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Dan Owen reviews
BBC
- Cert:
- Cat.no: 9027861
- Running time: 115 minutes
- Year: 2002
- Pressing: 2002
- Region(s): 2, PAL
- Sound: Dolby Digital 2.0 (Stereo)
- Languages: English
- Subtitles: None
- Widescreen: 1.78:1
- 16:9-Enhanced: Yes
- Macrovision: Yes
- Disc Format: DVD 9
- Price: £19.99
- Extras: “Access All Areas” featurette, “Bohemian Rhapsody” encore
I have been a fan of Lee Evans since I first saw him perform on “Viva Cabaret”a late-night Channel 4 show presented by Lily Savage in theearly-90s. Back then his act mainly consisted of physical tics andNorman Wisdom-esque pratfalls. He was thoroughly entertaining, yet hismaterial was often weak.
A decade later, Lee Evans is one of the UK’s top comedians – even havingstarred in some successful US films (Mouse Hunt, There’s SomethingAbout Mary), but it’s still stand-up comedy that personifies Evans’brand of energy and frustrated angst.
This DVD, Lee Evans – Wired & Wonderful was recorded at the end of hiseight-month long national tour, at Wembley Stadium, in front of a10,000-strong audience. The gig was two-hours (with an interval andencore) of brand new material – which was surely worth the admissionprice alone!
Despite being a fan of Lee Evans, I don’t ignore his shortcomings. Hisstyle, no matter how entertaining, can become tiresome after the firstthirty-minutes – particularly when his material (as always) isn’texactly ground-breaking.
Here Evans again grumbles and fumes at familiar targets: caravanholidays, nagging wives, visits to the zoo, losing keys, airlinejourneys, the Olympics. This is to be expected, as there are only somany topics to moan about in the world – but Evans’ gags are oftenfairly predictable and he’s covered some of these bases before.
Interestingly, the last quarter of the show is perhaps the mostentertaining as Evans begins to construct his jokes around things he hasmore knowledge of these days: family life. It’s a shame he didn’t delvedeeper into this more personal realm for his material, as it’s herewhere he begins hitting his stride.
But Lee Evans has never been about his material. Not really. He’s all inthe presentation, and many of his weak gags are raised to great heightsimply through Evans’ mannerisms and flailing limbs. He’s an entertainerin the grand tradition – putting his body and soul into trying to makeyou laugh out loud. His gags may waver around mediocrity most of thetime, but Evans ensures most get the laugh his performance elicits.
By the end of the marathon effort (which has surely seen Evans shed halfhis weight in sweat!) the show ends with one of Evans’love-it-or-hate-it piano-based songs, backed by the City Of LondonChoir. He even finds time to serenade his father and play the saxophonethis time!
Overall, Lee Evans is still one of the best UK stand-ups, and a man whothoroughly deserves his huge success. His material may still lack biteand originality, but it’s always entertainingly imaginative and expertlypresented in a whirlwind of arms, legs and expressions.
Again, his style occasionally tests the patience (two-hours stretchesthings too far for the home-viewer), and I’ve never been particularlyfond of his piano finale’s… but then, this DVD is really just givingyou a fraction of what the Wembley crowd experienced. I’m sure nobodythere asked for a refund, and despite its problems this DVD remains anentertaining night’s viewing.
Wired & Wonderful comes in a plastic Amaray case with one DVD. Thequality of production isn’t that high, but it’s functional. The menuscreens are merely static photographs with the options displayed andeasy to navigate.
The 1.85:1 widescreen transfer is very good, with no distractionsinherent in the images. The black background behind Evans is strong, hisflesh tones are natural and the lighting of the crowd nicely preserved.
Soundwise, just a Dolby Stereo mix for this DVD, as you’d expect. It’s really allyou need to enjoy the show, but it would be nice if the applause andlaughter of the crowd had been spread around the rear speakers.
Beyond the actual two-hour show there are a few extra features on theDVD to view afterwards. These are “Access All Areas” – an interestingfeaturette that shows the behind-the-scenes mayhem before the gig,during the main interval, and after the show. Annoyingly the featuretteis in black-and-white and doesn’t offer anything much beyond slightvoyeurism. A wasted opportunity for fans.
The best extra is “Bohemian Rhapsody”. Here you can watch the show’sencore, where Evans re-performed a very early skit he performed once forFrench audiences. Basically he mimes actions on stage that humorouslyfit the lyrics of Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody”. Quite funny, althoughEvans’ fans will have doubtless have seen it before.
Overall, this is a good DVD package that should please those who buy it.The picture is excellent, the sound is good enough, and the extrafeatures are quite diverting. A fitting record of Lee Evans’ 2002national tour performance.
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Reviewer of movies, videogames and music since 1994. Aortic valve operation survivor from the same year. Running DVDfever.co.uk since 2000. Nobel Peace Prize winner 2021.