Meeting People Is Easy

"Meeting people is easy" is a pretty good documentary of Radiohead's OK Computer world tour. It abruptly begins with concerts (bits and pieces), photo shoots, behind the scenes and interviews with the media through Europe, USA, Japan, Australia and ends back the UK where you hear them recording music for their next 2 albums (Kid A and Amnesiac).

Its not really a coherent documentary, with scenes cutting back & forth and some arty stuff chucked in for the sake of it, but this DVD shows the media attention and coverage they received, all because of their highly regarded album OK Computer... they were the in band at the time.

From this the stress and tension builds up throughout the world tour and we clearly see them getting emotionally drained.

You get to hear them playing bits of new and unfinished music which would be later added onto there next 2 albums, but don't just expect live performances (as there is hardly any). They're a band that's not afraid to experiment with their music. Though this DVD is more about their experiences throughout the tour, then that of their music.

Some people might have found this boring but I actually quite enjoyed it. It would've been great to get some full length live performances than that of small snippets (though there is good full length performance at the end) but I found the media's attention towards Radiohead and how it was eating them up, very interesting indeed.

4.5/5

This is a wonderful thought provoking film. It is not easy to watch and it does not focus on gaining insight into the band in conventional ways. Instead you are more of a companion feeling the alienation and isolation that the band seems to be feeling. Because it deals with alienation in both its subject manner and how it is filmed it isn't easy to swallow. For that the film is much more affecting than other rockumentaries that merely focus on the glitz, glamour, and the roudy but slick production that goes into a major band. Perhaps people don't like to think about how all jobs have their downsides but I think the way Gee juxtaposes the sterility and monotony of the countless environments the band is faced with the human fatigue, frustration, and disconnect the band feels from the world and eachother is fascinating and affecting. The title itself sums up the film well with its ironic and perhaps sarcastic comment on the accessibility of artists with their audience. The film also offers a beautiful selection of very personal moments of the band doing their job and shows how deeply the band feels about their music, not in their talking about it, but in their playing, especially the moments outside of the concerts themselves. It shows both the pain that comes with the peculiar kind of hard work the band is faced with and the moments of happiness and excitement that are possible because of that hard work which makes it all worth it. The almost nightmare environment that the film conveys, for me, humanized these men who have been heralded by so many as music messiahs in an industry that keeps getting more slick and more scary. Stunning.

I'm not going to tell you that if you don't know who RadioHead are, or if you don't like them, that you should watch this. If I weren't a fan (or if I lived so deep inside a cave I'd never heard of them), I would have gone crazy trying to wrap my head around this movie.

However, since I am a huge fan, I absolutely loved this video. Artfully done, it has more crammed into it than I would have thought possible. The Irony, the Agony, the Frustration, the Fans, the Good Times, the (never-ending) Interviews; and of course the vicarious thrill you get from this rare look into the real back-stage life of a serious rock-n-roll band.

This is not an up-lifting film. It makes you glad you never seriously pursued a career in the popular music industry.

As said Colin, "we don't learn much about Radiohead in this thing". That's true. Whatever, it's a real pleasure and pain to see and follow a great band on the road, listening to dumb journalists questions. Makes ones think about the fan status and the star status, which one is enviable, who could be ashamed of stalking people. Meeting people is easy, yeah. but you must want it first.

This highly cinematic documentary forces one to rethink the way s/he may think of life as a "rock star". Radiohead's unique stardom is portrayed in a dark and highly neurotic light. The pains of dealing with an incessant press, constant live performances, and travel around the nation bear down on these five men and produce tension that borders on nervous breakdown. When watching this film, the intense style transports this tension to the viewer, making it difficult to watch. But it adds insight to the band that has changed Rock music forever, and lets one understand better exactly what they are doing and going through. Well worth the headache and depression experienced afterwards. Meeting people is truly not easy.