Marilyn Manson: Early Years (2006)

Take a special look at early footage of rock's most notorious artist, Marilyn Manson. Dating back to 1989 and showcasing Daisy Berkowitz, Madonna Wayne Gacy, and Gidget Gein with Manson himself, this rare documentary shows the band performing in their early years.

Watch this if you are a dug-in fan, though I'm doubtful that hard-core Brian Warner and Manson fans will "5-star" this effort. There is plenty of interesting material available for consumption just by searching the net, and I think most Manson fans will expect more of this film before they click "play." I watched this work with the hopes of gaining more insight into an interesting individual and band. I was disappointed to see that the documentary only skimmed details, and offered little in the way of new info.

PROS: I imagine a few of the early cuts will make some fans happy. The viewer can catch a glimpse of the band in some of its earliest incarnations.

Marilyn Manson - Guns, God, & Government

Featuring the full live show, with footage shot in Japan, Russia and Europe during his world tour, you are given a front row seat to one of rock's most spectacular performances.

Many of these reviews have been writing prior to the release of this DVD, so their basis is off of guessing and expectations. Since the release of this DVD I've watched it beginning to end 3 times and looked it at all possible angles. From every perspective - entertainment, quality, material covered that was actually at the concert, replay value, etc.

-As far as entertaining, if you're a Manson fan and have never been to one of his concerts, this is an perfect look and near concert experience from the Guns, God, and Government tour. During which Manson experimented with new stage acts including the "holy garments" worn of clergy, different lighting and pyrotechnics which added great effects and new excitement to some of the older songs, and a platform that lifted him to the top of the stage.

-The sound quality of this is superior to any other DVD I've heard or seen. The image is crystal clear and the sound is beyond great. If you have a home theater surround system, this is going to utilize it perfectly.-

-Lastly, the DVD is shot in succession. The first hour and 20 minutes or so are songs played one right after another just as it would be at the concert itself. Rather than playing clips of a song, cutting to backstage scenes and clips then going on to another song or something of that nature, the concert is played in its entirety. Then there is a nice little 30 minute short film called "The Death Parade" that has all of Marilyn Manson's little endeavers on it, from backstage shots, to christians protesting the concerts on the streets, to Manson himself whiping chicks and throwing bottles at people. Its all great footage.

-Final words: There is no good argument that anyone can come up with that would be correct when trying to put this DVD down. Manson and his crew have done an outstanding job on the quality of this DVD. Audio and video are sharp, and crystal clear. Lots of great songs including Disposable Teens, Anti-Christ Superstar, Beautiful People, Lunchbox, Great Big White World. Anyone who puts this down is either not a real big fan of Marilyn Manson or is just smoking crack.

Cliff 'Em All (Jewel Case)

"Well we finally went and did what we always talked about not doing, releasing a vid!! Before you throw up in disgust let us (except K__) tell you the idea behind this. First of all this is not your typical shit home video (it's worse) done with high-tech 10-camera production and sound. It's a compilation of booting footage shot by sneaky Metallifux, stuff shot for T.V. that was never used, but we've held onto, home footage, personal fotos & us drunk. But most important, it's really a look back at the 3 1/2 years that Cliff was with us and includes his best bass solos and the home footage & pix, that we feel capture his unique personality and style. The quality in some places ain't that happening but the feeling is there and thats what matters!!"
Some people have been complaining about the quality of this video. Something to keep in mind is that it's got "Home Vid" in the title. The most recent of the footage was shot in 1987 with camcorders. Nearly all of the footage is from bootleg videos. Don't expect a pristine, dolby surround sound experience. This is a video for true fans of Cliff Burton. Some of us didn't get to see him while he was alive, so this is the next best thing we have. It's just being released on DVD for people who have DVD players, not to show off the capabilities of the DVD format. For people who might just now be buying this video for the first time and not rebuying it (like myself), you might want to keep that in mind.

Slayer - Live at the Hammersmith Apollo, London (2008)

Beyond being controversial Slayer is an exceptional force in music, highly praised for its trailblazing style of fast, heavy and aggressive music yet bristling with melody

I am bigtime Slayer fan. Actually going to see them in 2 months. I just came across this and was stoked to watch. The audio is horrible. Araya and Kerry where not on their game / Hanneman and Lombardo where. They did Ghost of War... which is awesome, but it sounded so bad I was rocking to what was in my head. You'd think they would at least get the audio right.

ICP: American Psycho Tour 2012

The first and only documentary that showcases both Twiztid and lCP on tour together. Get to know the entire backstage cast behind the controlled chaos of a Juggalo concert. This in-depth documentary even captures on film Twiztid's highly publicized arrest in Florida! Nothing is off limits in this authentic and revealing look at life on the road for the Hatchet Family.

I'm huge fan of ICP and this documentary shows you a bit of how the tour life is with Physchopathic Records. The documentary has a lot of behind the scene footage and details of the American Psycho Tour and staff talk about their roles on the tour. A must see for any juggalo! Whoop whoop!

Marilyn Manson: Fear of a Satanic Planet (2009)

Marilyn Manson: Fear of a Satanic Planet tells the full story of a legend, revealing how a boy named Brian from small town Ohio broke the mold for Alternative Metal and managed to gain worldwide critical acclaim in the process.

This documentary had nothing new or interesting of use even to a newfound Manson fan. Really these guys who made the music doc should have gotten more interested in their subject or not even made it. To say this film is unauthorized or even thorough is letting it off the hook.

The sound and video was alright on the DVD even though the editing could've been better. The interludes to the different sections of the movie were okay at least. Video was a 4:3 ratio on the DVD and it wasn't region-coded. It was mixed okay in stereo sound so all of those parts are worth mentioning. However, interviews were directed poorly and without leading as much enthusiasm or controversy as there should have been. The soundtrack music by W!ck was awful and over the top. The producers never even glossed over the local scene that influenced the beginning of Marilyn Manson in Florida.