Inside Bjork Reviews

• INSIDE BJORK

  
  By A35NVOZDHB4NXN on 2003-10-07
  Sent to music school at the age of 5, and at the age of 11 released her first album. But, she felt funny about it, 'cause it wasn't her work. Then she got involved in punk. Shows GREAT video of Einar Orn in Purrkur Pillnikk and Bjork in Tappi Tikkarass, and shows her book Um Urnat! And clips from the Kukl video "Anna"! Then the Sugarcubes, one of the first people they talk to is Beck, who discusses hearing Birthday for the first time.. the video for "Birthday" is shown.

  Then Bjork moves on to her solo career, looking for new challenges. She collaborates with Graham Massey, on songs she had written since childhood. It shows an adorable clip of her singing "The Anchor Song" accompanying herself on an old pedal organ, in a little church. With gorgeous sights of Iceland.

  She explains the mood of each album: Debut is like a polite new-comer, and Post is like a wide eyed girl consumed by the city and the city is consuming her. She talks about the story of Isobel, called Isobel, because of the ISO-lation. Elton John says: "A lot of people who aren't that musical, say "oh it's a lot of rubbish, it's noise", but it's not, it's extremely clever. And it's far more sophisticated then most things that are out there, by a hundred thousand times." (Agreed!)

  According to Bjork, Homogenic is about a person put in an impossible situation, with a lot of pressure. She'd work 16 hours a day, rarely with a day off. Homogenic is like a warrior, not one with weapons, but one with love. Homogenic was like a "blue period" for her. She discusses Joga, like a national anthem with patriotic strings. She collected actual volcanic beats, for the song.

  RZA dicusses Norse mythology with surprising insight. About how Iceland is filled with such fascinating mythology, about the different deities. And how Bjork is kind of a "warrior princess" :-)

  Bjork discusses that she thought she was at first an atheist, but then she matured and realized she did have a religion, nature. She discusses her love hate relationship with classical music.
  
  Then onto Dancer in The Dark. Just seeing and hearing the clips made me choke up. That movie is so sad. She's not a trained actor, she worked by instinct. And Sean Penn point's out "If someones preserves their instinct from a young age, training becomes an inhibitor"

  And of course, it discusses the swan dress, and Elton John expresses his wrath about the critisism it got, AGREED!

  Bjork: "The girl in Dancer in the Dark, was very introverted and kind of heard of all these noises in her head, like a locked universe". And Vespertine is about an internal world, what happens under her skin. Shows the videos for Pagan Poetry Cocoon..and Bjork discusses Icelandic passion.

  Then the film tells about how she has now left Europe and settled in New York, and shows her working on a computer with her microbeats. And she discusses Matmos. And Matmos talk about their interesting collaboration with her, and shows them on the Vespertine tour. Lastly shows her singing Generous Palmstroke.

  She says when people were asking what kind of music she did, she said "some kind of modern folk music".:-)

  Throughout when they talk to her, she's so sweet and funny. Often making jokes. She has a cute laugh..

  I was kind of disappointed they didn't talk to Einar Orn, but oh well. Certainly can't complain!
  I was absolutely bursting, It made me love her even more. She's my favorite artist and no one on earth can equal her, she's unparalleled. She's genuine, uncorrupted and uncliched. Great item for the curious or a necessity for the obsessed (like me). Good price too. Money well spent. Buy it!
  
  

• You Get What You Pay for

  
  By on 2003-12-05
  I would only recommend this if you're an over-zealous Bjork fan and a collector of the twenty six DVDs she's released just in the past month, because what you see on this video is absolutely nothing new. You get a few pieces with Thom Yorke (who is of course, endearingly sincere when talking about Bjork), Missy Elliot, Lars Von Trier, Alexander Mcqueen, Sean Penn, and Elton John--who annoyingly rambles on, and also accuses all Americans of being Tommy Hilfiger lovin idiots--to name a few. "Inside Bjork" presents nothing you haven't already known.

  However, if you love her music but don't have money to spend on buying everything she releases (few of us do), then pass this one up. I would instead recommend the Volumen 1993-2003 DVD or the Royal Opera House Live DVD.
  
