MXPX – B-Movie [DVD]

When I got B-Movie, I had no idea what to expect. I had received all the press releases for it, but of course, I was way too lazy to read them. Having heard that they filmed two live shows at the Graceland in Seattle, WA, I figured it would be a live DVD. After a short introduction, the movie jumped into MXPX playing Well Adjusted to an energetic crowd. The picture was clear and crisp and the sound was smooth and clear. I was impressed and thought to myself that this would be a great live DVD, but I was only partly right. After the song ended, it was obvious that this was a documentary DVD with some live clips thrown in there. So my initial reaction was almost correct, it is a great DVD, just not live.

The documentary takes a look at the inner workings of the popular band that broke onto the scene twelve years ago. There are interviews with the three members, Yuri, Mike, and Tom, in various situations.Yuri is walking and playing with his dog, Mike’s lounging around at home and Tom is driving around. The guys of MXPX let you in on what goes on while they are touring, all the tricks and games and adventures on bikes in Europe. They talk about Japan and the double opening refrigerator door and have mini confessions with the cameras. Mike answers some hate mail and talks about criticism while Yuri introduces us to his “hit empty beer bottles with a baseball bat” game. And like I said, the entire DVD is splattered with random live songs throughout from the two nights at the Graceland; which, just like Well Adjusted, looks spectacular. B-Movie is good for any curious MXPX fan who wants to learn more about the band.

In addition to the documentary, they also have some bonus features. Behind the scenes of the Everything Sucks music video, photo shoots for Alternative Press and the album cover, and the recording of the acoustic EP, The A/C Ep (which comes along with the DVD). There’s a photo gallery and a section of them getting all pretty for a photo shoot. The bonus features aren’t great, but do add a little extra to the DVD which makes it a bit more interesting.

As for the acoustic EP that comes with the DVD, well, it’s amazing. The EP alone is worth the money of the package. With some new and some old songs, the EP will show every non-believer that MXPX can make great acoustic songs.