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What
a difference a bit of experience makes. Gervais is clearly more
confident and at ease on the stage this time around, with his delivery
and material much more honed and the entertainment much more succinct.
With emaculate ease, Ricky proves that he can sustain an audience
without the help of long time writing partner, Stephen Merchant.
There's
everything you would expect from a Gervais written show. The awkward
faces, the biting satire, sarcasm through the roof - and of course the
odd reference to the disabled and those with darker toned skin looking
a little "Racial". The shows opening short film is a particular
standout in which Gervais points out that "Politics are all around us"
where [pointing to a disabled man in a wheelchair] he says "Look at
this little fella, can't walk - disabled - he's a little bit racial and
gay..." to which the wheel chaired individual replies "I'm not gay", to
which Gervais responds "Well, you might be - I'd assume you would just
take what you can get".
The beauty of Ricky Gervais' talent is
that he can pretty much get away with saying anything. He's a pudgy
little cute fella and you can't even think of getting angry at him even
when he mentions that "The CEO of Nike turned over 5 billion dollars
last year. In comparison, a factory worker in China would have to work
7 days a weeks, 8 hours a day for 10,000 years to accumulate that
amount...but what can you do if they don't want to work!".
It's a
real gift to have everything you say be taken with a grain of salt.
There are times where Gervais comes off as a downright bastard, but you
just know there's an underlying satire to everything that he says. He
seems alot more cocksure this time around, with hints of arrogance
seeping out of the performance every now and then. Granted much of his
life is completely different now than it was during Animals, he has a
few BAFTAS under his belt, a few Golden Globes and is quickly becoming
the hottest property on TV. But the man knows
how to tell a dirty joke or anecdote - a few stabs at pedophilia - and
he knows how to keep an audience entertained. Which is alot more than
can be said for many other stand up comedians.
A fantastic show and a must have addition to
the collection for those who like to keep their copies of The Office, Extras, Valiant and Ricky Gervais Live
stacked up next to each other.
EXTRAS
The extras on Gervais' DVDs are always of a
pretty good standard.
Here there is an interview with Gervais' friend, who has a warped
opinion on everything. It is hilarious and must be watched solely for
the argument that breaks out between the two when trying to fathom the
concept of whether or not a monkey typing on a typewriter for an
infinite amount of time would eventually write out the entire works of
Shakespeare. It is a classic.
There's also a fun look at a
day in the life of Gervais - who seems to have a bad case of ADD, as
well as the warm up set of his friend
which appeared at the start of each of the Politics tour
shows. Most places have this going for under $15, so it's well worth
the spare change.
Conclusion:
Movie 80% Extras: 75%
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