Celine
Dion Live In Las Vegas (2007)
Sony
Cast:
Celine Dion.
Rating:
G
Run
time: 300 mins
Genre:
Music
Verdict:
Bland
(see rating
system)
I
know her fans will love this generously-loaded 2-DVD set,
but I find the show too slick for its own good.
Dion
seems to polarize music lovers - they either love her to a
degree that's scary (see one of the documentaries included
here), or hate her simpering delivery with a passion.
Me?
I'm doggedly neutral - she just doesn't move me at all.
What
I won't argue with is the fact she delivers value for money
here. in addtion to one of her sellout performances from A
New Day - the four-year record-breaking engagement at Caesars’s
Palace - there are hours of extra features on her Las Vegas
life, rehearsals, back stage, family etc. There's also a look
at those fanatical fans. Some flew to Vegas from as far as
China, Europe and Africa to catch the show. A few showed up
40, 50 or 60 times. One woman, reputedly, came 100 times!!
Astonishing. Even Dion seems taken aback by the adulation
as she meets selected fans before a concert.
The
show is a true Vegas spectacular, with dozens of dancers,
some flying on wires above the huge stage. Visual effects
include flocks of birds flying towards the horizon.
Dion
is clinically note perfect as usual, but she hasn't got the
emotional power of a Barbra Streisand, who doesn't need distracting
props to hold an audience. Truth is, Dion's material is mediocre,
dull ballads mostly. She only sparks to life in a few numbers
- notably “I Drove All Night” and “River Deep,
Mountain High”.
It
inevitably ends with “My Heart Will Go On”, an overblown
tribute to an overblown movie, Titanic, but the sellout crowd
loves it.
Like
a candy bar that's quickly forgotten 5 minutes after being
consumed, this release is musically unsatisfying. But I've
no doubt those fans will love it.
