David Bowie, on stage at London's Hammersmith Odeon circa 1973, performing under the guise of his alter-ego, the androgynous space alien Ziggy Stardust. Bowie now claims Ziggy was not his bow to transvestism but rather his way of bucking the system; that's all well and good, but seeing D.B. in space-drag may make you think otherwise. He looks frequently ridiculous in these dated get-ups, and director D.A. Pennebaker gives Bowie no mystery or ambiance (he shoots straight-on without frills, probably the obstacle of a tiny budget). Why remaster something of the 'point and shoot' movie variety? Well, it's the 30th Anniversary of the album "The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust", so they exhumed this from the mothballs to capitalize on the hype. The music here is indeed exciting, maybe even titillating, but it should provide for a much grander experience strictly on your headphones. ** from ****
