R.E.M. Tourfilm (1990)

Thanks for the memories!

Absolutely brilliant

If the ambition is to provide two hours of instantly forgettable, popcorn-munching escapism, it succeeds.

The movie's neither hopeful in contrived ways, nor hopeless in different contrived ways. Somehow it manages to be wonderful

If you've seen REM's early music videos, you understand what happens in Tourfilm. The eighties were bursting at the seams with pop rock bands sporting linear visuals, so REM's was a departure aesthetic that gets better instead of worse with time. Yes, the visuals in Tourfilm are jerky, often in black and white, and couched in artsy effects ranging from the "static shock" look to artificial grain. Yes, the band is usually hard to see. But when you do see them, Berry, Buck, Mills, and Stipe give you brief glimpses of themselves crowning the eighties and ushering in the nineties with the final performance on their Green tour, and some of the strangest, catchiest tunes ever penned.Art majors appreciate REM for their contributions to post modernism. Tourfilm is a fitting precursor to the '91 release of "Out of Time" which had gallery-worthy cover art (hey, I had to pay a ticket to see the original piece, okay?)and the song "Low" is partially played somewhere in Tourfilm's middle. Stipe becomes an eighties front man for the first and only time in his career - previous performances lack the charisma seen here, with the strongest first. "Stand" is the opening song in the movie, and the famous organza suit makes an appearance, with a nod to the Talking Heads. While the visuals may sway, the music matches them: crunchy to jangly guitars, Berry's premeditated beat, and Buck doing backwards hops and spins as he pretends to be the greatest guitar player ever. No one will ever accuse him of this, but in Tourfilm he makes an impression.The nineties were the last great decade for REM, but Tourfilm takes us back to a better time - a time when an American alternative rock band could define cool with over-sized sunglasses, stone-washed jeans, and bridge-less, pricelessly sonic anthems. Don't over think it. Listen, move your eyes rapidly, and you'll feel fine.

REM's Tourfilm should have been a resounding success, but it ends up instead as a definitive suck-mess. The camera work is typical late-80's, early 90's "mtv-style" which means lots of camera movement and lots of quick editing.While this might be all well and good if there is some intelligence behind the design, the cameras seem to be haphazardly moving with no real focus and the choice of any given camera at any given time seems to be based upon which camera is offering the absolute worst shot.The concert also suffers a terrible start-stop problem and there is never any real flow to the proceedings. On the other hand, while the sound is not exactly first-rate, the concert is--REM is in top form. That makes this disc probably worth it in the end for die-hard fans, but, at the same time, offers much frustration over just how bad the production is.

Tourfilm is the reason I first shelled out my hard earned cash to see this band live. This is REM touring their 1988 "Green" album, arguably their best work and their greatest tour. The movie consists of concert footage, shot primarily in black & white and often grainy. This gives the movie an "arthouse" feel.This is not a movie for someone who likes their music FM and their movies digital quality - it is REM raw and unapologetic and it's a refreshing change from some of the overproduced "live" concert movies that have become the norm.Highlights include "Fall On Me", "Get Up" and "World Leader Pretend" as well as "Stand", "The One I Love", "You Are The Everything" and "Pop Song 89". The movie reaches its peak with a spirited version of "It's The End Of The World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine)" and leaves you chomping at the bit for more.Lucky there's a rewind button so you can enjoy it again ... and again.Song Listing (courtesy of Natalie Hart): Stand; The One I Love; These Days; Turn You Inside-Out; World Leader Pretend; Feeling Gravity's Pull; I Believe; I Remember California; Get Up; It's The End of The World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine); Pop Song 89; Fall On Me; You Are The Everything; Begin The Begin; King of Birds; Finest Worksong; Perfect Circle;

Tourfilm is perhaps Declan Quinn's best piece of work, capturing a band at their artistic peak and loaning his vision to a film that preserves them there. The techniques used here would transfer into his latter work in "Leaving Las Vegas."