying quality; with the inclusion of intriguing director commentaries, many of the videos merit multiple viewings. Alternate videos for "Even Better Than The Real Thing", "One", "Stuck in a Moment...", "Staring at the Sun", and "Numb" are provided to yield a total of 28 music videos for 23 songs. As a special treat, three documentaries are included. All in all, this is an amazing DVD.

Details, Shot One ("Conceptual Videos"): The most successful conceptual videos are "Numb" (Godley version), "Please", and "If God Will Send His Angels". The "Numb" video bluntly demonstrates the cause of The Edge's numbness--it's also quite funny and disturbing. "Please" and "If God Will Send His Angels" are probably my favorites. Bono's performance in "Please" is poignant, and the gimic employed by Corbijn works well here. The use of split screen and altered film speed in "If God Will Send..." effectively communicates that awful out-of-sync feeling of being alone among people, even among friends.

"One" deserves special mention. Three videos were made for this. Pellington's version, employed in concert, emphasized buffalos, images of which adorn both the CD and DVD; sadly, this video was NOT included on the DVD. The other two videos are here, and they are interesting. Corbijn's version is notable for having Bono's father playing a major role; in addition, you get to decide which member of U2 would make the most attractive woman--I don't think it's Bono.

Details, Shot Two ("Performance Videos"): What would U2 be without footage of them on stage? Many of these videos, including conceptual ones, feature perforance footage. Some, like "Gone" and "Mofo", are essentially concert videos; I prefer watching these songs on the Zoo TV and PopMart videos. Others, like "Even Better Than the Real Thing", "Mysterious Ways", and "Staring at the Sun", utilize novel filming techniques to
bolster the song's mood or message. Some are more successful than others. For example, at first boring, the strange effects in "Staring at the Sun" (Scott version) become almost revelatory at the end. In "Please" and "One", expressions on The Edge's face at key points of the video are very telling and make the inclusion of performance footage mandatory.

One Drop of Sad: These are minor quibbles. 1) Navigation is sometimes frustrating. You click on the director's name and you get either the video OR the video with commentary. If you click on the triangle beside his name, you definitely get commentary. If you have the same trouble, keep trying; eventually, you will get the straight video. 2) With "Mofo", I had to try accessing the video several times before I heard the soundtrack. "Mofo" was the only video with which I had this problem. 3) Although the box claims subtitles in five languages, I did not find Japanese subtitles actually provided for the songs I checked, and I checked most of them. 4) Some songs, like "Beautiful Day" and "One", had alternate videos. It would have been nice to have ALL versions. (This is a BEST OF anthology, so maybe they only included the best of the alternates?)

Extra Tidbits: The DVD booklet provides interesting, albeit short, notes on each song. The DVD package provides storage space for the U2 The History Mix DVD, that came with the special edition of "The Best of 1990-2002" CD.

In Summary: This is an outstanding DVD. It contains most, arguably the best, of the singles from 1990-2000 with their videos, all of which contain something of at least passing interest and some of which are very powerful. The director commentaries are fascinating and provide valuable behind-the-scenes information. The documentaries are a nice addition. I highly recommend "U2: The Best of 1990-2002"; it's one of the best DVDs I've bought this year.

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