In this 67-minute video of her 2008-2010 run at Caesar's Palace, Bette Midler offers a joyful, nostalgic and immensely entertaining evening of song, dance, and bawdy humor that proves that the passage of time has made Miss M no less divine. Presented in sparkling HD with a knockout 5.1 DTS-HD MA soundtrack, this Blu-Ray is a must-own for fans of the legendary singer, actress, and comedienne.
Midler:
The Showgirl Must Go On (2010)
Studio: Image Entertainment
Year: 2010
Rated: NR
Length: 67 Minutes
Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1
Resolution: 1080i
Languages: English 5.1 DTS-HD MA, English LPCM 2.0 Stereo
Subtitles: none
MSRP: $24.98
Film Release Date: December 31, 2010
Disc Release Date: October 4, 2011
Review Date: November 6, 2011
“I’ve been telling these jokes for forty years, and you’ve been laughing at them for forty years!”
The Movie:
4/5
Bette Midler is an American original. A Jewish girl born and raised in a mostly Asian neighborhood in Hawaii, she used the money she made as an extra in the 1966 Julie Andrews epic Hawaii to move to New York and further her acting career. After three years in the role of Tzeitel, one of Tevye’s daughters, in the Broadway production of Fiddler on the Roof, she became a singer at the Continental Baths, where her fine voice and her unique ability to blend high camp, outrageous humor and emotional sincerity earned her a loyal following among the Bath’s gay male patrons. Within two years she recorded her first album: The Divine Miss M, which went Platinum, won her the first of four Grammy Awards, and made her nationally known; its producer, Barry Manilow—her accompanist at the Baths—would soon become a recording star in his own right later in the decade. Bette’s star rose with more albums, TV appearances—including an ill-fated CBS sitcom at the turn of the millennium—and eventually a film career that has earned her two Academy Award nominations and three Golden Globes. With this HBO presentation of her two-year run at Caesar’s Palace in Las Vegas, she returns to her first love: the stage.
One of the most moving moments of the evening is her performance of John Prine’s “Hello in There,” one of the highlights of her first album. Despite its downbeat lyrics—“You know old rivers just grow stronger/And old rivers grow wilder every day/Old people just grow lonesome/Waiting for someone to say, Hello in there”—the song takes on an irony it didn’t have before, as the now 65-year-old “People’s Diva” is far from ready to hang it up. Age is an underlying theme behind a lot of the numbers and banter; Bette jokes about her age and her sagging breasts and derriere—held up beautifully by the flashy costumes—and, as the highlight of the evening, brings out her alter ego, Sophie, the World’s Oldest Showgirl, who is now 93. Yet she has not mellowed or cleaned up her act…thank God. Though she sings some of her songs in lower keys than before, her singing remains as energetic and expressive as ever; such ballads as “The Rose” and “Hello In There” have lost none of their emotional resonance with the passage of time. And even in a far more permissive age than the one that made her a star, her jokes are as dirty as ever; four-letter words fly fast and furious. The passage of time and the changing of social mores may have softened the blow of such profanity, but it has not affected her comic timing one bit; she’s every bit as much a comedienne as she is a singer and actress.
This concert features 10 numbers, most of which are pop hits and fan favorites: “The Showgirl Must Go On,” “Friends,” “The Rose,” “Do You Wanna Dance,” “Boolya JaDa,” “From A Distance,” “Hello in There,” “Pretty Legs/Hot in Here,” “The Glory of Love,” “Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy,” and “Wind Beneath My Wings.” Her backup group, The Staggering Harletts—past members of which have included Melissa Manchester and Married…With Children star Katey Sagal—support her throughout, while a group of dancers called the Salad Girls join her in a rendition of “Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy” that begins with a video of her younger self performing it in three-part harmony on TV; now when are her 1970s TV specials coming to DVD?
The Video:
4/5
The special was shot in 1080i HD video at an aspect ratio of 1.78:1, which is preserved on this Blu-Ray disc. Overall, the picture is vibrant and colorful, with very little video noise and no compression artifacts or edge enhancement. Contrast is decent; black levels are strong in close-ups but less so in long shots, and there is only the occasional blown-out highlight to mar the evening; all those sequins must have been a nightmare for the camera crew. Sharpness is good, although one can tell when the camera crew is adjusting the focus while Bette and her backup dancers move around the stage.
The Audio:
5/5
The show’s 5.1 DTS-HD MA track really brings out the orchestra, while Bette’s voice is easier to hear in the more intimate solo moments. All in all, it’s a knockout of a track with deep bass, sparkling high end, and well-balanced mid-frequencies. At times it almost sounds like you are right there in Caesar’s Palace. There is also a 2.0 PCM Stereo track.
The Extras:
0/5
There are no extras.
