Music DVD Review: Leona Lewis - The Labyrinth Tour: Live at the O2

With her first live DVD, Leona Lewis solidifies her angelic image. The Labyrinth Tour - Live at the O2 captures her summer 2010 tour of the UK in all its glittery glory, capturing the vocalist in a vivid, fantastical set.

While other popstars are intensely concerned with put-on sexuality or gritty imagery, Lewis is gentle fantasy. Her Labyrinth tour, a collaboration with William Baker, exemplifies Lewis' innocence and curiosity about the world around her. The set designs are gauzy and magical. Dancers fit nicely, gliding with artistic flair rather than obnoxiousness.

Lewis is cordial and cheerful, often grinning from ear to ear and chatting with the crowd. She appears to be sincerely enjoying every single moment on stage and tenderly commits to every song, belting out an assortment of upbeat pop tunes and soft, billowing ballads.

The DVD is well-directed, capturing beautiful angles of Lewis as she sings.

Close-ups of her hands help draw us in to her emotional, understated version of "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face," while rapid zooms and broad movements capture the frantic mood of Lewis' video interlude of Michael Jackson's "They Don't Care About Us." Plenty of shots of the starry-eyed crowd deepen the experience.

After a video intro that pulls us into the bewitching elements of her imagination, Lewis walks out of the fantasy and into our lives with "Brave." The scene is dazzling, with the camera capturing one particularly excited youngster immersed gleefully in the moment.

Continuing her tour of what pop dreams are made of, Lewis rolls through tracks like "Better In Time," "Can't Breathe," "Happy," and other hits. A stripped-down cover of Justin Timberlake's "Cry Me a River" is a nice touch, as is her stunning, spine-tingling cover of Snow Patrol's "Run." The latter is set to a sea of cell phone lights and waving arms.

It's hard not to feel at least a little comforted when she launches into the lush "I Got You" on a white rope swing clad in a heavenly dress. And, of course, there's proof that "Bleeding Love" can really rock a capacity crowd.

The standard DVD version of the set includes a CD of ten songs from the show. The letdown is that there aren't any bonus features to feast upon.

All in all, Lewis' first live DVD is a treat. She solidifies her image, approaching the songs with every ounce of grace she's capable of. The show is beautifully designed, providing a rare treat that can be enjoyed comfortably with every member of the family. Leona Lewis isn't the most inventive popstar out there, but she's certainly one of the most purely enjoyable.

Article Author: Jordan Richardson

Jordan Richardson is a Canadian freelance writer and ne'er-do-well. He writes stuff here and here.

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