Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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33 of 41 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Being Kylie looks easy, 25 Nov 2007
The latest trend in the pre-Christmas DVD is to release the previously-sidelined documentary with (what was formerly the main attraction) concert as a piece of extra bait. This package is no exception : the 'bonus' disc is a full 2 hour concert from last years "Homecoming Tour" which was, cunningly, released as a live CD earlier in the year, whilst the main lure is an allegedly warts-and-all expose of Kylie On Tour named "White Diamond".
In theory, this could have been a fascinating look into the heart of modern stardom, an essay on fame-beyond-talent, a more daring variant on In Bed With Kylie, this film exists only because the cameraman is her trusted confidant and 'gay husband'.. and thus Kylie herself finds that, given the position of the filmaker, anything truly exposing is left on the cutting room floor. Unlike Robbie Williams similar, but far more fascinating Nobody Someday, this fails to reveal Kylie. What the film shows is someone who, despite having recently battled cancer and heartbreak, just dogmatically ploughs on. 'Our Brave Kylie' keeps smiling, keeps dancing, keep working, knowing neither happiness or unhappiness, showing neither despair or even anything other than quiet tiredness, Kylie proves that above almost all things, the show must and will go on.
Kylie smiles. Kylie giggles. Kylie dances. Kylie looks a bit tired. Kylie exhibits the limited emotional range - or, if your prefer the fixed stability - of Roger Moore, without the ability to raise an eyebrow. Aside from a computer failure, the tour documented shows no daramas but is a finely honed, slick machine geared towards efficiently extracting money with immensely enjoyable vaudeville pop that merely imitates the emotions.
Ultimately, it makes Being Kylie look easy. It's the Anti-Radiohead. It fails to address the fact that Kylies fame is now a product of her being famous : the music she makes is almost irrelevant, and filiming adding shots of her fidgeting fingers does not give gravitas to a generally vacant interview. The problem with this is, I feel, that Kylie is so well trained in diversion and keeping her feelings hidden from the harsh truth of the camera eye, that it's difficult to discern if she is another other than all surface, no feeling.
When you are in the public hour 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, for 20 years, you don't have a private life : everything is public. There's no hint of even the slightest amount of self doubt (the same doubt that makes Robbie Williams far more interesting) - despite turning her weaknesses into strengths and exploiting what she has to maximum effect - Kylie seems to be marketing herself in this as a giddy, happy-to-be-here brand, a product known as Our Brave Kylie as she bravely battles on against colds, cancer, and computers. As the documentary comes to a close, Kylie finally starts to show a modicum of emotion - albeit when she has to terminate a show early due to illness - but ultimately it feels too little, too late for the viewer after two hours of relentless can-do, gung-ho optimism. This impression is hardly alleived by the endless pop of her music - aside from the brilliant Impossible Princess, Kylie has never truly made an album of any true artistic merit.
That said, if you like Kylie, you'll love this package : the documentary is as close as anyone will ever get to her - that is, "not very", and the concert disc is a worthy and thoroughly enjoyable pop thrill that acts as a sequel/remake to 2005's Showgirl DVD.
At the end of the day, if you come expecting an expose, a treatise on the nature of fame, modern celebrity, or anything of a similar nature, please remember that White Diamond has, as its core, nothing but pop music, and whilst it is some of the best pop music ever made, you cannot glean what was never there : ultimately, there is no depth, no great and amazing revelations, beause it seems that there are no secrets to be found. If you're looking for something revelatory - you won't find it. But if you're looking for an entertaining documentary on life being Kylie, then this is perfect for you.
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14 of 18 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Comeback Queen: Part III, 28 Nov 2007
WHITE DIAMOND
**As seen at selected cinemas and on TV**
Ultimately, I found WHITE DIAMOND to be a feature length `Behind The Scenes' for the SHOWGIRL: HOMECOMING tour. We meet the backing singers, dancers, wardrobe assistants, Kylie's manager, vocal trainer & 'friend' Bono (U2). Despite this impressive entourage, there's nothing really exciting going on most of the time, unless you count the edge-of-your-seat thrill of a late dancer.
Kylie - the reason this documentary exists - comes of as little more then a giggly, smiley character in a children's TV program. She automatically puts on an act whenever she sees a camera. her speeches are practiced and there's rarely any real emotion shown. You have to wonder what got cut out. We see her turning off the camera when she's had enough, and the only hard(ish) hitting question she is asked; "Do you feel trapped [by fame]" goes unanswered. To put it bluntly; The Saintly image she works so hard to perfect is boring. I used to be a massive fan, but her image obsession has put me right off.
The only gritty parts are when we see a tired Kylie sleeping on her dressing room floor. Seeing the hundreds of people in WHITE DIAMOND, and then considering the fact that her sister is the only person to voice concerns over Kylie's health, is very sad. Is everyone milking Kylie, or is she - a well known workaholic - pushing them? Either way, here's WHITE DIAMONDS message; Money over health and wellbeing.
Something that really grated on me is the `Director'. I'm not a fanatic who hates everyone who is close to and/or is competition to Saint Kylie i.e. William Baker, Dannii, Madonna etc, but really. I thought directors mainly worked behind the camera, but Will is in nearly every frame. He drapes himself over Kylie constantly, cries over her performance with her sister & generally annoys everyone. Kylie is indeed a Saint, for putting up with him.
