Amazing Journey: The Story Of The Who (DVD) Peoria IL

Amazing Journey: The Story Of The Who (DVD)

The Who

Universal, 2007

http://www.thewhotour.com

REVIEW BY: Jason Warburg

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED: 11/06/2007

Whatever else you might care to say about the Beatles and the Rolling Stones, you could never say that they haven’t gotten their due.  They are two of the most influential, and successful, and widely praised bands in the history of rock and roll.

And on any given day, I’d just as soon listen to the Who.

In the same way, I’ve enjoyed bits and pieces of biographical profiles of the Stones and the Beatles (notable the overlong Anthology series) -- but Amazing Journey establishes a new standard for the genre.  As frenetic and compelling and incisive as the band whose forty-year career it chronicles, this is a truly essential piece of rock and roll filmmaking.

To pull this sort of thing off correctly, you need several things to come together.  You need to have unlimited access to the band’s own archives (check), you need new interviews and newly unearthed footage to supplement the material fans are already familiar with (check), you need attention to detail that is affectionate without becoming overwhelming (check), you need direction and editing astute enough to sustain a strong narrative drive (check), and you need a band whose music and lives are significant and dramatic enough to be worthy of such care (check).