Final Score:
4/5
A legendary diva proving she’s got plenty of life left in her, Bette Midler: The Showgirl Must Go On is equal parts nostalgia and defiance to anyone who suggests advancing age automatically means declining abilities. We haven’t seen the last of the Divine Miss M, and this Blu-Ray is a must own for fans.
The Showgirl Must Go On (2010)
Studio: Image Entertainment
Year: 2010
Rated: NR
Length: 67 Minutes
Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1
Resolution: 1080i
Languages: English 5.1 DTS-HD MA, English LPCM 2.0 Stereo
Subtitles: none
MSRP: $24.98
Film Release Date: December 31, 2010
Disc Release Date: October 4, 2011
Review Date: November 6, 2011
“I’ve been telling these jokes for forty years, and you’ve been laughing at them for forty years!”
The Movie:
4/5
Bette Midler is an American original. A Jewish girl born and raised in a mostly Asian neighborhood in Hawaii, she used the money she made as an extra in the 1966 Julie Andrews epic Hawaii to move to New York and further her acting career. After three years in the role of Tzeitel, one of Tevye’s daughters, in the Broadway production of Fiddler on the Roof, she became a singer at the Continental Baths, where her fine voice and her unique ability to blend high camp, outrageous humor and emotional sincerity earned her a loyal following among the Bath’s gay male patrons. Within two years she recorded her first album: The Divine Miss M, which went Platinum, won her the first of four Grammy Awards, and made her nationally known; its producer, Barry Manilow—her accompanist at the Baths—would soon become a recording star in his own right later in the decade. Bette’s star rose with more albums, TV appearances—including an ill-fated CBS sitcom at the turn of the millennium—and eventually a film career that has earned her two Academy Award nominations and three Golden Globes. With this HBO presentation of her two-year run at Caesar’s Palace in Las Vegas, she returns to her first love: the stage.
One of the most moving moments of the evening is her performance of John Prine’s “Hello in There,” one of the highlights of her first album. Despite its downbeat lyrics—“You know old rivers just grow stronger/And old rivers grow wilder every day/Old people just grow lonesome/Waiting for someone to say, Hello in there”—the song takes on an irony it didn’t have before, as the now 65-year-old “People’s Diva” is far from ready to hang it up. Age is an underlying theme behind a lot of the numbers and banter; Bette jokes about her age and her sagging breasts and derriere—held up beautifully by the flashy costumes—and, as the highlight of the evening, brings out her alter ego, Sophie, the World’s Oldest Showgirl, who is now 93. Yet she has not mellowed or cleaned up her act…thank God. Though she sings some of her songs in lower keys than before, her singing remains as energetic and expressive as ever; such ballads as “The Rose” and “Hello In There” have lost none of their emotional resonance with the passage of time. And even in a far more permissive age than the one that made her a star, her jokes are as dirty as ever; four-letter words fly fast and furious. The passage of time and the changing of social mores may have softened the blow of such profanity, but it has not affected her comic timing one bit; she’s every bit as much a comedienne as she is a singer and actress.
This concert features 10 numbers, most of which are pop hits and fan favorites: “The Showgirl Must Go On,” “Friends,” “The Rose,” “Do You Wanna Dance,” “Boolya JaDa,” “From A Distance,” “Hello in There,” “Pretty Legs/Hot in Here,” “The Glory of Love,” “Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy,” and “Wind Beneath My Wings.” Her backup group, The Staggering Harletts—past members of which have included Melissa Manchester and Married…With Children star Katey Sagal—support her throughout, while a group of dancers called the Salad Girls join her in a rendition of “Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy” that begins with a video of her younger self performing it in three-part harmony on TV; now when are her 1970s TV specials coming to DVD?
The Video:
4/5
The special was shot in 1080i HD video at an aspect ratio of 1.78:1, which is preserved on this Blu-Ray disc. Overall, the picture is vibrant and colorful, with very little video noise and no compression artifacts or edge enhancement. Contrast is decent; black levels are strong in close-ups but less so in long shots, and there is only the occasional blown-out highlight to mar the evening; all those sequins must have been a nightmare for the camera crew. Sharpness is good, although one can tell when the camera crew is adjusting the focus while Bette and her backup dancers move around the stage.
The Audio:
5/5
The show’s 5.1 DTS-HD MA track really brings out the orchestra, while Bette’s voice is easier to hear in the more intimate solo moments. All in all, it’s a knockout of a track with deep bass, sparkling high end, and well-balanced mid-frequencies. At times it almost sounds like you are right there in Caesar’s Palace. There is also a 2.0 PCM Stereo track.
The Extras:
0/5
There are no extras.
Final Score:
4/5
A legendary diva proving she’s got plenty of life left in her, Bette Midler: The Showgirl Must Go On is equal parts nostalgia and defiance to anyone who suggests advancing age automatically means declining abilities. We haven’t seen the last of the Divine Miss M, and this Blu-Ray is a must own for fans.
