DVD Review: Mariah Carey - "The Adventures of Mimi"

There are singers and then there are singers. And on her latest concert DVD, Mariah Carey once again proves why she's one of the best-selling and most talented female vocalists of all time. The Adventures of Mimi, which was recorded during a performance in Anaheim, California, is a very solid showcase of Mariah's phenomenal singing talent, as well as her ability to meld pop, R&B and hip-hop. Mariah lovers will love this DVD, and even Mariah haters, if they watch it, won't be able to deny her ability to put on a top-notch performance.

The concert, which took place in October 2006 at the Honda Center (formerly known as the Arrowhead Pond) in Anaheim, California, kicks off with Mariah (aka Mimi) performing a number of her sample-heavy hip-hop hits, including "It's Like That," "Heartbreaker," "Dreamlover" and "Shake It Off." She then brings things down a couple of notches via some of her R&B/pop power ballads, including "Vision of Love," "Fly Like a Bird" and the duet "I'll Be There," featuring backup vocalist Trey Lorenz.

One of the few unfortunate things about the early songs in the set is that none of the rappers that appear on the studio versions of the songs, including Jermaine Dupri ("It's Like That"), Jay-Z ("Heartbreaker") and Da Brat & Missy Elliott ("Heartbreaker (Remix)") were live at the concert, which necessitated that their parts on the songs be recreated via portions of music videos that were broadcast on giant screens during the concert. Guest appearances by the above-mentioned weren't particularly necessary for the live show, but the lack of them definitely stands out in the otherwise elaborately-staged, expertly filmed and expensively-produced concert.

The one act that does appear is Boyz II Men, who duet with Mariah on their massive 1995-96 hit "One Sweet Day." Although the former quartet is now down to three members (group member Michael McCary retired in 2003 due to scoliosis) they still manage to give a spirited, crowd-pleasing performance that manages to enhance the concert without distracting viewers too much from its star.

As far as Mariah herself, her vocals pack just as much energy, strength and emotion live as they do on the studio versions of her records. You won't see her doing a lot of dancing, jumping around or climbing around on the DVD and for good reason; her vocals are all-natural here - there's no pre-recorded verses piped-in over the arena sound system, no taking shortcuts by making the backup singers or the audience sing major portions of songs. So what the DVD may lack in high-impact visuals it more than makes up for in high-quality, all-natural vocals.

Actually, the biggest visual effect during the performance is Mariah herself, who wears no less than four different form-fitting outfits during the 79-minute concert portion of the DVD. Each outfit is skimpy, sexy and revealing, making it difficult to take your eyes off her (which, of course, was probably her intention).

Other than the concert itself, the first DVD of the two-DVD set includes a 15-minutes behind the scenes featurette. The second disc has a tour documentary a karaoke-style feature that allows you to sing Mariah's songs with or without her vocals, plus the wickedly funny Spike Lee feature "Lovers And Haters," a (fictional) mini-movie about Mariah encountering a group of haters at a club who smile in her face while talking trash behind her back about everything from Mariah's race to her looks to her failed movie Glitter. It's this feature, more than any of the behind the scenes stuff, that most reminds us that Mariah may be a superstar, but she's still a human being, too.