Customer Reviews

SLAMNATION [VHS]

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is NOT your high school poetry class, or the pedantic clique of "artists". Fast, snappy and hip, bring the modern world of poetry into your world by checking this video out. Taylor Mali's facial manipulations alone are worth it! This is an inspiring, uplifting foray into slam poetry, where poets compete in sometimes hostile environments, and the variety of personalities found in this competition. Get blown away by Saul Williams and get a perspective on poets and their work. This was just an amazing view and I can't recommend it enough. Hearing a poet read their own work is an experience that amplifies what can be accomplished with this medium.

This is one video that any slam poetry fan or performer should own. It is a great look into the pretty and not so pretty politics of the Poetry Slam national competition. I have seen poetry move people at local slams and national competitions, and this video will move you.... You will find yourself choosing favorites and rooting for different teams to win. All in all it is an excellent documentary that I would definitely recommend. I would also recommend showing it at your college or university in order to generate more interest in Slam Poetry!

Ok, I just got into slam recently... I live in Rhode Island so I am very into the Providence poetry scene. This documentary is wonderful for anyone who wants to know what Slam is all about and how a national poetry slam works.... Taylor Mali is awesome in his performance, as well as Jack McCarthy, Patricia Smith, Saul Williams... anyone intersted in any aspect of performance poetry should go get this movie!!

The BEST poetry documentary I have ever seen. It's a mix of vivid peotry and energetic performance. It also shows how Poetry Slam has evolved and where it's going. Truly excellent.

I was very excited to see this movie in the theater last year, since for the last several years I have been a real fan of poetry slams, but there aren't that many around that I'm aware of. This movie provided an excellent sample of the electric excitement of words honed to a fine art and then zapped with the energy of performance. I wished the movie had been twice as long! Now I'm buying it to pass along to skeptical friends to turn them into poetry slam junkies too.

Paul Devlin has pulled off something great here, capturing the often contradictory essence of the poetry slam scene. Beautifully illustrates the precarious line between art and competition that the slam walks so well. The motivation, the strategy, the community, the pettiness and, occasionally, a great poem! It's all here. SlamNation belongs in your must-have collection, right next to ALOUD.

A very good documentary-style film that lets you in on the pressures, ups and downs, and trials of being a spoken word poet. You get to see some key cats before they blew up and became national celebrities (Saul Williams, Jessica Care Moore, Beau Sia, et al.). An excellent work to sit around with a bunch of poets and watch, especially if you'd like to get some serious dialogue going on about poetry, art and the dynamic that is slamming.

I have seen this film four times and am planning on seeing it again, as well as making my friends watch it. The poetry and performances are great and the film itself is quick paced and well crafted.

Performances by Saul Williams, Beau Sia and Taylor Mali are my favorite. I watch these dvds at least twice a week. It great how these performance poets put some much feeling into their words. One day I hope to have this same type of energy when it comes to making written words come alive and walk off of the paper.

Great DVD and brings people into the world of Slam Poetry as easy and flawless as possible. True talents recorded and immortalized on a DVD. What more could you want?