Pearl Jam: Let's Play Two

I've been a massive Pearl Jam fan since 1991, but this is just so disappointing.

I was expecting a full concert film, but instead got a Chicago Cubs promo.

Being an Englishman, I don't care about baseball or this particular team. I also have absolutely no interest in a bar which happens to be close to the stadium - I can go to any stadium in England and find a bar close-by where fans congregate on match days.

Why they couldn't have put a full concert on one disc and the baseball content on separate disc for anyone who felt the need to watch it could do so is quite beyond me.

Obviously, the actual music (what there is of it) is great, but I've no idea why 'Black' is cut short & the full version is only an extra! Maybe I just don't understand the genius of Danny Clinch.

An opportunity totally wasted for me - I don't want to have to sit with the remote in-hand ready to skip the boring baseball sections. This is destined to gather dust along with that other Danny Clinch 'masterpiece' Immagine in Cornice, which is similarly disjointed and tedious.

If I'd have known the film's format beforehand, I wouldn't have got the Blu Ray. I'll stick to 'Touring Band 2000', 'Live at the Showbox' & 'Live at the Garden'.

One for completists & Cubs fans only.

Any doubts that Pearl Jam is one of the greatest bands of all time are dispelled by this film.

Let's Play Two (2017)

*** 1/2 (out of 4)

This here is a rather interesting documentary that tries to do two things at once. One is to show repsect to Chicago as Pearl Jam does a couple shows at Wrigley Field. The second thing is to show off the historic run that the Chicago Cubs did that season to win their first World Series since 1908.

I've heard some people say that Pearl Jam and Major League Baseball just mixed the two things in order to sell more copies but I don't buy that at all. I'd certainly believe that if the documentary was a bad one but it isn't and in fact it works perfectly well with one another. Sure, Pearl Jam played several gigs at Wrigley without the Cubs winning the World Series but in 2016 both happened at the same time and it led to this documentary.

The concert footage is great as you'd expect as are the clips from the Cubs season. To me both of those things were entertaining but the key to this film is the relation that both have to the city of Chicago. We get to hear from mega-fans of both as they discuss their love and passion for not only Pearl Jam but also the Cubs. Of course, Eddie Vedder himself was born and raised in Chicago and is a major Cubs fan so we also get to hear from him about what the city and team means.

LET'S PLAY TWO is certainly a nice tribute to the city and shows its low to the Cubs as well as Pearl Jam.

The title is borrowed from an old quote by Chicago Cubs great, Ernie Banks, who upon noting what a beautiful day it was, suggested "let's play two". But if you watch this film expecting it to be a baseball movie or a concert movie, it's neither. It is a celebration, it's about loyalty and brotherhood, perseverance and triumph.

The Danny Clinch directed movie focuses around the return to Chicago of a native son (Eddie Vedder) who spent his childhood in and around Wrigley Field and has become one of the Cub's most steadfast supporters. Following Chicago's nail biting 7 game battle to win the 2016 World Series against the Cleveland Indians, Eddie and his Pearl Jam band mates make the trip back to the Windy City to celebrate the Championship with more than 40,000 of their closest friends.

Expertly filmed, the movie intersperses interviews with Vedder, Pearl Jam lead guitarist Mike McCready, Cubs President Theo Epstein, Beth Murphy, owner of famed sports bar, Murphys Bleachers and a handful of fans with concert footage from the bands two night gig. The concert footage is well filmed and we get a true sense of Vedder's skill and talent as lead singer and why Pearl Jam has endured as a musical icon for over 20 years.

Rich visuals of the band, the enormous crowd and the crisp, edgy soundtrack will make any Pearl Jam fan impatient for the next live performance. So it goes without saying that my only complaint is that even at a solid 2 hours, it still wasn't long enough. You leave the theater wanting more so until you have Pearl Jam concert tickets in hand, this will have to hold you over.

One of the best music films I've ever seen. Such a unique blend of a band history, concert footage, sports narritave as it relates to Eddie's upbringing, passion for the team and band intertwined with the city of Chicago. A must see for sports and music fans alike.