Product description

Ben Elton - Live Get A Grip

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Average customer rating: 5.0

Binding : DVD
EAN : 5060105720093
Label : Spirit Entertainment
Manufacturer : Spirit Entertainment
Publisher : Spirit Entertainment
Release date : 2007-11-12
Title : Ben Elton - Live Get A Grip
Audience rating : Suitable for 15 years and over
Format : PAL
Number of items : 1
Region code : 2
Running time : 60
Studio : Spirit Entertainment

Customer reviews

review by: wolfblass date: 2008-02-07 rating:

The Godfather of stand up comedy
Rather than do a string of one-liner jokes of varying quality, Ben's comic journey is a series of well observed sketches seamless knitted (not forced)together.
Even though you're not guffawing with laughter ever 30 seconds this is infinitely more superior.
I'm a father of 3 like Ben and the kids sketch was absolutely spot on (he's been there you can tell).
The ending was a bit abrupt and a bit if let down compared to the 99% before it though.
He's not called the Godfather of stand up comedy for nothing!

review by: date: 2007-12-27 rating:

Ben on top again!
After a couple of disappointing earlier releases, Elton is back with a bang. He proves he is still at the top of the stand-up game with this non-stop 2 hour rant and observational masterpiece. If you like the earlier Motormouth and Motorvation releases (audio) and thought he went off-the-boil with the '97 video release then you'll be pleased to hear he's back in business. If you not seen either, you'll love this.

review by: date: 2007-12-26 rating:

Brilliant Ben at his Best
I went to see this show when he came to Sydney (and for those of you who saw the show in England, or have seen this DVD, yes, Ben was as good as his word - he did wear the sparkly suit!). It was definitely one of those nights that you don't want to end. It's wonderful to see that, even after 10 years or so, he's lost none of his entheusiasm or energy. When I left the theatre I was crying and aching I'd laughed that much. Watching this DVD, I felt like I was back in the Capitol Theatre in Sydney all over again. I would urge anyone to buy this DVD, it's hillariously funny and really is Ben Elton at his very very best. Hopefully, it will lead to other live DVDs of Ben Eltons being released soon.

review by: date: 2007-12-25 rating:

A full 2 hours of political and topical stand up
I saw Ben Elton live on this tour, in Preston, and this video is basically the full tour performance. It is just over two hours long, with less than a minute of "crowd shots" etc- there is no "padding out" here. There are no extras on this DVD. So you get a good two hours of live comedy, and it new material ( circa 2006. ) You won't have heard these jokes on DVD shows before.

The show itself is Ben's first live tour for 10 years, and he covers a lot of events since his last performance. Diana, Customer phone lines, Labour, the internet, Conspiracy Theories drinking culture and Ben's own family life and aging (to name a few) are all themes for his humour. Classic targets such as Mcd's and parts of the male and female anatomy are also the subject of some funny jokes.

There is a lot of material here, all of which was new for the tour, but some of which has been used since on a TV show. It is funny, witty and topical, and Ben also uses a variety of accents during the show which, in many ways, arn't actually very good- His "French" comes across as Ben Elton talking in a daft voice. But thats not a problem- in my opinion "accent shows" and people who "do voices" (eg Culshaw, McGowan, Rory Bremner etc) arn't as funny, even if they are more accurate.

Some of the punchline delivery could have been better- he rushes some punchlines, and others seem a bit flat. He also finshes the show with a political/social conculsion, but that seems very abrupt, and a little forced. Also his sketch about his children is a little long, and simply stops being funny after a while. I guess people with families might appreciate it more.

All in all, great fun, entertaining stuff, with some funny and relevant political and social points. In places it is just a touch drawn out and perhaps lacking the sharpness of his earlier stuff.

review by: date: 2007-11-30 rating:

A great observer of his times!
Ben Elton ranks with Jonathan Swift in his satirical observation of his times. And like Swift's, Elton's satire is underlined by a humanity and even a compassion for people. This is a gem!!

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