Return to Waterloo/Come Dancing

Starring:Sally Anne, Dominique Barnes, Joan Blackman, Sheila Collings, Timothy Davies, Roy Evans, Michael Fish, Gretchen Franklin, Christopher Godwin, Valerie Holliman, Neil Lander, Allan Mitchell, Aaron Probyn, Claire Rayner, Tim Roth, Mike Smart, Wally Thomas, Sue Vanner, Hywel Williams-Ellis
Studio: Image Entertainment
Product Type: DVD

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

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).

Customer Reviews:

Davies & company 80s music videos.......2007-03-23

"Return to Waterloo" is an hour-long music video featuring a number of Kinks songs and a storyline about an average, well-off Englishman. A feeling of possible impending horror is created by repeated newspaper images of a rapist on the loose, a man who closely resembles the hero of the story. However, the story never really pulls together. We follow our alienated hero is he ponders a young love and thinks about his wife back home. He boards a London commuter train and finds himself next to a group of people who represent different social tendencies in 1980s Britain - some business types, some old folks reminiscing, and some hooliganish young punks, one of whom is played by Tim Roth. The characters prance around, and sometimes it makes for very enjoyable viewing, but what is it really all about?

In part 2, "Come Dancing with the Kinks", you can watch several music videos of Kinks Klassiks or kontemporary 80s songs. Some of these make for good viewing, such as the funny "Predictable", or "Come Dancing", a story-song in the Davies tradition. There is also a nice live version of "Lola" which has R.D. all hyped up and running around the stage.

Take a look if you like. If you are new to Kinksdom, check out some of their 60s classics first, like the albums "Face to Face" or "Something Else". If you are already a fan (like me) you will probably get something out of this, and you may even want to forge ahead and read Ray Davies's "unauthorized autobiography" titled "X-Ray".

Give this a good remastering, already!.......2006-01-11

*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*.

Well done Kinks tunes.......2002-11-26

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.

Fun two-fer for fans.......2002-01-18

"Return to Waterloo" seems something of an indulgence. The mid-life crisis theme is murky but the feeling is unmistakeable. The Ray Davies magic comes through.
"Come Dancing" is a compilation of '80s music videos giving ample evidence that Davies is one of the world's great entertainers.
If they're not already in your collection on VHS, you'll want to have this one.

Not worthy of the Kinks or Ray's talents.......2001-09-02

I'm a huge Kinks fan and had never seen Return To Waterloo (although I had the album released by Ray at the time of the film's release). When it finally appeared on DVD I thought I should check it out. It's a dreary mess of a film notable only for an early appearence by actor Tim Roth. The songs are certainly very good (although not quite up to the level of Arthur or Village Green). RTW stands as an interesting failure.

The videos from the Kinks renewed popularity during the late 70's and early 80's are a hoot. Before MTV had reduced videos to little more than slick commericals, videos were amateurish enough to be fun. In this post MTV age they've become overproduced unimaginative messes (although thee are certainly a handful of worthy short "films" from the early years of MTV most are pretty bad now). Oh dear, I sound like a crabby old young
man!

Anyhow, the videos are fun and it's always nice to see the band performing even if its just lip synching and performances to backing tracks. I'd definitely rank Come Dancing and Do It Again at the top of the videos the Kinks made (the latter song is an underrated gem that borrows the opening chord from A Hard Day's Night and manages to return the favor the Who did for the band when they "borrowed" the Kinks sound early in their career).

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