Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #9834 in DVD
• Released on: 2000-03-14
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Formats: Color, Dolby, DVD, Live, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 141 minutes

Amazon.com essential video
This smartly produced, intelligently written documentary strikes a satisfying balance between thoughtful analysis, personal history, and sheer musical pleasure for a portrait of the seminal California pop band that will prove equally compelling to both knowledgeable fans and casual listeners. In the audiovisual equivalent of a loaves-and-fishes miracle, The Beach Boys: Endless Harmony weaves 45 of the group's songs through extended interview segments with all the original members, key musicians involved in their career-defining recordings, and astute peers and industry observers. Evocative period footage, including archival film and early, no-budget promotional videos, only add to the impact, but the real achievement is the clarity and candor of this authorized project, which might easily have lapsed into callow myth-making and media spin control given the involvement of the surviving Beach Boys and their record label, Capitol, which is releasing both the documentary and a companion hits compilation.

Instead, these archetypal Southern Californians, who transmuted their experiences growing up in suburban Hawthorne into a potent teen iconography orbiting surfing, cars, and girls, tackle the underlying personal and cultural upheavals beneath their discography. The central, dysfunctional drama of the Wilson family--brothers Brian, Dennis, and Carl, the group's nucleus, and their manager-father, Murry--is addressed early on, and underlined with harrowing excerpts from session tapes capturing the hard-driving, abusive style of Wilson père. Composer and acknowledged group leader Brian Wilson, who long ago became a poster boy for "troubled genius," pop division, is likewise depicted without evasion or apology, as are the internal tensions between Wilson and other members including Wilson cousin Mike Love; it's a testament to the filmmakers' acuity and skill that Love depicts himself as a force of "positivity... and 'upbeatness'" that counterbalanced Brian's darker, more introverted style, then dismisses the elliptical poetry of Wilson's most artistically ambitious collaborations with Van Dyke Parks as lyrically opaque.

Originally aired on VH-1, Endless Harmony works as an apotheosis of the cable channel's Behind the Music concept, elevating the concept substantially and covering an enormous terrain in 105 minutes. For the Beach Boys fan, this will be an essential companion to their enduring music. --Sam Sutherland

Additional features
On DVD, The Beach Boys: Endless Harmony is further augmented by five complete, bonus music clips and seven complete audio tracks remixed for 5.1 surround sound by the same production team that supervised the ambitious stereo restoration for the group's masterpiece, Pet Sounds. That evident, and admirable, care does raise a possible cavil for fans who revere the lush, mostly mono approach integral to Brian Wilson's own production style: in attempting to reassign tracks to display the full surround array, there's a tradeoff in terms of impact and coherence. We also found that certain DVD players may experience a slight dropout on the very entrances of the 5.1 audio tracks. --Sam Sutherland

Customer Reviews

In That Soulful Old Man Sunshine
This documentary features interviews from Brian, Alan, Mike, Bruce, and some older footage of the late brothers Carl and Dennis (and Hal Blaine, David Marks, and Glenn Campbell all of whom were involved in the Beach Boys' circle).

You really can't tell the whole story (1961-98) in just 2 hours, but still this is well documented. It includes some interesting insights from Elvis Costello (probably the best outside observances). One thing I wish they had mentioned (which they totally forgot) was the short-time membership of Ricky Fataar (who would later become a Rutle) and Blondie Chaplin (who sang lead on the Beach Boys' "Sail On Sailor"). It touches lightly on dubious characters like Van Dyke Parks (who did manage to contribute the surreal lyrics to "Heroes and Villians") and Eugene Landy (who helped Brian get well again but became codependent on Brian himself). But it's mostly about the music (Pet Sounds, Smile, Sunflower, Till I Die, Good Vibrations, Smile, and the surf and turf classics of 1961-65)! If you're a fan interested in their personal story, you'll like this documentary. I had to dock it 1 star because I think they talked too much about the Wilsons' infamous father Murray and Brian's health (Brian's Back indeed!).

And while you're at it, check out the CD of the same name (full of rarities and gems you won't find on any of the original albums)!

Overstated harmony...
Worth watching for the rich array of audio/video clips and stories from throughout the years. The soundtrack, too, offers some little-known gems such as Dennis Wilson's "Barbara."

However, the group's interpersonal "harmony" was overstated from the beginning. In this video, the ever-grandstanding and odious Mike Love gets entirely too much time to thump himself on the back for his "positivity." Bear in mind that Mike Love was the band's principal mouthpiece for Capitol Records' desire that the Beach Boys not "f**k with the formula" by exploring the new dimensions, beyond summer and cars and girls, that Brian Wilson sought in "Pet Sounds" and the aborted "Smile" album, pressure that helped contribute to Brian's breakdown. Mike Love has been coasting on the Wilson brothers' collective genius for nearly forty years now... retire, Mike! (Wouldn't THAT be nice?)

I would have liked to have seen more about Blondie Chaplin and Ricky Fataar and other sidesmen who played an integral part in BB history.

The Story Of The Beach Boys In Their Own Words
After years of slipshod hits packages and 2 excellent boxed sets, Tje Beach Boys have finally sat down and talked two interviewers about their career an why they love what they do. It features interviews with all 6 Beach Boys (Brian included), as well as musical historians and their many associates.

This dvd paints an intimate portrait of America's Band. Brian Wilson is espcially good here, never showing his personal problems and giving mini performances of songs at the piano. Each Beach Boy gets equal screen time. You even might shed a tear when you realize that this documentary was the last public tv appearance by Carl Wilson, who died of lung cancer just months later.

The music is really good. The live performances are mostly just snippets, but also includes a heartwrenching montage of Carl performing "God Only Knows" and a Mike Love - driven "California Girls". Also featured are two Dennis Wilson ballads, "All Alone" and "Barbara".

I would highly recommend this dvd. However, I suggest that if you are a casual Beach Boys fan, you should wait until a little later to get this dvd, because while it's comprehensive & insightful, you ought to get the albums first. Happy Holidays.

Anthony Nasti