DVD Review: The White Stripes - Under Great White Northern Lights
April 14th, 2010
For The White Stripes to choose every province and territory Canada as the setting for not just an exclusive tour but also their documentary is a truly eye-opening vision. I mean that not just because director Emmett Malloy captured their expedition on some beautiful black and white celluloid, but more so because how many Canadians do you know that have done the same?
Jack and Meg weren’t trying to teach us a lesson about our own country. But there is plenty to learn from Under Great White Northern Lights. Perhaps most important is how one of the planet’s biggest rock’n’roll bands was able to set aside all of the glitz and glamour of the job and play to a group of Iqaluit seniors in Nunavut, who could care less about who their visitors are.
It’s this kind of humility that makes the documentary more than just a concert film. In fact, the music isn’t even all that important. The performance footage feels secondary; Malloy would rather focus on the impact the band’s impromptu gigs have on their fans. They play the infamous “One-Note Show” in St. John’s, Newfoundland, where the set consisted of yes, Jack playing one guitar chord and Meg striking one beat. It’s got to be the only time you’ll ever hear a crowd scream for “one more note!”
The duo pack the film with more charm, performing on a public transit a bus in Winnipeg, the Black Watch armoury in Montreal, a tugboat in Charlottetown, a pool hall in Halifax and a bowling alley in Saskatoon. We learn that no one does the guerilla gig quite like The White Stripes.
And it’s not all just about novelty concertgoing (although that is an effective narrative). We see a band usually surrounded in mystery functioning as a unit, which doesn’t really surprise us as much as it confirms our suspicions that Jack is the glib, dominant White and Meg is as diffident as she seems. When he snaps “Nobody can hear a goddamn word you say!” You know it’s for the camera but also because, well, she really is that mousey. But then towards the end as Jack sings “White Moon,” Meg has a genuine breakdown on camera, bursting into tears. (It should be noted that not long after the band cancelled their remaining tour dates because of Meg’s acute anxiety problems.)
It’s this rare moment that earns Under Great White Northern Lights its status as one of the great tour docs out there. That it went down on Canadian soil by a band that sports our national colours religiously is purely icing on the cake.
Note: Included with the DVD is a 17-track CD that collects audio from select shows the band played during their 2007 Canadian tour. As far as live recordings go, it’s a pretty wicked album in itself, not to mention a sweet bonus to compliment the doc.
Rating: A-
-Cam Lindsay
Tags: The White Stripes, Under Great White Northern Lights
Posted on Wednesday, April 14th, 2010 at 3:38 pm by Cam and is filed under Reviews, The New Music.
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