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Inside The Actors Studio: Dave Chappelle
R1 - America - Shout! Factory Review written by and copyright: Stevie McCleary & Noor Razzak (9th December 2006). |
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The Film
 Dave Chappelle stepped away from the deal of a lifetime ($50 million is the number thrown around) and disappeared. To Africa. So why did he do it? Had he had a breakdown? Was he addicted to crack, like trashy magazines claimed? Or had he just had enough of Hollywood, and took time out to save himself? James Lipton, host of "Inside the Actors Studio", gets these answers and so much more. "Inside the Actors Studio" has been running for 12 years, and has interviewed over 200 performers. It is known as a place where people can talk openly about their craft and life experiences that brought them to where they are today. It is hosted in front of the students of the Actors Studio's master of fine arts programme. This Emmy nominated Chappelle episode was filmed in 2006, shortly after he walked away from his wildly successful "Chappelle's Show" (2003-2006) and his subsequent pilgrimage to Africa. As Lipton explains in his introduction, the audience waited for many hours for Dave to arrive due to their being problems with his flight. They watched episodes of his show to pass the time. And when Dave was finally able to turn up, it was past 10pm, with many having waited since the afternoon. The talk went until sometime past 2am and the whole time there were no empty seats. This alone speaks to the quality of this DVD and the fascinating story of Dave's life. It is quite a bizarre juxtaposition, the everyman quality of the comedian Dave Chappelle and the host James Lipton. Lipton discusses comedies like "Half Baked" (1998) as he would any dramatic masterpiece. Their clash of styles ends up making an endearing couple of hours. The dance-off between the two men was one of those special laugh-inducing moments. And there are plenty of laughs to be had throughout. Dave is an incredibly gifted comedian and seems to be a really decent human being as well. He was mentally beaten down by the problems that he faced being a celebrity in Hollywood, and is able to discuss the events openly and frankly. We get a good rundown of his life, and the trouble he faced, along with inspirations for his comedy. I had seen very little of Dave's work before watching this, and now I have a desperate need to track down as much as possible. He is a man that is not afraid to break through certain boundaries. As he says on the interview, "You never know where the line is, until you've crossed it." And by his own admission, he has crossed it a few times. But its part of what has made him so popular. Characters like the blind southern racist who doesn't realise he's black, showcase his need to bring up topics that others may find difficult to talk about. But once we begin talking about them (even if it's in shock at a comedy sketch) that means we're not bottling things up any more. This is something that comedy has always had the power to do, and yet is often found under fire for. As is the course for this series, the end of the interview features a questionnaire for Dave to answer (the same one that all guests on the show answer) and then a Q & A with the students begins. The way Dave takes in all this attention is in a very humble manner. He is sometimes uncomfortable with praising himself, but on the flip side he loves it when someone realises the effort and thought that he's put into his work. It is in moments like these that you can see why he does what he does. Dave Chappelle is an amazing comedian that has had a very eventful life. And this is honestly the first interview I've ever watched where I never wondered how long it had been going for. And for an interview that goes for over two hours, that is an incredible achievement. Even if you don't know anything about Dave Chappelle yet, you will know plenty after this. It is absolutely fascinating from start to finish. So, yeah. He wasn't addicted to crack.
Video
Presented in the show's original broadcast ratio of 1.33:1 this full screen transfer is a solid effort. Shot on a digital format the image is sharp and detailed, skin tones are natural and colors are nice and vibrant. Overall there isn't much else to say about it other than the fact that it's a very good effort that will please just about everyone.
Audio
A single Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo track is included, considering this is an interview series there's no need for a 5.1 track, the show is 100% dialogue focused and the stereo track does an admirable job presenting it clean and free of any distortion. The show does not include any optional subtitles.
Extras
Shout! Factory has included some deleted scenes plus a couple of bonus trailers on this disc. Below is a closer look at these supplements. The primary extra on this disc is "Great moments that didn't make the cut" a series of deleted scenes, these can be played individually or with a 'play all' option, the scenes included are: - "High School of the Arts" which runs for 1 minute 12 seconds, Dave talks about auditioning for the Arts School and how he got in. - "Def Jam and Simmon's Sneakers" which runs for 2 minutes 30 seconds, Dave talks about his involvement with Def Comedy Jam and includes an amusing story about a bouncer not letting him into a club. - "Whoopi Goldberg's World" runs for 1 minute 15 seconds, Dave comments on how Whoopi got him a spot on the comic relief show. - "Men in Tights" runs for 1 minutes 44 seconds, Dave comments on his experiences on his first feature film, "Robin Hood: Men in Tights" (1993) - "Down and Out in New York" runs for 3 minutes 9 seconds and Dave talks about his experiences as a comic in New York. - "Pitching Chappelle's Show" runs for 4 minutes 7 seconds and Dave talks about the show concept and developing a format as well as the pitch at Comedy Central who took it immediately. Rounding out the extras are a couple of bonus trailers, these are start-up previews and can be skipped, they include: - "The Dick Cavett Show: Comic Legends" which runs for 1 minute 12 seconds. - "Paul Mooney's Analyzing White America" which runs for 1 minute. Considering this is an interview series you wouldn't really expect too many extras, in many ways this disc can be considered a glorified extra and makes a great companion to the already released season sets of "Chappelle's Show" and if you're a fan then this release comes recommended.
Overall
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