Cheap The Police - Everyone Stares: The Police Inside Out (DVD) Price

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Customer Reviews of The Police - Everyone Stares: The Police Inside Out

Uncle Stewart's Home Movie Night ...
I would assume anyone reading these reviews or looking at purchasing this DVD know who the Police were, and knows their music. Knowing who they were is where this DVD takes off from, and it brings a 'behind the curtain' view of the performers across the years. Stewart Copeland, the band's founder/drummer, glommed onto an 8mm sound camera and hung on as it commanded his soul. The obsession with this camera grafted to his hand was evident in some of the early photo shoots and videos. Now you can see all that footage edited down and put to a story of this famous rock band's rise to fame. <
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>It starts with still photos from the earliest years and quickly transitions into the film as Stewart (and Andy Summers) procure their cameras. Instead of getting a pre-polished, over packaged, over thought, mush glorification of the band you get the band, as themselves, filmed by one of them, narrated by the band (one, or two of them depending on the audio track). Due to the film being a home effort, it wasn't taken with any specific purpose in mind other then Stewart having fun or documenting things of immediate interest in the day. He experiments with stop motion, titles(Kim dumps a take?), time lapse, makes a fiction with Andy and supporting act, but more importantly he is holding the camera as the band starts touring as a stripped down, low rent act and builds to a gigantic world consuming success. Looking back you can laugh sympathetically as Sting has to lug his suitcase and bass into the hotel room, or as he finds the limo at the airport isn't for him. Then you see a rock star's pov as a surprise crowd mobs his band at the airport for the first time. Clips of the band and crew all over the world, as well as silly, impromptu humor give the video a lively, warm feel. It's a home movie! But, it explains what the band did that you never saw. <
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>There are two audio tracks. The first is Stewart's narrative, and I found it adequate but a little boring. Half way through the film I was wondering what I was doing watching, but it picked back up and got me through. The second track is commentary by Stewart and Summers, and their comments make the film fly by as they explain the context of shots and also joke about the images. <
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>Additional footage edited, but deemed important or entertaining, is lumped in the extras section. <
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>If you loved the band, and want to see them in their more private spaces, then $10 is a pittance. I thoroughly enjoyed this little trip to Uncle Stewart's basement movie night.

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Everyone Reunites
I was fortunate enough to see "Everyone Stares" on the big screen at the film's premiere during the Santa Barbara International Film Festival last year (Feb 06), and it's everything you hope an inside look at the band would be - once you get past the shaky footage and far-from-perfect sound. I think, as other reviewers will attest, this adds to the film's charm and re-enforces that it is "real" and not some recreation of actual events. I can't imagine anyone seeing this film who is not a fan of the Police, but if you are a fan, this film is a must-see for you. Oh - one great thing about seeing the film at the premiere: Stewart Copeland was there on stage at the relatively small theater for a Q&A following the film. It was very intimate - and the theater was so small, nobody needed microphones and so you felt like you were part of something really special. Stewart introduced Andy Summers who was sitting in the audience, and the two answered questions about everything - including, "Will the Police get together for a reunion tour?" Quite bluntly, Stewart said, "No." And moved on to other questions. Audience persistance lead him to say words to this effect (this is not a quote): "Sting is on another planet in terms of his music today. Even in the Police, his mind was racing in other directions. Andy (Summers) and I felt so fortunate to hold onto him in the Police for as long as we did, but we couldn't hold on forever. There are no ill feelings, and we talk - but only rarely. So, no - there will be no reunion tour." I'm writing this the morning after the Police performed at the Grammys last night - for the first time in more than 20 years.

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Takes Me Back
A look back at the first band I truly went nuts over. The film is probably more for the diehards, but still well worth a peek if you want to see what life on the road was like for the trio. Stewart Copeland, eclipsed by Sting so often, is very generous to him and Andy in this documentary. Sooo looking forward to the reunion tour!