The Residents Play Wormwood
Picture: C
Sound: B- Extras: D Concert: B-
The Residents strike again! The performance artists that make The Blue Man Group look like a
bunch of corporate mimes are back, this time, boldly attacking the politics and
hijacking of Christianity (even attacking Christianity) by the extreme
Religious Right in Wormwood, which was taped back in July 16, 1999. They were obviously ahead of what was going
on and sadly about to happen.
But they do this on the level of myth and as if they were
telling the hidden stories of The Bible.
To expose hypocrisy, this is sometimes the dirty avenue artists need to
go down as desperate times call for desperate measures. The program is subtitled Curious Stories
Of The Bible, and though some of it is admittedly out of context,
questioning all dogma is necessary and important. After all, if something is true and for real, that it should be
questioned in every way, shape and form.
Anyone threatened by this and reactionary to it has something to hide or
cover up, which is exactly the point of doing this. The band has been consistent throughout their career, going back
to their debut and as also featured in the Demons Dance Alone DVD,
also reviewed on this site.
That played back slightly
better, but this is still a work of art at a time when certain extremism has
been unleashed across the land. The
analog NTSC 1.33 X 1 full frame image is very soft and patchy, with poor
definition and a lack of detail all over.
The Dolby Digital 5.1 AC-3 mix is good for what it is, but nothing
spectacular. There are no extras on the
DVD, but this will be more than enough and a small paper pullout inside the DVD
case has some art and limited text.
- Nicholas Sheffo
