SUM OF THE PARTS

The prospect of getting Peter Gabriel, Phil Collins, Steve Hackett, Mike Rutherford, and Tony Banks together and reminisce about Genesis for a career-spanning documentary that looks at the history of the band, as well as the solo careers it spawned, is an exciting one. Unfortunately the concept was too ambitious for a ninety minute documentary, leaving many key Genesis albums, members, and moments neglected.

It's no secret that Steve Hackett's solo career is completely ignored here, but his contributions to Genesis are also treated with startling disrespect. There is one particularly crass scene in which Daryl Stuermer performs the guitar solo from "Firth of the Fifth," and Tony Banks remarks with a smirk about how "stiff" Hackett's playing was, and what an improvement Stuermer's playing was for that song. Other names in the Genesis story, such as Bill Bruford and Ray Wilson, are never brought up, but it only ever stops to unzip its trousers and piss on Hackett, the only member keeping the progressive days of Genesis alive in a live setting.

Really, "Sum of the Parts" feels entirely disinterested in Genesis prior to the band becoming a pop-trio. Important albums like "Selling England by the Pound" are breezed through, and "Wind & Wuthering" doesn't seem to warrant mentioning. There is hardly any new information available in this documentary that hasn't been covered more thoroughly elsewhere (the "Genesis Archive" documentary comes to mind). There are a few memorable moments, such as Gabriel taking the piss out of a fussy Banks in one amusing moment, and Collins is a lovable and self- deprecating interview, however such moments are fleeting, and the film's shortcomings are what linger afterward.

The mistake this documentary made was that it set out with a premise that appeals primarily to die-hard Genesis fans that enjoy the classic Gabriel five-piece line-up, not just the Patrick Batemans of the world who didn't get Genesis until the release of "Duke." It betrays that premise in its execution by ignoring and rushing the elements that it promised to deliver. "Sum of the Parts" is a wasted opportunity, and thus a disappointment for Genesis fans.