Cheap Björk: Greatest Hits - Volumen 1993-2003 (DVD) (Michel Gondry, Stephane Sednaoui, Chris Cunningham (II), Lynn Fox, Alexander McQueen, Danny Cannon, John Kricfalusi, Nick Knight (II), Paul White (VIII), Jean-Baptiste Mondino) Price

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Customer Reviews of Björk: Greatest Hits - Volumen 1993-2003

Bjork is a musical and visual pioneer
Bjork, like Madonna, is one of the rare artists who really makes the most of the music video medium. Instead of creating disposable promos, Bjork's videos are performance art pieces, as captivating and experimental as anything you might see in an art gallery. She has a knack for teaming with wonderful directors who share her vision and pioneering spirit. Some highlights of this stunning collection include "Human Behavior" (a playful, surreal fairy tale by Michael Gondry), It's Oh So Quiet (a post-modern musical extravaganza by Spike Jones), "I Miss You" (an animated wonderland by the artists behind Ren & Stimpy) and "All Is Full of Love" (a cybersexual saga by Chris Cunningham). This collection is a must-have for any true Bjork fan.

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must see
I'm a big fan of Bjork's music, but had never really seen any of her full videos until a friend showed me this DVD. I had to go out and buy it the same night. The surrealism and diversity of the videos makes for a DVD you can watch straight through without getting bored. It's difficult to pick a favorite video, but I was most impressed with Pagan Poetry because of the way she really sewed pearls into her skin, tugs on the strings, etc. While a lot of the other videos are impressive for their costumes and surreal effects (among other things), Pagan Poetry is especially raw and hypnotizingly bold in its erotic imagery.

My friend also showed me the Inside Bjork DVD, which is a documentary. I'm going to be picking up that one soon, too. I recommend it if you enjoyed this DVD, it gives more insight into the "characters" Bjork was in for each album.

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The goods, and the not so good.
Having bought Volumen on VHS, I didn't feel too cheated when I bought Greatest Hits on DVD, even though most of the material was the same. I'm sure that some fans would have liked some interviews, a la Vessel, but this is a tremendous amount of music on one DVD, so it's hard to complain.

Looking back on this retrospective, I realize how much the "cute factor" was employed early on. Cute, as in "oh, Bjork looks cute cooking an egg, or look at her eat that slice of watermelon." Not to say that Venus as a Boy or Possibly Maybe were bad videos. The one video that has weathered the worst, in my mind, is Violently Happy. Basically, it's one big euro-trash cliche, by a director that had much greater success with Madonna. I understand the whole insane-asylum concept, but cutting up a teddy bear, and shaving your heard, and clipping Raggedy Ann is too cliched for me.

The first really good video is Army of Me. We must be thankful that this wasn't released post-9/11...I can only think of how the conservative right would have had a field day with this. This was a dark moment in Bjork's life (yes, she b@#^h slapped that reporter). It's interesting how she saves an Asian man...
I can't help but feel that there's a political message there.

Another fantastic video is Isobel, with its sepia tones. Wonderful concept.

From her third album, Joga is kind of a downer, not enough Bjork in there, but Bachelorette and Hunter are superb, especially Hunter, with Bjork unleashing her inner animal. I was blown away the first time I saw it. The main draw from this period, though is All is Full of Love. Someone I know says its disturbing, because underneath our skin we are just bones, not too different from the half-assembled robots in the video.

Alarm Call, despite being a collaboration with bad boy designer Alexander McQueen, is kind of a letdown. There are wonderful green colors thoughout the video, but the concept is too straightfoward. It's in Our Hands ups the ante, with Bjork cavorting in the dark with other nocturnal animals.

The dud video of the latter half is Hidden Place. After 30 seconds, that whole migration of bodily fluid becomes a boring concept, and we have to endure it for the rest of the video! Pagan Poetry and Cocoon are better, especially Cocoon, which I'm sure just baffled the hell out of the critics.

Well, Bjork could never be accused of being boring. This is the best evidence, on the whole, of how music videos can be art forms.