Pulse: a Stomp Odyssey

Adding the word "Stomp" to the title was a double-edged sword. Yes, they have a presence in the movie, and the movie is mostly about percusion, but it will be a disappointment to Stomp fans who will expect the movie to be mostly about Stomp performances.Having said that, this is a fantastic movie that is great fun and showcases music from around the world in spectacular sound. This is one of those movies you can justify having a great surround sound set-up. Unless you chose to play the optional narration, the movie is devoid of commentary and frankly does not need it. It shows sequences from around the world with a quick label identifying the places. The musical sequences are spectacular and those of us who are Stomp fans should enjoy most of them as the Stomp group takes most of its inspiration from these traditions. A better title might have been "Stomp Roots" as so much of the Stomp music is rooted in Africa and in other cultures with percussion traditions.This is a movie that brings the whole world together and shows how world music can bring us all together. If you liked the project "Songs Around the World" by Playing for Change, you will like this movie as well. It was great to see that teachers use it in schools. Great for the entire family.

Saw this film via IMAX at the Museum of Natural History in New York City. Loved it and wanted the DVD that very day. Not available. Finally is. Not quite the same overwhelming experience, but a lovely souvenir. Suspect I would love the film even had I not seen it on the big screen.

This wonderful mini-movie demonstrates that there is a musical "Pulse" going on at all times above us all- all over the world, and it's up to us whether we want to grasp on to it, or not. Amazing movie!!!

A great cultural teaching tools for kids of all ages! I love that the scenes are short and the entire movie is only 45 minutes long!! A great tool for exposing kids to different cultures and their music.

This is not your typical STOMP video. If that's what you're for, this is not the video for you. This is more for those that appreciates music as a whole. The video takes you around the world to show that music is universal. Great video.

Not too long ago a "Pulse: a Stomp Odyssey" DVD appeared on my Amazon recommended list, perhaps because I had reviewed two Blue Men Group DVDs. In addition, a "Stomp Live" DVD recommendation also appeared. Makes sense. In any case, I looked over the information and decided to order both the "Pulse" DVD and the "Stomp Live" DVD. I had never heard of either DVD prior to the purchase, so the contents were an almost total surprise. I watched and listened to the "Pulse" DVD first about a week after it arrived. It's a rather short presentation and I was surprised when it was over."Pulse" an interesting DVD, without question. It presents drumming and other percussive music, along with a certain amount of dancing, from all over the world and from widely divergent cultures. The people and the costumes are fun to watch. A possible exception are some of the African presentations. I suspect, under natural conditions the women would have been naked chested, but here they wore a variety of western-style halter tops, perhaps so as not to offend western audiences. It's a shame. The rhythms the highly varied groups produced were interesting. Some were staged. Many were natural cultural acts. Surely, this type of percussive music and dancing must be saying something fundamental about the nature of human existence.In any case, the DVD presentation was haphazardly organized, in my opinion. Perhaps I missed something, but it's hard to follow any particular thought pattern. I'd like to view some of the groups over a longer span of time and others are much too long. The presentations, to me, seemed much too unorganized and flitted from one thing to another with little integration. Although here and there I find it very interesting. Will I view it again? Perhaps, under some special circumstance. Would I buy the DVD again given a second chance? Probably not. I rated it as three stars, and I could easily be argued up to four, but the shortness and poor organization is the stumbling block.A while later, I viewed the "Stomp Live" DVD. and it's a wonderful stage show. If you like percussive music, watch them both by all means. Personally, I found the "Stomp Live" DVD to be far superior as a form of entertainment.Gary Peterson

I was not impressed. I would not recommend this video. I bought it to share with my music classes and found it very boring and uneducational.

When you think stomp, you think high tempo, creative ways to make music. This is more like the roots of stomp, folklore music. It's ok-- but not what I envisioned by the title.