David Cross – Bigger & Blackerer (Sub Pop DVD)

 

Picture: C+     Sound: C+     Extras: C+     Concert: C+

 

 

You might recognize comedian David Cross from his work on the sitcom Arrested Development or on HBO’s Mr. Show, but he also is a stand-up comic and in his latest such release Bigger & Blackerer, he lets loose yet again.  For the hour-long show (which should have been longer), he does offer some bold statements, some actually funny jokes (versus his contemporaries), a Dane Cook moment and some material that causes the show to not work and result in an uneven performance overall.

I recognized him from some of his character actor work (usually bad) and he does voices for animation (fares better there), but he also gets political and when he does, he pulls no punches and I often agreed with him.  Still, it was a somewhat stilted show at times and though he has both talent and comic timing, this cannot be the best show he is capable of.  In the end, he turned out to still be funnier than expected, so you might want to give this one a look.

 

The anamorphically enhanced 1.78 X 1 image has good color, but can be weak in detail and depth, plus what looks like a 1080i HD shoot has some other minor flaws.  The Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo is just fine for a stand-up comedy release, but the audio is sufficient at best.  Extras include a poster in side the foldout paperboard case, while the DVD adds six extra routines.

 

 

-   Nicholas Sheffo