Customer Reviews

Queen: Days Of Our Lives

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Queen 40 years, that was 2011, the reissues, the box sets, books and documentaries, all flooding the market.
Among them this little documentary gem, released in the UK (mid January 2012 release date set for here in the US) on region free Blu ray disc.
There has been some consternation about the fact that the BD runs longer than the trimmed DVD release, and I can offer no insight. The BD has nice picture and sound, but is by no means stunning, most of the footage shown in the documentary is old and not restored, or upgraded to HD, so it's a good picture, not a stunning one.
The main feature is a two part documentary charting the beginnings of the band, through to their last live performance in 1986, and then what came next.
Most of the footage is narrated in interview style with Brian May, and Roger Taylor mostly. John Deacon (the bass player) seeming to have disappeared intentionally from the public eye, is not seen much, and the footage of Freddie is obviously old.

There is quite a bit of new footage, some unseen screen tests for videos, and the unseen live aid practice, all padded out with a chronology of hits, shows, ups and downs.
It was interesting to learn about some of the inner turmoil, the quiet solo attempts, not only from Freddie, but Brian and Roger also.
There are many interesting interviews with the likes of Paul Gambucinni, long time roadie Peter Hince, and their former manager, as well as news reports, clips covering the highs and the lows.
The immense crowds of South America, the mistake of Sun City, the long time break through to the USA, and so on.

The second part of the documentary deals with the high points, virtual split and then masterful reunion for Live Aid, and the massive '86 tour.
It also deals with Freddie's health, decline and ultimate end, and though delicately handled, it is sad and very bittersweet.

So 40 years? Well yes and no, 25 years since their last live concert as a complete band, and 20 years since the death of Freddie, yet here we are - still absorbed, still watching.
Arguably one of the greatest rock bands of the 20th century, certainly one, if not THE founders of "stadium" rock, who left an endearing legacy of great music.

Much of the the footage can be seen in other documentaries like Queen - Under Review - 1980-1991 and Queen - Under Review 1973-1980 but these are mostly the ramblings of other people. This BD has probably the most real input from the band, mostly Roger and Brian as already mentioned, but for any fan, or anyone who simply wants to know more about the band, it's certainly worth the money.

God...Freddie.

How much we need Freddie in this world today. How much we need the "Queen" of this documentary...

If you see NOTHING else, watch Brian talk about his dad, and playing MSG for the very first time, and "Love of My Life". That is as poignant, and spiritual, and lovely and wonderful piece of video as I've ever seen. And you watch Freddie's decline throughout the entire second part, and see how HARD he fought just to present a "whole person", where you could tell he was dying. Watching him perform the video for "These are the Days of Our Lives" is almost impossible to do, as poor Freddie just looks skeletal. And you hear Bri tell of a story where Freddie shows his leg to Bri while their are out on a break from a session (I'm guessing maybe it was some Kaposi's Sarcoma lesions on the leg or something), and Bri recoils---and yet Bri tells of Freddie actually apologizing for putting his friend and bandmate into such a position. Once again, just moving, and riveting. I'd also never seen Roger cry---but when he finally gets to the "end", he simply cannot go on. You won't be able to either. There are happy and victorious moments all throughout, but the second half is very difficult.

I really hate that Deacon John decided to skip out on the whole music Kingdom, but I respect that; however, it'd have been nice to really have his current thinking in this wonderful and sensitive documentary.

Queen is/was the smart man's Rock band. Bands from Metallica to the Foo Fighters to Bowie, to every football team (American and Soccer) around the whole world have enjoyed and been influenced by their music. This documentary is great at showing us why.

Musicians will particularly enjoy the behind the scenes stuff, and the "layperson" will enjoy the human interest.

This is a documentary/musical that is as important as the "Beatles Anthology"...almost.

Don't miss it. See it...the price is amazingly inexpensive for the amount of material.

RIP, Freddie...

