Depeche Mode: 101
Filed Under: Music, Reviews | Article Tags : DVD review , music on dvd
By: Erik Swift
February 2004
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My first concert happened in East Rutherford, N.J. on June 16, 1990 – a massive Giants Stadium triple-bill headlined by Depeche Mode along with Nitzer Ebb and the Jesus And Mary Chain. Nearly sold out, no one seemed to sit for the Mode, a band whom I’d only recently been exposed to. During the encore, the quartet included their take on “Route 66” inside “Behind The Wheel.” Solely available on the “Earth Girls Are Easy” soundtrack and various singles at the time, the cover was familiar to the 55,000+ people present – they’d all seen “101.”
Time does wonders for some films. Orson Welles’ milestone “Citizen Kane” was very misunderstood upon its initial 1941 release, partly because no film had ever attempted to tell a story involving multiple narratives. Today it is regarded as the greatest movie ever made. D.A. Pennebaker, Chris Hegedus and David Dawkins’ 1989 film about the previous year’s US leg of the Mode’s “Music For The Masses” jaunt was pretty good, but one could not be blamed for wondering where the band was. It tended to drag at points, plus it kept getting interrupted by a bunch of fans on a bus going to the tour’s finale at Pasadena’s Rose Bowl. Yet, you weren’t even considered a DM fan if you hadn’t seen it. “101” remained a decent introduction to the group for legions of goth kids hoping to distance themselves from the rapidly accumulating radio swill of MC Hammer, Paula Abdul, Poison, New Kids On The Block and Milli Vanilli.
Fourteen years later, Rhino Records has re-released this film on a two-disc DVD that comes at an interesting period. Reality shows dominate network TV programming, and “101”’s grainy 16mm look at the lives of a bunch of Depeche Mode contest winners was clearly a groundbreaking impact on the genre. Before “The Real World,” “Survivor” & “Joe Millionaire,” Pennebaker and crew beat them all with their favorite project. It also arrives as the band is dormant – principal songwriter Martin Gore and vocalist Dave Gahan have both released solo albums while Andrew Fletcher is working from the producer’s chair (Alan Wilder left the band in the mid-1990s).
A good documentary captures the unexpected. “101” is, at its best, a very good look at the right band at the right time. On the cusp of exploding, the band is seen strolling unnoticed through Nashville, shopping for country music. It’s hysterical watching an elderly female proprietor converse with Gore about his Roy Orbison and Johnny Cash selections while (pre-internet) encouraging him to order by mail in the future. “101” gets the warts and all – from the bus fans messing with mullet-wearing metalheads on their way to a G ‘N R show to a shirtless Gore and Gahan playing pinball singing along to Roxy Music. Both the film and tour climax at a sold-out Rose Bowl in Pasadena, which was a first for an alternative group like the Mode. The band is totally on, and Gahan, inciting the crowd to wave their hands along to “Never Let Me Down Again,” is all smiles. Panting and squatting at the edge of the stage during “Everything Counts,” the singer extends his microphone to the crowd and encourages them to sing the chorus. A single spotlight provides his only illumination while stage smoke blows across the frame behind him as the masses make their music. This enduring image is easily among the most memorable of any concert film.
The bonus material should be held as an example of just how good DVDs can enhance any motion picture. Not only does this come with the usual commentary tracks and similar DVD extras but the entire hour-long film, “Live At The Pasadena Rose Bowl June 18 1988” is included. Pennebaker also manages to catch up with some of the traveling fans to see just what they did with their lives after “101.” (It’s too bad they couldn’t find the blonde with the long curly hair – every guy who got into Depeche Mode could only wish to find another DM fan that hot.)
The additional interviews can be difficult to watch – Dave Gahan’s words are impossible to hear without the hindsight of his suicide attempts in the mid-nineties. However, despite his imminent solo tour, he is very upbeat here when talking about the Mode. Martin Gore & Andrew Fletcher fondly recall the point in their career documented by “101” also. Downsides are few – most notably the audio on the second disc’s Rose Bowl film fades prematurely on some songs (Black Celebration”) and comes in late on others (“Everything Counts”). As an overall view of a British band taking on America and simultaneously heralding the arrival of alternative music into the mainstream, it nails a time, a place and its people. Few music documentaries achieve this, and “101” merits respect for doing so.
Reviewer’s Opinion: BUY IT!!
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