Rating: 
Summary: Simply Awesome!
Review: Since I am a bit behind the times and have not gotten a DVD player, I went and purchased the VHS copy of DT's Metropolis 2000 at a local retail store in San Antonio, Tx.This was my first time seeing the musicians of Dream Theater perform on stage, and I thought the show was fantastic! I can only imagine how great it was to see that show live.The VHS version just plays out the Scenes From A Memory album from start to finish, with some musical adlibs here and there.The one thing that stands out in the video as compared to some other live shows recorded on tape is that the cameras show you each of the players hands playing some of the key parts in each of the song.One of the more mind blowing parts in the video comes when you get to see bassist John Myung play his solo during "Dance Of Eternity", and also watching keyboardist Jordan Rudess play during that song as well.I simply recommend this live show, whether you prefer the VHS or DVD, to anyone out there who loves to visually watch top notch, professional musicians playing in their best form.One more note about this concert footage....singer James LaBrie sings near flawlessly and shows off an incredible vocal range that you cannot help but marvel at.A DEFINITE must have for any DT fan.
Rating: 
Summary: Masters of Progressive Metal
Review: Dream Theater are an awesome group of musicians. The sustaining energy through their performances is incredible! I happened to be fortunate to have seen this concert from about 35 feet, dead center of the stage. At first I was surprised to realize that they were going to play "Metropolis" from start to finish, and that they did. Boy, did they! As a fan since "Images and Words" I am thankful that someone picked up where the original progressive rockers like Yes, ELP, Rush, Kansas, etc. left off - and added a little testerone! Watching these guys play is quite an experience. Having the video to get a close-up look at their muscianship is a special treat. As the music flowed from one track to the next, I was captivated by the performance. However, there are a bit too many visual effects in the video where there may have been a better opportunity to feature the band, especially during a few "solo" interludes. Sorry Mike. Even so, after watching the video twice in three days, I must say that this a keeper! I can only imagine the DVD! The major drawback of the VHS is that the rest of the show is absent. I don't know if it's on the DVD, but it's a shame that people can't see the balance of this amazing performance. To see these guys just keep playing song after song for 4 hours was a sight to be seen. Fortunately, I did, and reside myself to have been enriched by this event, however hot, smokey and smelly the club was. I anxiously await their next offering.
Rating: 
Summary: the dvd does NOT do the concert or the band justice
Review: dream theater is one of the most talented bands around - with amazing concerts - i saw them twice for this tour (orlando, and tampa) - and as much as i love dream theater, this dvd does not give the best representation of what this band is like. their performance this night, is dead on - but there are problems - most of which are with the dvd. 1. jordan didnt do his giant solo - this was my only problem with the performance - at both the shows i saw, jordan went into a long solo during 'the dance of eternity', which he didnt do this particular night. he most likely had a solo performance later on. which leads into.... 2. the show was 2 separate sets, lasting 4 hours - but there are just under 3 hours i believe of concert footage. at first, i thought they just didnt put footage of songs they've already put on their other videos - but then during the documentary, they show footage of them playing 'the mirror' which is not on any of their other videos ('puppies on acid', the intro is on '5 years in a lifetime'. asides from metropolis 2, the 'bonus footage' included only like 5 other songs - most of which are from 'a mind beside itself' from 'awake' 3. dolby 2.0 sound - c'mon.. this is a dvd! its in 2 channel stereo?! theres no reason for this. im guessing kevin shirley, who mixed both the cd and the dvd possibly doesnt know how to mix 5.1, and they really wanted him to mix it because he mixed the original? thats the only reason i could come up with. 4. the editing - "ooh..look at the tacky backgrounds i can put behind the video". portnoy even talks about backgrounds during the commentary as if he is proud of them. i kept waiting for a star wipe. that said... the performance is awesome - and every dream theater fan should buy this. the performance gets 5 stars, but due to the issues i had with the dvd version of it, it loses 2 of those stars. if you've never seen dream theater live - or if you just want to remember how awesome they are live - this is the dvd to buy.
Rating:
Summary: SFAM DVD=Missed Opportunity
Review: I was really looking forward to this DVD. I saw the band on this tour (Atlanta,GA-Tabernacle) and it was a great show. This DVD contains over 3 and 1/2 hours of video, band commentary on the SFAM part of the show, and a tour photo slide-show. The video quality is great, and the Pan/Scan presentation is fine with me. However, I think it would have been a better package if the audio had been mixed in DD 5.1 The DD 2.0 track is not even a good mix...the audio imaging seems to be shifted to the right, and the overall level is way too low. I had to turn my volume contol up to the 12 o'clock position and turn up the sub to get it to sound right. I think my VHS copy of Five Years In A LiveTime had better sound! Still worth buying if you're a DT fan, but be advised that the audio is a few steps below that of many other concert DVDs released in the last few years.
Rating:
Summary: Astonishing.