A very good documentary - told in two chapters (you can watch them individually or consecutively) on the standard DVD. It's interesting to hear Brian May and Roger Taylor talk about Freddie's illness, and although they don't specifically say how early Mercury knew he had HIV/AIDS, they hint that he may have known as early as during the pre-concert rehearsals for LIVE AID in 1985. And Queen did rehearse - a lot - for LIVE AID, which I hadn't heard before. Some of that rehearsal footage is seen here.

Highlights include music-video "rushes" that feature alternate angles, takes and behind-the-scenes shots of Queen making their videos. The most shocking is a frail Mercury, in pain, standing up, for the "These Are the Days of Our Lives" video. The on-the-set color footage, showing Mercury waiting for the camera to start, is haunting. His sharp jawline (from AIDS) looks like it could cut through steel. Mercury's left eye is noticeably blood shot, and he looks plain ill, yet he pulled off one of his greatest on-screen performances for the music video.
It's nice to see the black-and-white film footage of Queen actually recording part of their "News of the World" album in 1977, and the 1976 live Hyde Park footage, although shown only in a couple too-brief segments, is magnificent. Footage of Queen's 1977 tour also is examined, through footage that wonderfully blends old videotape footage with film footage of the same gig.

I also learned of Roger Taylor's hatred for the "Hot Space" songs that sported dance-like beats, and how Queen almost broke up in 1982/83.

One of rock's greatest mysteries, though, has to be a now-missing-in-action John Deacon, Queen's bassist, who, for some reason, refused to take part in this documentary, as he has in all things Queen-related over the last several years. Is Deacon still alive? Anyone seen or heard from him? Supposedly Deacon gave May and Taylor his blessing to carry on with the Queen legacy, yet there's no word at all from Deacon. Was there any bad blood? Taylor was quoted a few years ago saying something like "You'll have to ask John about that, and I don't think he's in the right place to talk about that now." Maybe a bit of bad blood exists on John's part?

Queen: Days of Our Lives is the DVD to own if you want a documentary that, without any doubt, is the definitive documentary of one of the most flamboyant rock acts in history: Queen.

The documentary is a raw, gritty, informative, warts-and-all portrait of the band. It tells the story of four college students met up in 1971and started one of the world's greatest rock and roll bands. Since their forming, the band recorded an astonishing 26 albums with estimates of sales of between 150 and 300 million units. With numbers like that, it's no mystery how and why the band's music is embedded both in the soundtrack of our youth and in our musical and societal DNA.

Directed by Matt Casey and produced by long-time Queen collaborators Simon Lupton and Rhys Thomas, it is in this DVD that, for the first time, the band shares their incredible story. The two-disc set is a treasure trove of interviews - including new interviews with Brian May and Roger Taylor - as well as recently discovered video of the band's first ever television performance and other never-before-seen archival footage.

In telling what drove this must-have documentary, Rhys Thomas said, "We set out to make the definitive Queen documentary. It's a funny, honest, inspiring and ultimately tragic account of `a certain band called Queen, as told by the band themselves. We tell the story of four students who met in West London, slogged hard and conquered the world, ultimately changing the world forever."

In the UK in May, 2011, BBC broadcast Queen: Days of Our Lives over two nights to a reported 3 million viewers, resulting in it being the highest rated TV show in its time slot.

I enjoyed watching every second of each disc. It's that good. There are two segments that are particular Boomerocity favorites:

* Guitarist Brian May tells of bringing his parents over from the UK to see Queen perform at New York's Madison Square Garden. It is a very, very touching vignette.

*The segments of the last recording session and color video outtakes of the music video show on this review show and tell a Freddie Mercury as his body was losing its battle against AIDS.

* The segments of the last recording session and color video outtakes of the music video show on this review show and tell a Freddie Mercury as his body was losing its battle against AIDS.

Boomerocity.com

OMG this video is so wonderful. I just "discovered" Queen a few months ago. I'm
buying all CD's and books and DVD's. I can't get enough. To watch them and hear them talk about their music is like a dream come true.

