Rockstars of Comedy DVD: Review By Brian Gallagher

I was a bit apprehensive when I first heard about the Rockstars of Comedy, mainly because I was wondering what other "of Comedy" things they were going to keep resorting to. Let's see... can't do Kings, or Latin Kings, or Redneck Kings... yeah, all the Kings are done, Queens too. What else... can't do Diva's, Masters or All-Stars either. I can't help but wonder what's next...Purveyors, Craftsmen, Carpenters? Still, the Rockstars of Comedy does have a nice ring to it and, while these six comedians might be new names and faces to you, they can certainly bring the funny in some very unique ways.

One of the things I liked about this was they don't mess around with backstories and behind-the-scenes shenanigans here. It's just 94 minutes of non-stop stand-up comedy. We don't see them walking around at malls or fishing or anything like that. It's just full-boar comedy right up until the end, and I liked that they didn't try to almost make this other sort of narrative thing on the side here.

This disc features six up and coming young comics, one of which was last seen in another recent comedy tour. Stevie D, with his awesome 80s haircut, kicks things off with a great routine and then serves as emcee for the night, introducing the other five comics throughout the night. The other comedians that hit the stage are Dan Levy, Steve Byrne, Bret Ernst, who appeared on the wonderful Vince Vaughn's Wild West Comedy flick earlier this year, Bryan Callen and Sam Tripoli. You might recognize some of these guys for the smaller acting roles they've been in over the years, but they're all under one roof here and, man, is it some funny s&%t.

The half-star knock is only because there are a few jokes that fall flat here and there, but they're not limited to just one performer and each individual act is quite unique and quite hilarious. That half-star knock is also because I wish they would've had more shots of the audience as well. Now, I don't normally like these little cut-away's of people laughing in these comedy shows. I never quite got that. We can hear them laugh. We don't need video proof as well, unless it's a Def Comedy Jam show and people in the audience are jumping all over themselves or something like that. That's funny s&%t too. Still, I wish they would've shown a little more of the audience because there are quite a few instances where they're interacting with the audience, and it would've been nice to see who they're interacting with as well.

Still, that's just some minor nitpicking. The routines are all outrageous and they don't get into these little cause-driven routines about "you should do this..." etc. They don't talk politics. I don't think any of them have kids, so they don't really talk about that. It's just a group of young stand-ups skewering life in L.A. and the sex, drugs, booze and showbiz aspects of this town. Some of the best bits are actually the comics themselves talking about their own gigs, and some of their worst moments on stage, which is some pretty cool stuff. While I've seen Ernst's act on the Vince Vaughn film, he has basically a whole new routine here that is just as good, if not better, than his material there. While I've never seen any of the others perform, I have to say I can't wait to see them perform again, because they all have unique perspectives and acts that all fit this Rockstar format like a glove. It's pretty tough for me to pick a favorite here, actually, and I don't even want to try.

If you're in need of some edgy adult laughs, look no further than Rockstars of Comedy. It's a wonderful stand-up discs that showcases some very talented acts that will hopefully get a huge push from this outlandish DVD.

Sadly we don't really get anything here, but there is something pretty cool on here. Taking a cue from the new Digital Copy craze, you can download this entire show's audio version onto a laptop, iPod or any other sort of device. Since the show is just straight-up stand-up, with no filler sort of material, this is a great feature that allows you to listen to this 94-minute program on the move. I think this is a perfect feature for a comedy disc such as this, and I wouldn't be surprised to see this sort of thing utilized more in the future.

The film is presented in the widescreen format, in the 2.35:1 aspect ratio.

I couldn't find any details on the sound format, but you can hear this all just fine.

The front cover features a shot of five of the six comics on the show, with a big title card in the middle and the names of them all below. There's also a nice critic quote above the picture. The back features a few more critic quotes, a nice synopsis, small photos of all the guys and the hostess Adrianne Curry, along with the Bonus Download listing, billing block and tech specs. Nice work here.

The six guys who make up the Rockstars of Comedy might not have the rockstar name recognition, but with these hilarious and outlandish routines that pull no punches, don't be surprised to see these names in bigger projects in the years to come. This is one simply hysterical disc that any stand-up fan will surely rock out to.