Duran Duran: Arena

Reviewed by: Erik Swift September 2004

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Now that Duran Duran’s original lineup has reunited and are nearly done recording their first studio album together since 1983’s “Seven And The Ragged Tiger,” EMI has simultaneously released “Sing Blue Silver” and “Arena” on DVD. “Arena” is handsomely packaged with a cool slipcover. A foldout poster and Duran Duran stickers are inside and the DVD menus are pretty wild. The concert sequences are well-filmed, but the drawback is ….it’s a mess. “I knew this would be a big mistake,” singer Simon LeBon croons during “Union Of The Snake.” How right he is. What begins as an ambitious attempt to link the band’s namesake (the 1967 film “Barbarella”) to a 1984 Duran Duran concert ends up being one of the biggest post-“Magical Mystery Tour” mistakes by a band at its peak. Sure, “Sympathy For The Devil,” “Spice World,” “Cool As Ice” and “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band” are worse, but try sitting through this. Really, try.

“Arena” is subtitled ‘An Absurd Notion’. Talk about nailing the essence of a product. The roots of this vainly began with the desire to top Michael Jackson’s “Thriller.” It’s like trying to remake “Psycho.” Oh, wait – that was already done….was it? The idea was to bend the video format: make it longer and tie in a live concert. The band already had done that with multiple versions of the “New Moon On Monday” video (on display in last year’s excellent double-disc compilation “Greatest”), but come on. When anyone in a band tries to say, “Let’s try to do a story,” nine times out of ten most film people should not listen. This basic production outline was apparently adhered to and developed into a massive film that mixed “Time Bandits,” “Alien,” “The Road Warrior” and “Barbarella” with elements of William Burroughs’ work. The plot somehow involves Milo O’Shea (reprising his role from “Barbarella”) trying to stop a D2 concert by using his minions to suck concert fans below the arena floor. Disappearing women, midgets, the “Rio” and “Hungry Like The Wolf” girls morphing into tigers below concertgoers…yes, they are all here. Somehow, Duran Duran spoils the evil plot and saves their kidnapped devotees without interrupting their show! Who knew that a “Seven And The Ragged Tiger” sheet sign could deflect fire? The band is playing good, but then with all of the songs being broken up by the inane storyline it’s hard to focus on the music. However, “Save A Prayer” is included as a bonus clip in its entirety for anyone that wants to watch a complete song.

Bassist John Taylor looks and sounds f’d up during his appearance in the ‘making of’ segment. I would be too if the makeup artist went home before I stumbled late onto the set and had to construct an outfit with a hangover. A cool bonus interview with Simon LeBon shows his opinions on everything from “Arena” to the Sex Pistols. Keyboardist Nick Rhodes is clearly absent, most likely bolting directly from the set to work on something worthwhile, hopefully the Arcadia album. While the band members do care about the overall effort, calling it a “gamble” and stating they’re “proud of it,” it’s way off target. Remember the MTV special, “As The Lights Go Down”? That featured the band’s uninterrupted live performances from “Arena” and “Sing Blue Silver” while axing the documentary and sci-fi segments. Now that’s something to see.

At least the raunchy version of the “Wild Boys” video came out of this. “Arena” is clearly an example where you shouldn’t judge a DVD by its cover. This is for the most hardcore of D2 fans only, for those persons waiting two decades to see this again. For everyone else, wait for Duran Duran to hit the road near you soon. Pick up “Greatest” or the audio disc of “Arena” with extra tracks, but watch this at your own risk.

Reviewer’s Opinion: FORGET IT!!