Wow! I love this blu-ray. I have loved Queen since I was in high school in the 80's. This documentary tells a great story of the greatest band ever. The quality is great and Roger and Brian are so funny but very sincere. I love all the stories of how they wrote the songs. Well done. I know for sure that if GOD sang his voice would be Freddie Mercury. Queen Forever.

Eagle Vision continues its string of great music-lovers DVDs with their release of Queen - Days of our Lives on Blu-ray.

Since the death of flamboyant front man Freddie Mercury from AIDS in 1991 Queen's popularity, remarkably, has persisted. Fox's Glee featured a show with songs from Queen. Their big hit, "Bohemian Rhapsody" had a bit of a renaissance thanks to the prominent and hilarious use in the 1992 movie Wayne's World. There was also George Michael's top-of-the-charts cover of "Somebody to Love" in 1992. American Idol reunited the band to back up the two finalists for a rendition of "We are the Champions" capping off the highly rated Adam Lambert season. Queen also toured for four years with Bad Company's Paul Rodgers to sold out stadiums around the globe.

In terms of significance however, nothing trumps Queen's induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2001. While this might not have silenced all the critics who claimed Queen was an overly theatrical version of Muzak - it certainly justifies a long form documentary.

This BBC produced 2 hour documentary will delight fans. It also makes a case for reconsidering this band of college chums who sold over 100 million records. Taking a chronological approach it visits the early days of at Cambridge and how they really took off when they added lead singer/pianist Farrokh Bulsara (aka Freddie Mercury). Freddie was lightning in a bottle and arguably one of the greatest front men in the history of rock and roll. His Live Aid performance was a master class in what it means to be a rock star.

But the story goes deeper than Mercury. Each of the four band members wrote hit songs. This is unusual. So too is guitarist Brian May's PhD in Astrophysics. Loaded with interviews old and new, this is a well paced and never boring production. Of particular interest to fans will be the interviews with reclusive bassist John Deacon. While they are old - he no longer participates in the band - they are illuminating. So too are all the interviews which are articulate and heart felt.

Make no mistake though, it is a sad story that revolves around Mercury. He was the real deal. He could write hit songs, produce, sing, and play a very accomplished piano. He was also a front man whose gayness somehow didn't diminish his power or appeal. Sadly, his death will always define the band.

So check it out - 4 stars for must see music documentary!

With all the others reviews here - especially the one posted already by Poetmater - I won't go into the details of this DVD which includes the two-part, two-hour documentary made for, and broadcast by, the BBC plus nearly an hour of bonus materials including 3 deleted scenes and 7 videos. I did note from another review that there are a significant number of additional deleted scenes on the Bluray version but, since I was sent the standard DVD version, I cannot comment on them. Hardcore Queen fans - of which there are many - may want to opt for the BD. As for me, I really enjoyed their music but was more of a casual fan during their tenure so I actually learned things new to me from the extensive contemporary interviews with the band members, their manager and the various producers, plus a few music journalists.

I've seen at least one of the Under Review titles about the band but they tend to have more journalists and virtually no band members and the quality of the performance video in the UR Dvds is just "ok".

So, from the standpoint of the casual Queen fan, this one gets 5 stars from me - as much of the BBC-TV quality is here.

Steve Ramm
"Anything Phonographic"

Saw a preview of this documentary on YouTube so I was so excited when they put it on Blu-Ray here in the US. It's an amazing doc. with lots of interviews and video clips. Also a bonus section of unseen videos and more interviews. Great addition to any music fan, and Queen fan's library.

Along with End of the Century - The Story of the Ramones this Queen DVD is my favorite "rock doc" of the past few years. I've been a Queen fan for decades, and this doc has plenty of great never-before-seen footage, tops being footage of the "We Are the Champions" recording session, and also the recording sessions for the 'Hot Space' album. Plenty of revealing interviews w/ all those involved, and never-before-seen scenes/outtakes from their music videos ("Crazy Little," etc.). If you're a Queen and/or Freddie fan, do what's right!!