The Police: Around the World Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		2.0
Overall		4.0

The Police: Around the World Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman June 1, 2022

Here we come, walkin' down the street
We get the funniest looks from every one we meet.

Bobby Hart and Tommy Boyce may have famously had The Monkees in mind when they wrote that memorable theme tune, but as strange as it sounds, some may feel like The Police: Around the World is a bizarre alternate universe episode of that fondly remembered series, since it features a bunch of almost vaudevillian vignettes featuring Sting, Stewart Copeland and Andy Summers, interspersed with snippets of performances The Police gave during their first world tour. Aside from the fun of seeing this now legendary trio when they were all rather young and frequently very goofy, this documentary gives at least some passing insight into what it's like to be a band on tour and to be experiencing the first flush of stardom.

The Police: Around the World features snippets of events in a variety of locations, including Japan, Hong Kong, Egypt, India, South America and the good old United States. While there are short moments from the performances in at least some of these far flung locales, what probably will give The Police: Around the World the most interest for at least some fans is its crazy quilt of "candid" moments with the band, though that said, there's definitely no pretense that the guys know they're being filmed and probably react accordingly at times. Still, there are some great little throwaway moments for those paying attention, like Andy Summers getting off of a train and being met (assaulted?) by an eager fan who thrusts something into his hand, which he kind of looks at with a puzzled expression and shrugs off.

Other moments are definitely staged and indeed reminded me of bits from the old Monkees television show. One segment in particular which features Andy "suiting" up as an ostensible Sumo wrestler could have easily been lifted from any given The Monkees offering, with Davy probably being the scrawny "fighter", and with Sting and Stewart most likely replaced by Mike and Mickey urging their compatriot on to "glory", or something like that. There are other daffy moments like a scene with a rickshaw that, again, seem almost willfully reminiscent of some of the shenanigans documented in the show featuring the so-called "Prefab Four".

The essay by Andy Summers included in the insert booklet actually gets into a good deal more detail about the actual tour than can easily be gleaned by the documentary, though the documentary is almost comically expert at showing the guys dealing with fans, interacting with locals and experiencing "local color". Some moments, like an unfortunate scene with a cobra and a mongoose might leave some feeling a little squeamish, but in light of the recently reviewed The Beatles and India, it may be interesting for some to see Andy tooling around with a sitar. Also of note (no pun intended) is the fact that at least Sting and Stewart seemed to want to document things themselves, and there's some kind of "meta" footage of them either snapping stills or engaging in some nascent home video production.

While the documentary may spend at least as much time on off the stage antics, an included CD features complete performances of the following songs:

• Walking on the Moon (Live from Kyoto)


• Next to You (Live from Kyoto)


• Deathwish (Live from Kyoto)


• So Lonely (Live from Kyoto)


• Can't Stand Losing You (Live from Kyoto)


• Truth Hits Everybody (Live from Kyoto)


• Visions of the Night (Live from Hammersmith)


• Roxanne (Live from Hammersmith)


• Born in the 50's (Live from Hong Kong)


• Message in a Bottle (Live from Hong Kong)


• Bring on the Night (Live from Hong Kong)

The Police: Around the World Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The Police: Around the World is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Mercury Studios with an AVC encoded 1080i transfer in 1.33:1. This is touted as "restored and expanded" and the closing credits offer some brief verbiage about a 2K scan, but there's no other authoritative technical information that I was able to dredge up online. This is by and large a really nice looking presentation, with an understanding that a lot of it was caught "on the fly" under unpredictable conditions, and as such everything from lighting to contrast to clarity can ebb and flow at times. The live performance material tends to look the scruffiest for whatever reason, perhaps due at least in part to some fairly dimly lit venues at times. Some of that darker material can tend to look a bit on the blue side at times, something that can give blacks a somewhat purplish appearance. The outside material in bright lighting pops really well and provides ample support for general detail levels. There's occasional minor damage that can be spotted, but nothing major.

The Police: Around the World Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The Police: Around the World features DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and LPCM 2.0 audio options. This is another "music" documentary where the actual music tends to be used interstitially, and then only in relatively brief snippets, and as such, the surround track, while definitely opening up the proceedings in those moments, doesn't really offer a consistent "wow" factor in terms of nonstop engagement of the side and rear channels. Both tracks offer really nice fidelity, though, with occasional slight mix variances in some of the live material, which is probably understandable. The "fly on the wall" aspect of some of the piece can mean that individual moments of speaking can be lost in the general clamor of what's going on, but for the most part, everything is delivered cleanly and clearly. Optional English, French, German, Spanish and Portuguese subtitles are available.

The Police: Around the World Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Bonus Performances include:

  Walking on the Moon (HD; 5:03) is from Seibu Kodo, Kyoto on 20 February 1980.

  
  

  Next to You (HD; 2:46) is from Seibu Kodo, Kyoto on 20 February 1980.

  
  

  Message in a Bottle (HD; 5:12) is from Today's World Disco, Hong Kong on 27 February 1980.

  
  

  Born in the 50's (HD; ) is from Today's World Disco, Hong Kong on 27 February 1980.

  
  Note: All of the above can be accessed as a whole with a Play All option.

Additionally, a Bonus CD is included, and an insert booklet features some great memories from Andy Summers, written in Los Angeles in 2021, along with stills and other information.

The Police: Around the World Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

My favorite unintended hilarity in The Police: Around the World came courtesy of a young boy interviewed in Australia who is asked about what he likes about The Police, and he thinks for a moment and then responds, "Well, you know, the music, mostly". In that regard, some fans may wish that this appealing documentary offered more of the music, or at least some complete and uninterrupted performances, but that wish may be offset by the goofy antics the trio engage in when they're not onstage. Fans of The Police will certainly enjoy this documentary, and the good news for them is that the technical merits are solid. Recommended.