Rating: 
Summary: the end of an era.
Review: really, what worries me more about this documentary thingamajig is the way in which it changes exactly what Belle & Sebastian are. they're really discarding their somewhat mysterious mantel and taking on a much more public face, particularly with their glossy, Trevor Horn-produced new album (which is possibly their spottiest overall, except perhaps 'fold your hands child you walk like a peasant'...not a criticism of the work itself, really, but merely mourning for a band becoming something more...for lack of a better word, commercial.
Rating:
Summary: the end of an era.
Review: really, what worries me more about this documentary thingamajig is the way in which it changes exactly what Belle & Sebastian are. they're really discarding their somewhat mysterious mantel and taking on a much more public face, particularly with their glossy, Trevor Horn-produced new album (which is possibly their spottiest overall, except perhaps 'fold your hands child you walk like a peasant'...not a criticism of the work itself, really, but merely mourning for a band becoming something more...for lack of a better word, commercial.
Rating: 
Summary: made with love
Review: the dvd is a retrospective of one of the best bands of the last part of the 20th century, belle and sebastian. if you are looking into getting a primer on the band, i suggest you purchase "if you're feeling sinister", "the boy with the arab strap" the lazy line-painter jane box set before you delve your finances into this gem.
belle and sebastian fans are notorious for their cult-like obsession with the glasgow band, and this dvd is the perfect fix. it contains old footage of the band and connects them to newer performances to show how much the band has evolved and from 96 to as early as 98 how massive their music spread. the music they were making in 96, 60s pop with velvet underground riffs and subversive arty lyrics sung by the voice of a choir boy, might have taken their influences from bands past but they were doing nothing anyone was doing at the time.
the type of music they played weren't meant for doing promotional work or selling albums. it was for the sake of making music and "fans only" shows that side of belle and sebastian, the side that made them a mysterious group that garnered publicity by trying to avoid it. the popularity of the band also is a testament to the rabid fans across the world who spread the quality of pop music through word of mouth. this dvd is for them.
not only does it show an evolution of a band musically, but in front of the camera as the earlier videos show a shy, more twee-ish interviews which later videos show the band gaining more confidence and comfort in front of cameras, especially in a hilarious interview with some brazilian talk show.
the growth also shows in the music videos, which started out with hand-held super 8s and a casual approach that shows their sincerity, to much more expensive productions. the interesting part is that from point a and point b (where they are now), there is still a sense of excitement and fun and playfulness in their performances that are not only surprising but a pleasure to see in a world where bands generally get jaded after any type of exposure.
the one qualm (like a true idiot fanboy) of this dvd is that i would have preferred to hear the live audio of the sessions on 54th performance of "dylan in the movies" and the whole performance of stevie richards doing the beach boy's "darlin". but those are stupid complaints with what the brilliance of this dvd to this biased fan. highly recommend if you are a fan of this group.
note: after the credits, there is a bonus performance of "legal man" from the top of the pops where the monkey butler (from the "fold your hands child..." cd sleeve a/k/a stuart david) makes an appearance.
Rating: 
Summary: Ups and Downs
Review: This DVD has its ups and downs. I really like the idea of how they incorporated footage to go along with the names and meanings of the Belle and Sebastian songs. But in a sense this looks like it was thrown together over a course of a day. It should have been much better organized... put better in sync with the music, and thought out clearly. There are points in the DVD where I found myself completely amused but points that I found myself completely oblivious to whats going on. So if you are considering buying this... sure go for it, I'm not going to bash the DVD by any means, But I warn you.
Rating:
Summary: Captivating for Fans (and even non-fans)
Review: This DVD is an absolute essential for any Belle & Sebastian fan, but it could be enjouyed by those crazy, non-belle and sebastian fans. My fiance was not a fan and was often irritated by their music accusing it of being "bubblegummy going to the mall music." never understood such a harsh and totally untrue comment, but that was his opinion. But we watched For Fans Only together and he now very much appreciates their music and the colorful personalities that make up the band. This band, unlike so many, has so much depth and talent. i mean how many "singers, rock stars" or whatever they're calling themselves today can play one instrument, let alone several? it is lighthearted, informative for fans, the videos are great, and these elements all culminate into being a film that will become a classic in the rockumentary genre, if it hasn't already.
Rating:
Summary: Captivating for Fans (and even non-fans)
Review: This DVD is an absolute essential for any Belle & Sebastian fan, but it could be enjouyed by those crazy, non-belle and sebastian fans. My fiance was not a fan and was often irritated by their music accusing it of being "bubblegummy going to the mall music." never understood such a harsh and totally untrue comment, but that was his opinion. But we watched For Fans Only together and he now very much appreciates their music and the colorful personalities that make up the band. This band, unlike so many, has so much depth and talent. i mean how many "singers, rock stars" or whatever they're calling themselves today can play one instrument, let alone several? it is lighthearted, informative for fans, the videos are great, and these elements all culminate into being a film that will become a classic in the rockumentary genre, if it hasn't already.
Rating:
Summary: Very nice for a fan
Review: This is an excellent DVD of an excellent band. It has all the promotional videos and some other live footage including Coachella and Top of the Pops. It is a real treat to get to see and hear the band close-up just talking about the music and whatever after only having heard them on record. They all have great personalities that come through on the DVD. For me the selling point was getting all the videos in one place, and the additional footage and special features are just icing on the cake. I also recommend you buy all their records because this is one of the greatest bands of our time.As for the subtitles, you can switch between them and normal soundtrack; I want to know whether it is only my theater system that is making the DVD play mostly in monaural sound (no 5.1 except for the main menu)! But with such great music and footage this really didn't detract from enjoying the DVD.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent!!!!!!
Review: This is one of my favorite dvd's. If you like the music of Belle and Sebastian, you will love this video! (unless you're one of those petty people that wrote those insipid nasty reviews)
Their videos are fun and entertaining, and show a talented band that has a great sense of humour about themselves, how refreshing! The live footage is excellent too. If they show up in your town, you should definately go!
Rating:
Summary: Excellent!!!!!!
Review: This is one of my favorite dvd's. If you like the music of Belle and Sebastian, you will love this video! (unless you're one of those petty people that wrote those insipid nasty reviews)
Their videos are fun and entertaining, and show a talented band that has a great sense of humour about themselves, how refreshing! The live footage is excellent too. If they show up in your town, you should definately go!
Rating:
Summary: Fans will like
Review: Yes I loved it too. The best bits are the documentary vignettes between songs where you get a glimpse of Stuart and the band at work. Bunch of band members milling about at a sound check - suddenly there in the background you hear deep reverb guitar Stevie playing "Stars of Track and Field", then Stuart M. sings a bit of "Seeing Other People" at the piano. Magic. The early interviews are endearing and would not be out of place in a Bill Forsyth movie. Interesting to see the band race through France Gall / Serge Gainsbourg's "Poupee de Cire, Poupee de Son" but one could tire of that clip, whereas the footage of Lazy Line Painter Jane I could watch over and over. What I really want to know is, is it only the US version of the DVD that has subtitles for all scottish-accented speech? Either way, if you like B&S at all I think you will enjoy this DVD. It's very tuneful for the eyes and ears together.
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