Madonna - The Immaculate Collection [DVD]

Madonna produced numerous MTV videos; and this DVD showcases 12 of them with bonus footage of Madonna and her supporting cast performing "Vogue" at the 1990 MTV Awards. The quality of the image is excellent; and the sound exceeded my expectations. This DVD proves that Madonna was an unstoppable artistic force as early as 1984 when she made her "Borderline" video. The quality of the footage together with the soundtrack stuns me and makes me want more.The Immaculate Collection DVD is a set of several of Madonna's earliest videos; and this DVD starts off strong with the beautiful "Lucky Star." Madonna dances up against a white background with merely two background dancers for much of the length of this number. Nevertheless, in "Lucky Star" Madonna already begins to beg and work her way into your heart not merely as a very attractive young woman but also as a legitimate artist singing, dancing and pouring her heart out. "Borderline" follows and the action speeds up with something of a plot going on while Madonna sings. Yes, Madonna has her man; but when a rich entertainment mogul comes along to give her opportunities the relationship between Madonna and her main man heats up in a way that isn't always very positive."Like A Virgin" represents Madonna's desire to play over the top roles; during this number she dances and sings inside an empty but beautifully sculpted older European-style building. Madonna's white dress comes undone to reveal more of her legs to symbolize her being "touched for the very first time."Other videos that deserve mention include the pensive "La Isla Bonita" with its beautiful cinematography and an extravagant Latin costume for Madonna as well as "Papa Don't Preach" which explores the relationship between a father and his daughter now that she's all grown up and involved with a man. "Material Girl" boasts a set and costume for Madonna that are clearly based on Marilyn Monroe singing "Diamonds Are A Girl's Best Friend" from the movie Gentlemen Prefer Blondes. In addition, there is the very painful yet all too commonplace scenario depicted in "Oh Father." "Oh Father" explores Madonna's feelings now that she is an adult woman and free of an abusive parent who terrorized her when she was just a little girl without a mother to defend her.The DVD closes with two versions of Madonna's big hit entitled "Vogue." "Vogue" encourages people to use their imagination to make themselves attractive to themselves and to others. I like the way Madonna wedges in so neatly a tribute to some of the greatest actors who have come before her. The second version of Vogue was filmed at the 1990 MTV Awards show and is presented here from excellent camera angles. The extravagant over the top costumes combine with the singing and dancing to produce an outstanding number.One reviewer writes that they would have liked "Burning Up" and "Into the Groove" to have been included on this DVD. I must agree; but because the rest of the DVD is so perfect I will give it five stars anyway. Some of you may prefer to give this DVD four stars because of this omission. It's a judgment call!Overall, The Immaculate Collection documents some of Madonna's finest work during the first several years of her career in the form of video vignettes that are memorable and well executed. The cinematography shines through with clever camera angles all throughout the 13 chapters of the DVD; and the choreography leaves nothing to chance as Madonna and her crew perform intricate numbers with great energy and poise. Madonna and the rest of the cast make it look easy; but we know it isn't. But, then again, when a star like Madonna is born, the impossible can become the reality that is shown to us here on this DVD.Enjoy!

The DVD quality was good.

Madonna - The Immaculate CollectionBrought back memories of a ground breaking artist who was set on showing the US and the world that a woman can be as sexual as a man. Her take me or leave me sassy spirited style set about fashion trends as well as making way for other woman who express them selves musically or sexually or art was exactly what Madonna set about to show the world. Her acts of humanity is what made this rebels anticts tolerated by many who would just wish she would go away. Well she did show them she is still going strong and has an edge we all love and adore. A must have classic take on Madonna's ground breaking and explicitly shocking historic videos. You get to see controversary at its best with the Like a Prayer video that caused an uproar among christians, parental groups, and even congress that launched Pepsi into a new generation. Pepsi of course responded by dropping Madonna and her video from it's comercial campaign. Buy it now.

Attention United States customers: Seller may send you a DVD in the "PAL" format which is incompatible with DVD players in the United Stations ("Region 1"). The DVD case clearly states that the format is "PAL" (not "NTSC" as stated on the Amazon listing). Returning DVD for refund.Especially disappointing after a long delivery wait.

Madonna was one of the quintessential stars of the MTV era. Artists such as Michael Jackson and Prince made good use of the form, but Madonna's entire career was built upon smart collaborator choices and a chameleon image which makes her even more of an industry unto herself than the other two.Not all of these videos are great, or even good. But two things are certain: a) They served as mini-fashion shows for whatever persona Madonna was trying to project at the time, and b) the best videos on this collection are some of the best videos of all time.First let's get the bad points over with. "Papa Don't Preach", while a great (and daring) pop single, is given a camembert visual treatment. Danny Aiello was a good choice to play the "papa" in question, but cheesy jump-cuts (as if the director had just discovered the nouvelle vague) and a flat-out inexplicable performance segment ruin the video. The performance footage is the laziest kind, Madonna looking into the camera and shaking around, but the slutty, cleavage-crazy costume and horrible choreography merely serve to overturn the innocent "pregnant girl" image she projects in the narrative segments, and Madonna's attempt at emoting merely reminds us how wretched she is as an actress. "Like a Prayer" was controversial but not much else, a promising series of concepts wasted, never developed, and "Like a Virgin" is just a concept-less exploitation of a nice-looking location, horrendously boring especially on rewatches.But when Madonna hits her peaks in music video, she's every bit as good at it (and arguably more complex thematically) than Michael Jackson. "Vogue" is an acknowledged classic, its tone and artistic presentation unique in music-video history; the dance sequences are fabulous and unlike any other, getting across a decadence which suits Madonna's persona perfectly. "Oh Father" is her pinnacle, a simple yet moving story with perfect rhythm, superhumanly beautiful photography and Citizen Kane-inspired dissolves. "Express Yourself" is probably her most representative video, almost arrogant in its raw physicality and over-the-top setting. With the above videos (as well as other masterpieces such as Aerosmith's "Janie's Got a Gun"), director David Fincher had established himself as the king of music-video, laying the path for his illustrious film career ahead. No surprise that Fincher remains the only music-video director who graduated with complete success to features; his videos are cinematic like no other. And the themes explored in these videos -- deviant sexuality, parental neglect, sorrow, idolatry, solitude -- are unusually sophisticated for the format.Aside from the above classics, there are also a couple of slices of guilty pleasure -- the buoyant fiesta of "La Isla Bonita", the blatant Marilyn Monroe tribute in "Material Girl" (still Madonna's most famous on-film image), and the cheesy yet endearing "Cherish". The late Herb Ritts had only one visual style for both his photographs and his music videos, and his video work is almost always devoid of narrative, but his style works within its own limited confines, and "Cherish" comes across just like Janet Jackson's "Love Will Never Do (Without You)", more like an intimate photo album of an artist than a motion picture.Finally, we have the MTV Music Video Awards performance of "Vogue". Compared with the MTV performance by Michael Jackson (included on his HIStory DVD), Madonna positively kicked Jackson's behind. Where Jackson's "medley" performance was repetitive, overlong and messy, Madonna's was precise, lavish and fit the song perfectly. A certain sense of cold manipulation does creep in (you know what reaction she's looking for when the dancers squeeze her breasts and when she lifts her skirt), but nevertheless the overall performance is a classic just for the choreography.I've never cared for Madonna's post-1994 videos -- my interest in her video work stopped with "Bad Girl" and "This Used to Be My Playground" -- but this collection is a keeper. Even if Madonna's '80s videos weren't as consistently groundbreaking or enjoyable as Michael Jackson's, her best work scales some remarkable heights.