Andrew Dice Clay – One Night With Dice (1989/E1 NTSC DVD)/Kathleen Madigan – Gone Madigan (2010/Image Blu-ray + DVD)/The Laff Zone (Mill Creek DVD set)/Robert Klein – Unfair & Unbalanced (2010/HBO DVD)/Sam Kinison – Wild Child (1987 – 1993/Mill Creek DVD)

 

Picture: C/C+/C/C+/C     Sound: C+/B- & C+/C-/C+/C     Extras: D/C/D/D/C+     Concerts: C+/C+/C+/B/B-

 

 

Stand-up comedy can never be bold or smart enough and as so many lesser comics take the stage, it is interesting to see some who actually know what they are doing, as these releases show.

 

 

An infamous portrait emerges again as Andrew Dice Clay – One Night With Dice (1989) finds itself finally begin issued on U.S. DVD and is almost the same exact DVD as the Umbrella Entertainment Australian import edition we covered at this link:

 

http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/9251/Andrew+Dice+Clay+%E2%80%93+On

 

This version has slightly better sound and is recommended for fans and the curious.

 

Then there is the entertaining Kathleen Madigan – Gone Madigan (2010) released by Image on both Blu-ray and DVD.  I had heard of her before and thought this was a decent show, with some chuckles and a couple of laughs, which come across better on Blu-ray than DVD.  The 1080i 1.78 X 1 digital High Definition image has some good color, but is soft throughout, which also plagues the anamorphically enhanced DVD, which is almost on par with the Blu-ray in this odd case.  The DTS-HD MA (Master Audio) 5.1 lossless mix on the Blu-ray is a little warmer but a little more compressed than the Dolby Digital 5.1 mix on the DVD.  Extras in both formats include an interview and behind the scenes footage.

 

The Laff Zone is an interesting 2-DVD compilation of stand up clips (8 hours worth) by comedians in their early days, including some interesting work by Rosie O’Donnell, Tim Allen, Bobby Collins, Christopher Titus, Bill Bellamy, Jim Breuer and others you may have seen before, but could not name.  The 1.33 X 1 color image was shot on NTSC analog videotape and these clips are a generation down, as is the Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono and there are no extras.  However, this is interesting and worth a look.

 

Robert Klein – Unfair & Unbalanced is the latest of many shows by the legendary survivor with some of the best zingers on all five releases, attacking pop culture, politics and much more with wit few comics of any kind seem to have today.  Crude at times, it is the strongest showing here and the reason he does not get more credit is because certain people are just afraid of what he has to say.  Definitely check this one out.  The anamorphically enhanced 1.78 X 1 image and Dolby Digital 5.1 mix are good here, but not as good as they might be on Blu-ray, with the picture a little watered down and sound a little weak.  There are no extras.

 

Finally is a compilation of work: Sam Kinison – Wild Child offers five shows from the late, great comic who is greatly missed: Breaking All The Rules (1987/49 minutes), Outlaws Of Comedy (1990/42 minutes), Family Entertainment Hour (1991/49 minutes), Live In Las Vegas (1991/72 minutes) and Brother Sam – A Tribute (1993/80 minutes).  Seeing them in order is profound and this is a solid set also worth your time.  The 1.33 X 1 color image was shot on NTSC analog videotape and these clips are a generation down, as is the Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono and extras include stills and over an hour of behind the scenes rehearsal footage that can be very interesting.

 

 

-   Nicholas Sheffo