Review: Dream Theater's concept album Scenes From A Memory is jaw-dropping on CD, but one gains a whole new level of appreciation for the work when one sees it performed. I mean, Dream Theater plays some really complex stuff here, and it's awesome to watch. "The Dance of Eternity" is insane, and the instrumental section of "Beyond this Life" has some really tough harmonization and unison lines. John Myung's dexterous bass playing is especially incredible to see because it's sometimes difficult to hear him in the mix on the CD. Jordan Rudess is truly a god among keyboardists, and I don't doubt that in a few years we'll regard him with the same deference as legends like Rick Wakeman and Keith Emerson. It's almost uncanny how easily he plays everything. What's also interesting about him is that he doesn't use racks of keyboards; he controls everything from just one, and switches between sounds with a pedal. Very cool. For much of the show, I just sat there with my jaw constantly hitting the floor thinking, "How the freakin' heck do they do that?" The band puts on an incredible show. The band usually has a sort of calm stage presence, but here they're gushing energy. LaBrie's vocals never miss their mark, and in some ways his performance is better here than on the CD. I hadn't realized he had this much live power (let's not forget that he's an operatically trained vocalist, too). The band recreates SFAM's story using images on the big screens, which is good for those who didn't quite grasp the plot. (I understood the story, but it was nice to finally see what the breaking glass was on "Finally Free.") The band also brings in the hypnotherapist, the gospel choir for "The Spirit Carries On," and Theresa Thomason to sing Victoria's lines on that same song. Here, they've essentially recreated the album better than I could have imagined. The bonus material is great. Personally, I found the "Making Of" section very interesting, and the band's audio commentary for the concert is really quite funny. The "Deleted Scenes" are a dream come true. I never expected to see the band perform "A Mind Beside Itself" in its entirety, and the electric version of "The Silent Man" is an intense extension of the original song. "Learning to Live" is a great anthemic song, even better here because of LaBrie's vocal improvisation during Petrucci's heroic guitar solo (the one right after LaBrie's hits that high F). And the best of all... "A Change of Seasons" as an encore, with some fun embellishments during "IV. The Darkest of Winters." What I'm getting at is...this DVD is incredible. If you're a DT fan, you absolutely need this.
Rating:
Summary: DVD recorded at low level
Review: Hi! I just got My DVD (NTSC)but the thing that I first noticed was that it was recorded at a very low level, I just had to trun up the volume so high to really aprciate the concert. Don't really know if it happened to someone else. Overall the concert is great!!!! Go and get it.....Now
Rating:
Summary: great concert!
Review: I love dream theatre and this is the best concert ever!! hey, but theres one problem with this concert disc you can't play it in your sony cd walkman!! that is dumb, i think james labrie is the best singer ever and john petrucci is so good at guitar he's probably amazing at bass too. but jon myung plays bass so that's cool. buy this concert now!
Rating:
Summary: Buy it, Watch it, Love it, Blow your mind...
Review: This is a one-off killer effort by the band. The full dramatisation of their latest (1999) release, Scenes From A Memory (SFAM). While this is a concert in essence, it is also a fulfillment of the story set in SFAM. Hence there will be some bit and pieces thrown in with the show that will answer questions raised by the album itself. Mike Portnoy (the band's drummer) has really out done himself in producing this DVD. Ok, it doesn't have 5.1 sound, or widescreen definition. But when you consider that there is 190 mins of recorded material (plus over 20 mins of hidden material) in this DVD, I'm sure one can understand the difficulty in having every single feature available in technology in this disc. But every single idea in presenting the band's talent and showmanship has been thought through and carefully executed. The concert-length Audio Commentary in the DVD is a definate plus (The band "watches" the DVD with you) This explains a lot in terms of concepts and ideas used in the writing of the album. The commentary is both fun and fulfilling to the audience and is an eye opener to those who are fresh to this band's efforts. Dream Theater has lived once again to their true worth by being a fan's band, and sticking to what they believe in. No other band has fans this rabid or feverish about the band's efforts, and not other band has tried so hard and come so close to their fans. This DVD has been 9 yrs in the making, from the very 1st concept of Metropolis Pt 1 in 1992 till 1999 when Metropolis Pt2: Scenes From A Memory was released, and in 2001, this DVD. Now fans of Dream Theater have a DVD with the heart and soul of the band's past efforts built into this release. This is an excellent answer to the band's legacy set from 1992 to date. A Must Buy for all who are fans of the band, and for those who wish to be part of the band's past, present and future. This is THE album, and DVD to get.
Rating:
Summary: Good DVD but could be better.
Review: I have been a huge fan of Dream Theater for the past 10 years, and was really looking forward to the release of this DVD since I have never seen a video of them or a live concert. Well for the most part I was not disappointed, their musical talents cannot be compared to any other band. I was absolutely amazed at how well they play together. John P. is from another planet, no other guitarist compares, and the same goes to John Myung on bass. Jordan Rudess is a perfect fit for this band, and Mike Portnoy can really hammer the sticks! But putting that aside I was very disheartened by the sound of the DVD. I know that almost everyone else here has complained about that aspect, but it is very noticeable in todays hi-tech world. The Bonus tracks on this DVD simply make it a must purchase. Watching "A Change of Seasons" in its entirety was something to behold! (A first for the band to play this live full version according to the DVD specs) So overall it was well worth the 20 bucks spent, just wish the sound was more up to date.
Rating:
Summary: Finally DT on DVD!!!
Review: I have to say there was a ton of hype regarding the release of this DVD and I couldn't wait to get my hands on it. So I get the DVD , fine tune my stereo setup because it's not in 5.1. I then proceed to sit through almost 2 hrs of live Dream Theater, BUT several things bugged me about the DVD: The sound quality I felt lacked high-end (I ended up running it thru a EQ to fix this). Compared to Metallica's Cunning Stunts or Kiss' Second Coming it lacks some crispness to it. Second, there was way too many onstage static camera shots of the individual players, not enough audience shots and maybe a handful of stage shots. I felt that that took away from the feeling of it being live. Now the good: The picture quality is spectacular, the transfer is amazing. The sound, even though it lacks high-end, is very warm and rich all the instruments are mixed well (yes John Myung's bass is low in the mix as usual). The performance is amazing, pratically flawless and to see them perform SFAM in it's entirety, a Change of Season and Learning To Live made it truly a DVD to cherish. I have yet to dive it into some of the extras and can't wait!!! Don't miss out on a great band and a great DVD.......
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