Finesse Mitchell – Snap Famous
Picture:
C+ Sound: C+ Extras: D Concert: C-
When
people talk about Saturday Night Live,
if it is still on, why is it still on and when did it stop being funny, answers
vary. The show has had its highs and
lows, is in one of its lows currently, leading to the question of why? Is it that the skits are dumb? Is it that they are only funny to the
writers? Well, one thing is for
certain. It is the comedy talent being
picked. They are of the same one-note
approach and this was strongly evident as I watched Finesse Mitchell – Snap Famous.
The
stand-up concert has a few chuckles, jokes that just do not work, predictable
sex humor beyond predictable and a lack of consistent energy that further
sabotages any potential that this could be half-amusing. At only 52 minutes, you know you are in
trouble early on when a series of “meeting Halle Berry” jokes make you want to
watch Catwoman all over again.
Mitchell
has his act together, but some of it is the same old same old and if he just
had better material with some energy, originality and daring, he could be a
star. Many of the jokes deal with being
an African American, but after Pryor, Murphy, Foxx and Foxx, you need more than
that a few generations later. He is trying
to walk the thin line between being urban and commercial, which has mixed
results. All is not lost for Mitchell,
but whether he can be ambitious enough to improve enough is a big question. This DVD is a big dud.
The 1.33
X 1 image is shot on professional analog NTSC video and it is soft and detail
challenged. The Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo
is simple, with no surrounds and adequate sound to hear the jokes. The audience is not a prominent as usual in
the mix. Extras include bloopers and
three skits, none of which work.
- Nicholas Sheffo
