Product Description

Ray Davies of the Kinks, well-respected as one of rock's best storytellers, makes his filmmaking debut in "Return to Waterloo" (1984, 60 min.), a unique synthesis of music, video and cinema. Davies' haunting songs, unavailable on any Kinks album, take "The Traveller" on a suspenseful journey through his imagination as he confronts reality and fantasy, love and violence. Songs: Return to Waterloo, Ladder of Success, Going Solo, Missing Persons, Sold Me Out, Lonely Hearts, Not Far Away, Expectations, Return to Waterloo Reprise. Also includes "Come Dancing With The Kinks" (1986, 35 min.), a compilation of eight unforgettable music videos. Songs: Come Dancing, Predictable, Lola (Live), State of Confusion, Don't Forget to Dance, You Really Got Me (Live), Do It Again, Celluloid Heroes (Live).

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #80449 in DVD
• Released on: 1999-03-09
• Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Formats: Color, DVD, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 95 minutes

Amazon.com
Ray Davies, singer-songwriter-leader of the Kinks, has long been one of rock music's strongest storytellers. His only film, this overlooked hour-long rock opera, feels like a slightly bleaker extension on the same themes Davies once explored on the timeless Kinks album, The Village Green Preservation Society. Told entirely in the mind of a middle-age commuter (a solemn Kenneth Colley) during a train trip he takes every day, the film both laments the passing of old-fashioned English traditions and bashes them for the complacency they've caused in modern life. This short is essentially a concept album put to film: lyrics take the place of dialogue, and rhythm and melody set the dynamics. The tunes (unavailable on any Kinks record) are easily the strongest output of the band's '80s material. Davies ambitiously chooses a nonlinear structure, shows no fear in painting our protagonist as a possible rapist and/or pedophile, and creates a haunting mini-masterpiece. It feels like Dennis Potter blended with The Wall minus the latter's excruciating pretentiousness and bombast. Hard-core Kinks fans will also appreciate the anthology of '80s rock videos, Come Dancing with the Kinks that accompanies the film. The eight songs include "Come Dancing," "Predictable," "Lola" (live), "State of Confusion," "Don't Forget to Dance," "You've Really Got Me" (live), "Do It Again," and "Celluloid Heroes" (live). --Dave McCoy

Customer Reviews

Stunning and intoxicatingly real
I've always enjoyed listneing to The Kinks. More so it is the captivating and hypnotising lyrics found between the grooves of their recordings. "Return To Waterloo" sets the mood (as found throughout the lyrics by Ray Davies) as real, honest, dark, touching, twisted, and riveting. This movie I think is more then a simple rock opera or film but also a part of Ray which he gracefully chooses to let us explore. The film takes us on a trip with a man on his way to work and the many strange encounters he is subject too. The music is as usual enticing and true to what Ray Davies as always been to me; a great storyteller. I have been searching for this gem for over ten years and am now priviledged to own this wonderful film. To all Kinks and Ray Davies fans...... Don't go without this one.

Well done Kinks tunes
Return to Waterloo is a terrific soundtrack but a somewhat strange, artsy movie. The second part of the DVD consists of late '80s Kinks videos: above average video, awesome music and some of Ray's better songwriting. Production quality is outstanding, and the music is wonderful. Watch the movie when you're pensive; watch the videos when you're in a party mood.

Give this a good remastering, already!
*Return to Waterloo* is a really good example of a strange film genre that appeared briefly in the 80's and then sadly disappeared: the rock video movie. These films were often surreal, and would incorporate rock music and music-video style sequences into the story. David Byrne's *True Stories* is a better known example of this type of film.

*Return to Waterloo* features some of Ray Davies best work from the 80's. A few of these songs appeared on the Kinks' last major album *Word of Mouth*. The film itself is very effective and well-acted, although it is very strange and non-linear. Davis clearly had great talent as a director, and it is unfortunate that this film did not get the recognition it deserved.

This DVD was not mastered very well. The picture and sound is decent video quality, and there are a few glitches in the audio and video. Hopefully it will be properly reissued before too long, as the Kinks seem to have gained wider appreciation in the past few years.

The videos are a lot of fun, especially *Come Dancing*.