Product Description
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Bittersweet Motel takes a look at the iconoclastic musicians of
Phish, one of rock and roll's most successful touring bands, a
group Rolling Stone Magazine has called "the most important band
of the '90s." This 80-minute documentary tracks the band over the
course of a year--on and off stages across the United States,
Europe and at home in Vermont. The film wraps with an extensive
section devoted to one of Phish's grand festivals, "The Great
Went," where 70,000 fans descend on the tiny village of
Limestone, Maine, for a spectacular multi-day musical event.
Director Todd Phillips, best known for his groundbreaking films,
Sundance Award winner Frat House and the blockbuster comedy Road
Trip, reveals the amazing phenomenon of the band--their music,
loyal fans and spectacular live shows. Phillips presents a
compelling film that every music fan will find fascinating.
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Phishheads may be hard-pressed to define what they love about
their idols, the Vermont-based jam band Phish (
/exec/obidos/ts/artist-glance/28550/${0} ), but they know it when
they see it--and hear it. And Bittersweet Motel, the 2000
documentary by Todd Phillips, serves up exactly what they want:
generous dollops of the band's free-form, jazz-laced music and
by-the-numbers backstage glimpses of the musicians relaxing
during rehearsals, between sets, and after hours. The 84-minute
film follows a year in the life of the band, from the happening
called the Great Went in Maine in August 1997 through the band's
1998 European tour (but inexplicably, the film begins with Europe
and ends with the Great Went). Along the way, viewers are treated
to long snatches of band favorites like "Wilson" and "Down with
Disease."
Affable singer-guitarist Trey Anastasio is the focus of most of
the nonmusical scenes, trying to explain the band's cult appeal,
or griping about lunk-headed critics who are all too dismissive
of the band's often-stellar virtuosity. It's clear that wearing
the mantle of the Grateful Dead--especially since the 1995 death
of Jerry Garcia--is a mixed blessing for Anastasio, who bristles
in one interview about Dead comparisons. Phillips, who directed
the fascinating but discredited documentary Frat House and the
Tom Green vulgarfest Road Trip, does have an eye for the absurdly
comic, especially evident in the few scenes he features of stoner
Phishheads, who follow the band from show to show. Bittersweet
Motel may not earn the band any new converts, but fans will find
more than enough to satisfy those long dry spells between tours.
--Anne Hurley
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Additional Features
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The DVD offers Dolby 5.1 or DTS sound and eight deleted scenes,
including some songs, that are inconsequential to the film but
are musts for fans. There is also an interview with Phillips, but
instead of a filmed chat, it's presented as several screens of
written Q&A--very hard to follow on the DVD screen (it's easier
to read on the movie's official Web site,
www.bittersweetmotel.com).
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