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- Cert:
- Cat.no: GVD 015
- Running time: 79 minutes
- Year: 2001
- Pressing: 2001
- Region(s): 2 (UK PAL)
- Chapters: 8
- Sound: Dolby Digital 2.0 (Stereo/Mono)
- Languages: English
- Subtitles: None
- Fullscreen: 4:3
- 16:9-enhanced: Yes
- Macrovision: Yes
- Disc Format: DVD 5
- Price: £19.99
- Extras: TV Trailer
Producer/Directors :
- Neil Davies
Narrator :
- Nicola King
WhereasPopstarswas a rather polished production, Raw Spice appears to use less cameratechniques than Man Bites Dog.
There is without a doubt no-one out there who hasn’t heard of the SpiceGirls and in their heyday there was no let up from them. Whereas mostbands, after finishing their first album, would go away and quietly work ontheir next – and then release it with a list of tour dates, the Spice Girlsadvertised Walkers crisps, Impulse Spice – a new fragrance, but whereas thosecrisps taste nice, the Impulse spray smells horrible. They even went so far intheir promotion of Pepsi as to record a song, Step To Me, only for themfor it to be given away on a CD single in a promotion if you sent off a stackof tokens. They also took in a Polaroid camera, the SpiceCam.
It was only July 1996 when the girls shot into the chart at No.3 withWannabe, climbing to No.1 the following week and then followed it withthree more No.1’s from the same album, Say You’ll Be There, 2 Become 1and Mama / Who Do You Think You Are. Then the first single from the secondalbum, Spice Up Your Life, went straight into the charts at the top aswell, making five No.1’s in a row at the time.
Around this time they had also filmed, due for a Boxing Day release, theirfirst – and only – filmSpiceworld. It wasdirected by Bob Spiers, who has worked on the TV series AbsolutelyFabulous and written by Kim Fuller and the programme’s star, JenniferSaunders. The film also had a number of cameo appearances by famous people.As well as Richard E. Grant playing their manager, cameos comefrom Michael Barrymore, Richard Briers, Bob Hoskins, Elvis Costello,Stephen Fry, Dame Edna Everage, Elton John, Hugh Laurie, Meat Loaf, JonathanRoss, Toyah Willcox, and Jennifer Saunders.
Click on the above for a review of their second album,Spiceworld.
After that their second Xmas single, Too Much, gave them their secondXmas No.1 in a row, but the follow-up, Stop, didn’t make it, falteringat No.2, being held off the top slot by Run DMC and Jason Nevins’ It’s LikeThat. Summer and Xmas 1998 saw yet two more No.1s in Viva Foreverand Goodbye, giving them the honours of being the first group ever toscore three Xmas No.1s in successive years.
Sadly, the shit has now appeared to hit the fan. While Holler/Let Love LeadThe Way, the first single from their third album, Forever, did makethe top, album sales were incredibly poor and with the girls’ solo careersheading off in different directions it looks like the time is right to callit a day. They won’t admit that, of course, but since any future singlesreleases from the album and the planned tour have been cancelled, it appearsthe end is nigh.
For the girls themselves, Mel C is probably doing the best at themoment since Geri appears to have become a parody of herself trying totone herself up beyond belief but it really doesn’t do her any favours.Is it just me or does she look a lot better in Raw Spice than she doesnow?Emma‘s only had one solo single to date, a cover of Edie Brickell’sWhat I Am, but the upcoming release of What Took You So Longlooks set to do the business for her.
Victoria missed out on her first No.1 single, when Spiller beatthem to the top with Groovejet (If This Ain’t Love), headed by thegorgeous Sophie Ellis-Bextor, daughter of Blue Peter andJigsaw‘s Janet Ellis, but then to the public I say you must havebeen Out of Your Mind to buy Posh’s solo effort. As for Melanie B,her private life has been made very public, splitting from dancer JimmyGulzar and now seeing her solo career going down the toilet. Her firstsingle, I Want You Back, made No.1 but after that things went downhillfast. Her solo album, Hot, hit lukewarm at No.28 and if her next singledoesn’t make the Top 5 with significant sales, she will be dumped by herrecord company.
Raw Spice contains scores of chat from scores of other people includingtheir manager at the time, Chris Herbert, now managing Hear’Say,his late father Bob Herbert, voice coach Pepi Lemer, ex-Eternalsingers Louise and Kelle Bryan and the original fifth Spice memberbefore Emma joined, Michelle Stephenson.
Click on the above for a review of their third – and last? – album,Forever.
First shown on TV cut to just over half of its length, the full versionexpands a little on what we’ve already seen, but as all the early footage wasshot on a dodgy hand-held camera the quality is pretty appalling. There’snothing we can do about that now, but at the time docusoaps weren’t thein-thing so such care over presentation wasn’t taken. Shot in 4:3 fullscreen,the average bitrate is a steadyish 6.2Mb/s.
The sound quality is similarly bad for the camera footage. You can hear thedialogue but it certainly won’t beatU-571 to the Oscarfor Best Sound Effects Editing! The only stereo content comes in the talkieclips filmed today of those commenting on the band.
The disc contains a paltry 8 chapters over the 79 minute production,there are no subtitles and the only extra is a 2-minute TV trailer.
What I can’t understand is, after releasing Popstarswith a good picture quality and copious chapters for £14.99,why Granada have charged an extra fiver for Raw Spice which is shorterand doesn’t look so good.
PICTURE QUALITY
SOUND QUALITY
EXTRAS
OVERALL
Reviewer of movies, videogames and music since 1994. Aortic valve operation survivor from the same year. Running DVDfever.co.uk since 2000. Nobel Peace Prize winner 2021.