Such a frustrating disappointment

Purely Joyful Movie!

I didn’t really have many expectations going into the movie (good or bad), but I actually really enjoyed it. I really liked the characters and the banter between them.

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

The band that began Punk music was definitely the Ramones. They were usually a 4 man band, but different people would join in at different times. This documentary was the greatest film about the Ramones ever. It really showed, their gigs and the releasing of Rock 'N' Roll High School that they starred in. This was a great film for everyone to see who really invented the brand of Punk music. Punk music is only 4 chords you play over and over with no long chorus and then you say what you have to and end the song. The Ramones are my favorite band and one of the best bands ever. Sadly now almost all but one of the originals is dead. They all are dead now and it does really stink badly. We will miss them always.

I liked this movie. On the other hand I didn't buy it until it became available as a budget DVD (less than $10).I liked the Ramones before, and I like them after seeing this movie.It have a little bit of everything and no real deep, but that wasn't what I was looking for. Live footage, backstage footage, TV appearances, goofing around, "private" shots of the band etc. all you want from a Music DVD.If you don't like Ramones don't buy this, if you like them do buy it. It won't change your life but you get a few hours of entertainment.. It's far better than watching a bad Hollywood movie or such.

Ramones Raw is an amazing new DVD. I didn't expect much at first. Any DVD that claims to be definitive always makes me too skeptical. In this case I can't tell you how happy I am to be wrong. Ramones Raw starts out like most. The Ramones are playing to a huge crowd in Buenos Aires. The band is hanging out backstage then gets ready to go on stage in front of screaming fans. I immediately think it is one of those documentaries filmed at the end when someone figured out they should probably be documenting these guys. The next scene is a reporter in a hotel room asking where did the name Ramone come from? Johnny calmly starts to explain and I think they've got to be kidding. Luckily I was fooled. Ramones Raw is not a band documentary in a traditional sense. There is no attempt to tell the story of the Ramones. It is something I am sure not many bands could pull off and such a nice change of pace from your average band film. What you get is backstage and road footage mostly shot by Marky Ramone on his camcorder interspersed with live footage and other band events. There is no attempt to keep a chronological order. Footage switches between countries and events and back without hesitation. It manages to work. The viewer is treated to the most candid shots of the band. There are a few bathroom scenes with a band member relieving himself. Johnny jokingly asking Marky if he shot any pretty girls. Naturally, he did. Joey is laughing and making faces into the camera. Fans in Buenos Aires chase the band. The band is heard joking about the situation while they are driving in the van and we see the fans running down the street or driving in their cars following the van. Johnny yells out at them, "watch the road!" The band is almost panicking, but still amused by the situation. CJ adds, "Mark, get those two old ladies on film. They'll probably take their hair off and they're kids in disguise." The Ramones still treat their fans great. They sign autographs in train stations and in restaurants. They take pictures. They are also fans. You see them getting their pictures taken with Grandpa Munster, Carly Simon and Drew Barrymore. When the band is at a zoo in Australia, Marky films them from a distance and narrates like a naturalist. In Italy their van gets into a three-car accident. There is a shot of the Ramones standing by the side of the highway waiting for help while cars fly by. It is my favorite shot. I would have loved to be driving by and saw the Ramones standing there. "Fortunately, no one got hurt, " someone mentions. Cut to a shot of Joey standing by a totaled car. He laments the loss of his Fiat. In addition to all the great candid footage, Ramones Raw contains a bunch of TV performances. The best being their appearance on the Uncle Floyd show in 1979. The band performs while Uncle Floyd jokes around in the studio. He tries to make them announce the commercial break, but they aren't too cooperative. There is also a bit from the Howard Stern show where Joey and Marky play golf with the first Bush and discuss getting rid of Saddam Hussein. Gilbert Gottfried when he hosted USA Up All Night pretends to be the fifth Ramone in between showing A Nightmare On Elm Street. There are also 12 songs from a 1980 concert in Rome, deleted scenes and commentary from Johnny, Marky and director John Cafiero. Ramones Raw is a truly great collection. I watched the entire DVD in one sitting and I could have watched much more.

Even though I consider myself a pretty big Ramones fan, this movie fell short of what I was hoping it would be. It is in no way a documentary on the band. Instead it is merely a collection of Marky's home movies intercut with rare television appearances. There's no narative at all. About half way through, we decided to watch it with the optional commentary from Marky and Johnny. At least that gave it a little bit of clarity.All in all, I don't think I would recommend this one to anyone other than a real die-hard completist Ramones fanatic.Mike