May 03, 2005 @ 9:30 am

DVD Review: Kanye West - The College Dropout Video Anthology

Kevin Wong

After over 2.5 million copies of his debut album sold, Kanye West is primed to release his sophomore album, Late Registration, on July 12. For anyone who has worn out The College Dropout or needs a Kanye fix to tide them over, Kanye West: The College Dropout Video Anthology may be the answer. Although this latest DVD package from Roc-A-Fella has plenty of footage that a Kanye craver would demand, there are several prominent drawbacks that might make a penny-pincher think twice

The Kanye West: The College Dropout Video Anthology contains two discs full of material. The first disc is a DVD of Kanye's music videos, and it includes "Through The Wire, "All Falls Down," Slow Jamz," an extended version of "The New Workout Plan," three filmed versions of "Jesus Walks," and an unreleased video of "Two Words." For the more curious fans is a one-hour documentary about the three "Jesus Walks" videos, complete with interviews and candid footage. The second disc is a seven-song EP of College Dropout remixes, and it includes two unreleased songs. MTV and BET both cut their aired videos for length, and it is refreshing to see Kanye's creative concepts unabridged. In particular, "The New Workout Plan" benefits from extended treatment. Three minutes of footage were removed from its TV version, which switched rapidly between the original song, its grating Lil Jon remix, and mini-skits. The song sounded messy and disjointed as a result, and this spliced treatment likely contributed to the single's commercial failure. The DVD extended version of "The New Workout Plan" redresses these flaws, and with the album's intro skit included at its beginning and the reinsertion of Kanye's entire middle verse, this satirical look at the video girl phenomenon is biting and cynically humorous. "Two Words" is the unreleased video of the anthology. Like most of Kanye's videos, it favors visual artistry over commercial accessibility. Filmed in grainy black and white with an unsteady camera, the video depicts gritty urban landscapes as a backdrop to Mos Def's confessional rhymes. The more popular videos, however, are no less artistic, and they too invite the multiple viewings that a DVD enables. "All Falls Down" is shot from a slow motion, first-person perspective that highlights subtle facial expressions. The Church version of "Jesus Walks" is an energetic send-up to the redemptive power of religion. By telling the intersecting stories of a prostitute, an alcoholic, and a thug, the video uses religious symbolism to strike a delicate balance between the sacred and profane. Despite the worthiness of the content, however, the presentation of the DVD leaves much to be desired. Although there is a clear "Explicit Content" parental advisory warning on the Kanye West: The College Dropout Video Anthology, all of the music videos have been censored for four-letter words and racial expletives. When dealing with an anthology that aims for unconcealed visual presentation, it's disappointing that the audio is not correspondingly complete. Strangely enough, the lyrics are uncensored during the "Jesus Walks" documentary, an inconsistent oversight. The DVD transfer is similarly sloppier than one would hope for, and the documentary on "Jesus Walks," is the unfortunate victim of a production error. At the end of the "Chris Milks video" section of the documentary, the screen becomes pixilated and distorted for a length of time, and all the viewer can decipher is the audio. The filming of a dramatic fire stunt is hidden from view, and it's unfortunate that the only special feature on the disc detracts from the anthology rather than sweetening it. This technical error, combined with the absence of Kanye's recently filmed "Spaceship" music video, leaves the collection with a incomplete and rushed feel. The anthology has a lot of good things to offer; the music videos themselves are top notch, and the new tracks on the second disc, while not undiscovered classics, are catchy and worth a listen. A potential buyer, however, should be aware of the package's flaws and lack of extra material, and only dedicated Kanye fans and completists will seek it out. Most fans should just wait two more months for the new album, and, no doubt, another batch of artsy creativity.

Article tags: DVD, Review, Kanye, West, College, Dropout, Video, Anthology 

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