New York Dolls - All Dolled Up

My name is Reet and I can only judge this film through my own perspective. I went to school with Johnny from elementary through jr. high at least ( i don't remember if he dropped out of high school...those years are kinda blurry...I miss him....glad I got to see as many Dolls and Thunders shows as it was...anyway...) This is a wonderful documentary for me to soak in alot of John, as well as all the Dolls, since I grew up with their music as it was happening! It's sorta like watchin home movies!!! But like home movies it may be overkill for some viewers.Twas a wonderful night when I watched this dvd! The live songs are precious!The Dolls are hilarious! It's a big happy/sad dealie!And there are great still fotos as an extra with author commentary!!For die hard Dolls fans or anyone wanting to see what they were all about and their importance in the history of rock and roll. Especially the history of Punk music. Otherwise its just a filmed historical document of a buncha crazy New York kids in a band havin th' time of their life!!! But it's so much more than that to me.I am eternally grateful it was made!

For those of you who saw the Dolls back in the '70's, this is a time capsule version that brings you back to Max's Kansas City, Kenny's Castaways, Club 82, and more. The Dolls are young, brash, alive, and vital. Seeing Johnny healthy and built, or Jerry Nolan chubby, it's worth the price of admission. All of the Dolls are energetic and engaging. At the time, the world was their oyster and there was no place to go but up. Great sloppy chaotic versions of their greatest non-hits. A nice feature of the DVD is the Performance Only section, as well as the commentary. It does bog down a little in the middle, but picks right back up again as soon as the band hits the stage. Some of the comments are very funny. The black & white photography lends a "historic" feel. It's way better than it should be, given the time & technology advances since then. It ends around with the Red Patent Leather gigs at the Little Hippodrome, but without fan fare or anything maudlin.

Excellent service, item arrived on time and as desribed.

Talk about being at the right place at the right time and having the latest technology at hand! Bob Gruen had a video recorder and seemingly unfettered access to one of the most seminal (and under appreciated) bands in rock, The New York Dolls. I remember back in the day reading that they were voted the best new band and the worst new band in the Creem rock polls, so of course I ran out to buy their first album (which I still have). Amazing, and still holds up after 40 years! Glammed up and sleazy, there's tons of footage of the Dolls onstage and backstage, as well as footage of them playing the Whiskey in L.A. The only reason I didn't give this five stars is that the video is all black and white and the sound is horrendous (no fault of anyone, that was the best technology available short of filming them with movie cameras.) But if you're a fan of the New York Dolls, you owe it to yourself to get this.

You may have heard the music, and you may have read the stories but unless you were there, this video is probably the closest you will ever get to actually being on stage, back stage, and hanging out off stage with the legendary New York Dolls. Thank you Bob Gruen and Nadya Beck for putting this amazing film together. I could not recommend this highly enough.

If your expecting a documentary with the clarity and production value of "End of the Century" or "Filth and the Fury" THIS AIN'T IT! Picture taking 40 hours of bad home video (really awful sound) and editing together and calling it a documentary. No current interviews, No voice over making any sense of the chaos...No thought to flow or storyline, just a mishmash of stuff banged together. A real dissapointment. The saddest part is that for those fans out there who want it, this material could be a great source for a documentary with actual substance. I've liked the dolls for years and was really excited at the prospect of them getting their due. Its a shame this is what its been reduced to. Shame on everyone involved.

It was average. Not that impressive.

Although this starts out with very low-fi footage at first, it gets better, and continuuing how little there is on film of the Dolls, it's totally worth watching, and really does capture their camaraderie and sweetness before everything fell apart.