  

• Bjork on the Inside

  
  By A2ZUYWLA2T9TQV on 2003-07-24
  This DVD documentary is a treasure to have. I am biased...but i love when Bjork is shown as an everyday person, working. I think this DVD shows 90 % of who Bjork is and why she makes the kind of music she makes. Next time someone says: "Oh , yeah...that chick who wore a swan for a dress"....shown them this DVD and watch them humbley realize that the surface of an artist is far less interesting compared to what lies inside. Plus, the performance at the very end is simple, pensive, and intimate....that alone is worth having this DVD!!! :)
  
  

• inside björk

  
  By A1FD45DW642332 on 2003-08-21
  not one of the best björk documentaries, but it's pretty darn good. it focuses on the early years of her musical career, all the way up to today. it is jam packed with info, and rare footage of her punk days.

  the very best part of the dvd is the end, where she sings an acapella version of generous palmstroke. this 30 seconds makes the whole dvd. i have never heard a voice that powerfull come out of such a tiny body. she really is amazing, in every way possible.

  the only thing i don't really like about the dvds are the "interviews" with famous björk fans. elton john, sean penn, missy elliot.. i love them all, but i really think it would have been nice to hear from her fans. everyday regular people. not to say that elton, missy and sean aren't fans, but it would make it a bit more personal, and i'd be much more interested in listening to someone like me talk about her. that's all :)

  i hope this made sense! :)
  
  

• A five star documentary for a five star artist!

  
  By A99FG0FGT85V9 on 2004-08-30
  It may be short, but this is one of my favorite Bjork DVD's that I own - and there are a lot!!! "Inside Bjork" is a very well done hour-long documentary covering Björk's childhood, first bands, and solo career. It includes interviews from Bjork herself, Thom Yorke of Radiohead, Sean Penn, Missy Elliot, and many more!
  
  
• Quality equivalent to the price
  By AJB9RAD2N1CHG on 2005-02-27
  The interviews with Bjork and the beautiful shots of Iceland make this well worth the watch, but I didn't care for the excessive celebrity commentary this is padded with. I don't give a flip about the opinions of Elton John, Tricky, Sean Penn and others. Bjork doesn't need to fill a DVD about herself with shallow pop figures just to lend validity to her appeal.
  
  
• missy elliot?
  By AGWBP3YMU8DKV on 2005-07-14
  I normally find it a bit lame and pointless to sit and watch documentaries on contemporary artist/musicians, since they're usually just people saying, "this person's so great because of this or that" or "he/she was so innovative and ahead of their time" ... just generally giving way too much credit to the person they're talking about. But, i decided to give this Bjork documentary a whirl since she truly is a wonderfully talented and unique artist and incase this dvd has any real insight into her working methods, i'd be interested in seeing that (being a musician myself).
  
  Along with alot of information on her musical upbringing and the development of her vocal style, the film really provides alot of first-hand analyzation of her work and her general outlook on music and life. Naturally, Bjork's interview segments are always interesting (some of which are done from a floating raft among the glaciers of her home country).
  
  My only beef with the dvd is the excess of lame interview segments with people that have nothing to do with her. I mean, Missy Elliot? C'mon. Thankfully her comments are kept short and seldom, as they are about as informed as one would expect them to be ("it's like, she took these hip hop beats and... added orchestra stuff on top, so it was like... Mozart at a rap show")
  Oh brother...
  That said, i should point out that most of the comments made arent just a waste of time and really do say something.
  
  On the whole i say, for sure, pick it up.
  
  
• Inside and Out Bjork
  By A3SZH5F79GKT18 on 2005-10-25
  I usually skip all these biographical documentaries and hagiographies, but this one is very interesting. One of the reasons I got it was because it promised to discuss the influence of classical music on Bjork's music, but this DVD delivers a lot more than this.
  Bjork is a very intelligent and serious interviewee, though she can be mercilessly funny too, and her comments help put many of her songs, albums and artistic decisions into focus. Yes, she discusses her troubled relationship with Western classical music, and how we need to make sure the children can be exposed to it in a good way, my feelings exactly. Being a classically trained but long drifted soul myself, I really liked hearing about how she found her way out and made peace with Shostakovich. She blows many of acclaimed composers out of the water in any case, but she is aware of her roots. Speaking of roots, if you want to hear her talk about many things Nordic, including mythology, and see some amazing Icelandic landscapes, then there's plenty of that on this DVD as well.
  The whole thing was filmed roughly around the time Vespertine was released, and it will also give you a good overview of her career until that point and put certain decisions into perspective, but that's not to suggest that this video is just relentlessly dishing out the facts and (often fascinating) video footage, including rare early days, punky Bjork. It makes sense as a coherent whole and I found it to be very absorbing, also upon repeated viewings.
  A whole army of Bjork's friends, supporters, collaborators and co-conspirators show up to offer their words of wisdom; my favourites are Missy Elliot, a funky genius herself, talking about Bjork and Mozart (pronounced Mozz-ahrt) and Elton John, fuming about the crtitical drabbing that fabulous swan dress took.
  The final moment of this movie is Bjork, accompanying herself on a little church organ and singing Generous Palmstroke. Great finish to a wonderful trip Inside Bjork.
  
