Search - Divine Fire: The Story of Jedi Mind Tricks [With Bonus DVD] on DVD

Divine Fire: Not Really a JMT Documentary

Dennis | Boston, MA | 02/03/2009

(3 out of 5 stars)

"I may not be the best person to review this product, but since there have been no other reviews, I feel obligated to help out some of you looking to purchase.
Let me first say I'm a huge Jedi Mind Tricks fan, but only recently. I have listened religiously to all their albums, including AotP stuff too. This review is not on their music, which I think is exceptional and wholly unique in a genre of music that needs innovation and revitalization.
I bought this dvd, like many of you, expecting a legit documentary on the group, with in-depth footage and analysis of all members (esp. the mysterious Stoupe) and all their albums. But, instead of boring you with long windedness, here's a list of pros and cons to summarize:

PROS:
good behind the scenes footage
decent length
overall good product design quality
covers the first 5 albums
lot of tour footage
contains 4 music videos
at least it offers "something" about stoupe

CONS:
NOT a real documentary
it's basically behind the scenes footage over a somewhat coherent chronological span with some vinnie paz narration thrown in
waaaaaaaaay too much rock the bells footage that should've been bonus features, not on the main documentary
barely any light is shed on Stoupe, the enemy of mandkind, who is the extremely underrated producer/fan-dubbed "star" of the group
no coverage of their latest album a history of violence, which wasn't that great, but i expected at least a mention of the album and the reunion and reason of reunion with Jus Allah.
glanced over visions of gandhi and legacy of blood, no mention of BIG name stars on those albums like GZA, Canibus, Kool G Rap, etc
annoying rock music, poor music selection even though they basically had unlimited jmt songs to choose from, very disappointing
no cohesiveness, it needed a 3rd party narration over it badly
too much vinnie paz, vinnie paz is not jmt, jmt is paz, stoupe, and jus allah. Where are the latter two?
The music cd is almost useless if you have all their albums anyway.

In summary, I only give this 3 stars because I am such a huge jmt fan. I almost don't regret the $18 purcahse, but if you are not already a huge fan, don't buy it. If you are, it's somewhat interesting and you'll have at least have a little more knowledge and a complete collection.

Just so you know:
Fav jmt album: Violent by Design
Fav stoupe beat: "Untitled" VBD, "And So It Burns" LOB, "On the eve of war" LOB
Fav paz verse: "War Ensemble" VBD, "On the Eve of War" LOB, "Black Winter Day" SIHKIH
Fav jus allah verse: 2nd verse "Untitled" VBD"

Great DVD

Adam Maylone | Des Moines, Iowa | 02/13/2009

(4 out of 5 stars)

"I just wanted to start this review with this quick bit, read the review by 'Dennis', almost everything he says is valid and on point. The dvd really doesnt go in to that much detail about things you would really hope for, Stoupe is hardly spoken about, Jus Allah plays a very small part, and the beef with him is pretty much glossed over. Also I know personally I was hoping for more of a breakdown of the albums, maybe some talking about what thoughts went in to the creation of certain tracks, or what it was like to work with some of the artist they had on the guest features, very little of that is spoken on which is what I wanted the most out of it.

Their first 5 albums are all covered though, usually its just quick bits of info on what Paz was thinking at the time and what was going on in his life, other then that not much is touched on. The other half of the dvd is of JMT touring with the Rock the Bell concert. We get to see Paz drink countless bottles of beer, steal an Indian statue, watch Nas perform, and just have fun with his people, its very entertaining actually and kept me from getting bored.

Lastly there's a bonus cd that comes with 5 tracks that Paz himself picked out to represent the JMT legacy. As for my score, you may be wondering why I gave it a 4 when ive had so much negative stuff to say, well to be honest im not that big a JMT fan, I like their music ok enough but im what you would consider a "casual fan", the main thing keeping me from loving the group was my strong dislike of Paz, but by the end of this dvd I felt like I really got to know the man behind the mic. After listening to Paz speak, and watching him enjoy himself and be human...I actually connected with him as a person, the man I had originally thought of as an ignorant "hardcore" rapper turned out to be the guy who kisses his mom before he leaves to tour, a guy who just hangs out with his friends and plays video games, just another average guy who loves hip hop.

I walked away with a lot from this DVD, I copped it for $13 for Best Buy and its money well spent in my opinion, its made me a bigger fan of JMT then ive ever been and introduced me to a lot of facts that I may have never known. Also the extra's are great, lots of goodies for fans. I would def recommend fans and casual fans alike giving this at least one spin in the ol dvd player, you might be surprised to see how your feelings for the group change by the end."