What a great collection this is. It reminds me of when The Cure released Show and Paris as live albums back in 1993 - One set of greatest hits, the other of deeper cuts and darker gothic material.
The Cure split the difference fairly evenly on 40 Live's two films, except here they go the extra mile of including both in a nice hardbound book style case complete with artfully grainy film photographs from both shows, and liner notes from Edward Scissorhands himself, Mr. Robert Smith.
Curaetion 25, directed by Nick Wickham, is the stronger of the two films for hardcore fans as it eschews the songs we've heard on alternative radio for the past 30 years in favor of deeper album tracks such as "Want" "Other Voices" "Jupiter Crash" and new songs "It Can Never Be The Same" and "Step Into The Light."
It is also the more artfully filmed of the two, and features several hand held cameras ala Show which alternate between a grainy 35MM film style and a sharp 1080i look. Truly a cinematic masterpiece. 10/10
Anniversary - directed by The Cure In Orange director Tim Pope - leans heavily on poppier material such as "High," "Just Like Heaven," "Push," "In Between Days," and "Close To Me." While the set list is a bit more predictable than Curaetion, the band's performance is sure to win over old and new fans alike.
Longtime bassist Simon Gallup plays with a melodic ferocity, making him the perfect anchor to Jason Cooper's tight drum fills. Roger O'Donnell's dreamy keyboards gently wash over the mix with lucidity. And newest member guitarist Reeves Gabrels (who should be noted played with the band as far back as 1997) gamely replaces the departed Pearl Thompson and plays off of Robert Smith in dueling leads. 9/10
All in all an excellent collection for Cure fans of any degree.