If you are interested in the behind the scenes workings that go into a tour, you'll love this. If you love Kylie or William Baker you'll really love this.
Wanting to keep her private life private is absolutely fine; just don't promise something you have no intention of delivering.
As we've already seen the documentary before, there is bonus material in the form of one of Kylie's `Kids' duets, with sister Dannii (The performance is edited differently to Dannii's DVD).
This is one of the highlights; no fancy backdrops, no dancers, just the two of them giving a cool performance together for the first time in 20 years.
SHOWGIRL: THE HOMECOMING
** Warning: I will be discussing parts of the play list. So if you don't want to know, please don't read this review. **
Well, it's here. Kylie's comeback tour (did she ever go away?) is here & no doubt will fly off the shelves. The SHOWGIRL: HOMECOMEING tour is pure entertainment, with fabulous dancers, set pieces & costumes, as well as Ms Minogue herself.
I can't help to compare HOMECOMING to the lofty standards of the original SHOWGIRL tour, and I'm afraid it just falls short of the mark. Not that second place is so bad.
My biggest bugbears are with `Somewhere Over The Rainbow' and the encore. Having a classic song by another artist is great, but did Kylie really have to have `Rainbow' again? It shows of the fact that Kylie has a decent set of lungs on her, but something new would have been appreciated.
It's the same with the encore, which is also the same as the original SHOWGIRL. I'd avoided all gossip of the tour & the reviews before I went to see HOMECOMING, so when the same songs were sung I felt a bit let down after all the excitement & suspense beforehand.
And I know the set list was going to be changed in some places, after all Kylie is making a fresh start in her career. I didn't miss `Please Stay' (it wasn't a great single) and `In Denial' is a great song, but as it's a duet it didn't really work last time, so I can see why it was dropped this time.
But on the other hand `Put Yourself In My Place' is a classic song, nearly as good as `Confide In Me' in my opinion, so I really missed it. I also really missed non-single track `Your Disco Needs You`, which is pure fun, and was a real crowd pleaser last time.
Speaking of changed set lists, I must admit that I found the `temple' section a bit dull. I've already mentioned that `Confide In Me' is a real classic, so it pains me to say that it was a bit lacklustre here. The other 3 songs in this section are `Cowboy Style' (I think this was an Oz only single), I don't rate this song, and the lyrics are a nonsensical jumble. I would have liked to have had `Breathe' in its place. Then the backing singers perform `Finer Feelings' a superb but sadly underrated Kylie single. The final song in this section is `Too Far'. Having a non-single from her least successful album (IMPOSSIBLE PRINCESS) must be a personal choice, but it's boring & the audience will be distanced in my opinion. I'll be skipping this section on the DVD.
'Kids' is sung with her backing singers, not with Bono as stated on Amazon. (This was also on the EMI website. Tut tut)
But now my gripes are out of the way lets discuss the best bits!!
The opener `Better The Devil You Know' is a classic and never fails to put a smile on my face.
Non album track `White Diamond' (wrote by Scissor Scissors) is something a little more personal, yet it's still nice and upbeat.
FEVER non single `Burning Up' is mashed up with the Madonna classic `Vogue', acknowledging the people who call her a copycat. It worked surprisingly well. Kylie is not best known for attitude, but she's certainly capable of giving it!!
Two more non singles are mashed up for her closing song. `Light Years' (same named album) is lovingly performed with `Turn It Into Love' (KYLIE), making this song personal for the audience who continue to support her.
The costumes may not be pretty, but they are bold. The most interesting choices for a Kylie concert, ever.
I've already mentioned the sadly missing songs, but we do get them as a bonus. `In Denial', Je Ne Sais Pas Pourquoi', `Please Stay' and `Your Disco Needs You' are all here, edited differently to the original SHOWGIRL DVD.
This DVD set may be mis-titled as a 'Personal Portrait' when it clearly isn't, but the documentary is still a must have for any devoted Kylie fan. Everyone else; Go straight to the concert disc & leave the documentary alone.
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5 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Showgirl celebrates - and keeps her dignity intact, 12 Jan 2008
It's not clear whether the show or the warts-and-all documentary is the main draw for this release. The two-hour show itself is fantastic - filmed on a single night at Melbourne's Rod Laver arena in front of an ecstatic hometown crowd, it showcases a plainly radiant performer who sounds and looks much happier and healthier than she did on the 2005 live DVD, which was filmed at London's Earl's Court just before her diagnosis. Although some dates on the new tour had to be cancelled when Minogue went down with a nasty throat bug, her voice too is generally much improved here - stronger and less nasal than it was before her illness. The contrast is made plain from the disc's extra features, which include re-edited versions of some of the Earl's Court songs ("In Denial", "Your Disco Needs You") which have been dropped from the new version of the show.
The accompanying "White Diamond" documentary is a personal portrait of the singer by her stylist/director/"gay husband" William Baker. Unlike David Furnish's portrait of his partner Elton John "Tantrums and Tiaras", or the infamous "In Bed With Madonna", it's not a controversial exposé - more an affectionate look at the rigours of touring and the ups and downs of being a working creative. There's not much of on/off lover Olivier Martinez, but there's a glimpse of Bono's guest appearance at the Sydney show, some great backstage banter and a moving sequence with sister Dannii. We don't learn much about Kylie that we didn't already know, but the film is always watchable and she does emerge with her dignity - and much of her privacy - deservedly intact.
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