  
• Inside The Mastermind Of Björk
  By A3HTX1NOTTWERP on 2005-12-21
  Of all the Bjork DVD's I own, I find "Inside Bjork" to be one of the most endearing. I love documentaries that go through all the facts and figures about a particular artists' career, and this one is no exception. My only complaint is that it is a little too short, but I suppose you get what you pay for and it's better than nothing! A lot of the work Bjork puts out is incredibly art-based, leading me to raise the question of whether something is a piece of art from her perspective (and the reaction she is intending to receive from her audience) or whether it is simply just a piece of work. For example, this DVD is quite expensive, and features no bonus material, and is less than an hour in length. Is this a statement? Who knows, but I think it's interesting to ponder over such a question.
  
  The DVD begins with Introduction, which is a few minutes where we overlook Bjork's entire career very briefly through narration. Included are video and concert clips, along with comments from stars such as Elton John, Thom Yorke and Missy Elliott about how amazing she is. This takes us onto the Iceberg Lagoon section which features some beautiful imagery of Iceland where Bjork grew up. Again, this leads onto Reykjavik Childhood, a section which aims to detail Bjork's beautiful childhood, surrounded by the elementary forces of nature in Iceland. The Punk & Surrealism section takes us into her teen years where she became interested in punk music which eventually led to the formation of The Sugarcubes, who would actually go on to become an internationally successful punk band in the Eighties. There is particular focus on the song "Birthday," and just how unique it was, and still is. Song Stories And Sonic Experiments takes us into the era when Bjork had left the band, and was wanting t make it big on her own as a solo artist in the early Nineties.
  
  From then on we are taken through Images, Beats and Nature, three sections that explore Bjork's music as a solo artist, her most famous work still to this day throughout the Nineties, when she became an internationally-famous superstar and sold millions of copies of her first three albums "Debut," "Post" and "Homogenic." These sections are probably the most interesting and enjoyable because it is the era of Bjork's career that we all became interested in to begin with: it is because of the music from these albums that we became such devoted fans, and therefore purchased this DVD! What's also stunning to realise is just how much pure artistic vision went into the creation of these albums, especially when you hear Bjork describing the story of "Isobel" around 20 minutes into the DVD. The information that we are given on Bjork's tours is also very interesting, but all the footage is available on the DVD's that you can buy, which are the full concert shows from her four tours for each of her first four solo studio albums.
  
  Classical Influences is another great section which aims to explore the elements of classical music that have influenced Bjork throughout her career, most evident on the album Homogenic. I find this to be quite irritating, however, because classical music is a genius conception that Bjork incorporated, genius-like, into her music. It's almost impossible to decipher anything about the companion of classical music and the electronic beats in songs like "Joga" and "Bachelorette." The Musicals section explores her work in the 2000 film Dancer In The Dark, whereas the Microbeats section looks at her work on 2001's epic masterpiece "Vespertine," her fourth solo album. It's interesting to see how the music was created for this album with Matmos and Zeena Parkins. Also, the tour that accompanied the album was arguably her best and is explored here well. Arctic Passion is the last section of the DVD and looks at Bjork's position in the industry, along with a superb live performance of "Generous Palmstroke" with Zeena on harp.
  
  This DVD is really essential in any Bjork fan's collection, even though it was shown on British television around four years ago. It might be a bit expensive, as are all Bjork's DVD's (she gotta get her income from somewhere, guys!), but I think it's really worth it. You get almost fifty minutes of interviews, pictures, video and concert clips, and never-before-seen images of Bjork as a child. I don't think it will take much for a true Bjork fan to buy this DVD, but if you're pondering whether or not to buy it, then trust me, this is something you don't want to miss!
  
  
• AWESOME!!!
  By A2JCNNOIU7DZ55 on 2006-11-03
  This is the most (only?) comprehensive video I've seen of Bjork where she actually comments on her music and life. Very interesting! Stories behind all the songs and videos. Her views on just about everything. A MUST HAVE for any Bjork fan! Besides, she's so damn hot! :)
  
  

• Greatest Hits: Volumen 1993-2003
• Live at Royal Opera House
• The Medúlla Videos
• Bjork - Inner Part of an Animal or Plant Structure (Snapper)
• Bjork - Cambridge