NOW OUT: PASSING STRANGE: The Movie on DVD + DVD REVIEWS

From http://www.broadwaycaptured.com ...

Pre-orders are now being taken for the PASSING STRANGE DVD coming out Jan 2010

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002T4GY50?ie=UTF8&tag=broadcaptu-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B002T4GY50

"Passing Strange The Movie" tells the semi-autobiographical story of a young black man who leaves behind his middle-class, church-ruled upbringing in mid-1970s Los Angeles to travel to Europe in search of his artistic and personal identity, or what he calls "the real." Picaresque misadventures with sex, drugs, politics, and art await him in far-out Amsterdam and hyper-militant Berlin. His eyes are opened ever wider, even revealing what he left behind. An absolutely superb cast, ably supported by sparing (but pitch-perfect) costumes, design, and stagecraft, bring to life the emotionally charged story with its astounding original music, narrated and overseen by Stew himself. Lee's multicamera coverage of the event (including backstage scenes) involves the audience in not only the text but the electricity of the ensemble�¯�¿�½s onstage adventure.





Pre-Order PASSING STRANGE: The Movie on DVD

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Updated On: 1/12/10 at 03:54 AM

It was out on "On Demand," so I suppose you could burn it that way. I'm excited for this, and I love the artwork!

The artwork for the DVD and the movie poster itself is splendid.

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Here's the first DVD review: http://www.hollywoodthewriteway.com/2009/12/dvd-review-passing-strange-movie.html

The Bonus Features are as follows:

Stew & Heidi Interview - Spike Lee interviews Passing Strange creators Stew and Heidi Rodewald on stage about the journey of Passing Strange, what it is like performing on stage, and making an impact on Broadway. It would have been something to appreciate much more if the questions were more specific and the creators talked more about creating Passing Strange, from writing all of the drafts, to casting, to the creation and changes in the music from off Broadway to Broadway, etc…so hopefully much more will be discussed in Stew & Heidi’s future projects.

Last Show Cast Backstage - This feature takes viewers backstage as 5 of the cast members are preparing their voices for their last show and end up jamming out. Afterwords, one of the cast members gives a heartfelt speech detailing her gratitude and love to the cast, which really makes viewers come to appreciate Passing Strange all the more.

Teaching De’adre the Bolex - The title of this feature speaks for itself and it’s actually not all that interesting, probably because I don’t have a bolex and can’t learn how to roll right along with her. Perhaps this might still be of interest to others, but I’ll pass.

Heidi Gives A Tour - The co-creator of Passing Strange gives fans a behind the scenes tour of backstage, on stage, and below the stage along with a few interesting fun facts about what goes on during intermission and the theater. This was a great feature although I must admit, I was waiting for Heidi to enter the dressing rooms of the cast!

Last Makeup Session - The camera zeroes in on Daniel Breaker, Stew, and other cast members as they converse with their makeup artists during the last makeup session...a lot of discussion takes place in a makeup session, so you might be surprised to see how much more of an inside look this feature gives than any other. What a fabulous feature. If only there were a camera in the makeup room during every show.

Still no Blu-ray release announced yet. Looks like the only way to get an HD copy for now is from the PBS HD channel when it airs in January.

My amazon order is now "Shipping Soon"!

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"A major hit in New York, where the musical received seven Tony Award nominations, it receives a solid film adaptation by Spike Lee, whose filmed record of its Broadway incarnation is an up-close and intimate affair. With the film’s limited editing and in-your-face multi-camera coverage (there’s lots of trickling actors’ sweat to be seen!), the excitement and energy of the performance takes center stage. The cast, which includes Stew, Daniel Breaker and Eisa Davis, is excellent, and Stew’s score, as performed by an onstage ensemble, is rockin’."

http://www.videobusiness.com/article/CA6712441.html

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Although Passing Strange was a financial flop, it ran more than 5 months, was memorialized on film by Spike Lee, and was praised by many critics as one of the best shows of the season, and even of the decade. Not exactly Story of my Life or Glory Days.

Amazon orders are now shipped...
As of now, no Blu-Ray will be released.

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i just ordered my copy! i saw it during tribeca film fest, but am really excited to watch the added features.

it's so sad this wasn't the musical's artwork, it's so much better! does anyone know who was the ad agency for 'passing strange'?

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"As the years pass, the movie musical becomes a tougher mountain for filmmakers to climb, though directors like Rob Marshall and Baz Luhrman have tried admirably to conquer it (with varying results). But no matter how stylized or well-mounted a movie musical is these days, it's just plain tough to sell audiences on characters bursting into song and dance. With Passing Strange, which is easily the best movie musical I've seen in the last decade, Spike Lee may have found the best approach--to embrace and utilize a musical's stage roots, rather than attempt to cover them up. The result, at least in this case, is an entertaining, invigorating, deeply touching theatrical and cinematic experience."

http://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/40776/passing-strange/

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"Anyone who has ever spent any time in theater knows that filmed stage performances nearly always contain a mere fraction of the effect of a live performance. Though there have been a few worthy attempts in the past, Spike Lee’s documentation of the Tony-Award winning Passing Strange on the closing night of their New York City run never misses a beat. Though I am certain that the experience would have been even more powerful in person, the power and energy is able to come through in this documentation. This is both a testament to the incredible performances of the cast and the pitch-perfect work by Lee."

http://www.realmovienews.com/reviews/discs/4065

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I am definitely excited! It shipped from Netflix today, so hopefully at this time tomorrow I will be watching it. I hope seeing the film is just as electric as seeing it live.

Just got my mail and my Netflix copy arrived. Have it in my hands. About to pop it in!

edit: I would assume all of the discs are the same. If so, it is one of those discs where you can't go straight to the menu without watching coming attractions. I just fast forwarded through them all and got to the main menu.

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Updated On: 1/12/10 at 06:14 PM