The DVD

Video:
The Double-D Avenger is presented in a 1.33:1 full frame format and, as the theatrical trailer says, was "shot in Digital Booby Vision," which basically just means they shot the movie on cheap digital video. Needless to say, Elite Entertainment didn't have a lot to work with when they transferred the film to DVD. It was shot on digital video and this transfer looks, well…like video. In fact, it looks a little bit like low budget, home video, amateur porn. Not that I would know, or anything…moving on. The image is mostly clean - obviously there is no inherent grain, dirt, or debris - but there is a very flat look to everything, as would be expected from a video source. Shadows and detail are lacking, and there isn't much depth at all. Colors are a bit soft and there is some slight fuzziness to the image at times, which might simply be a result of poor focus in the video itself. The transfer, however, shows no signs of compression artifacts, pixelation, shimmering, or even a noticeable layer change. For what it's worth, Elite has done the best they could with the provided product. The image may not be all that great to look at, but the transfer provided on this disc is probably the best the film will ever look.

Sound:
The audio on this disc is presented in a Dolby Digital 2.0 stereo format and suffers from the same problem as the video transfer: the source material provided is not all that good. I tend to give a bit less leeway in terms of audio (compared to video, that is), however, because it is something that could have been re-mastered if Elite Entertainment really wanted to do it. (Why The Double-D Avenger would need a Dolby Digital 5.1 track, however, is beyond me.) Nevertheless, the track itself is ambitious, even if a bit misguided. It sounds like a low-budget DV production, as well, and comes out a bit flat all around.

Dialogue is usually clear and audible, but the level does drop a bit from time to time. The score is clean and crisp as well, but a bit overpowering at times. The biggest problem, however, is the sound effects. Sure, they're funny and campy the first few times, but after a while they just get downright annoying. This wouldn't be such a problem if they weren't recorded so loudly. Compared to the rest of the audio track, the sound effects are about ten times louder and overpower everything else. The track also includes some audio level fluctuation and plenty of hiss and buzz to be heard throughout. Again, Elite didn't have much to work with, and has simply done the best they could with this track. The good news is that, when piped through Dolby Pro Logic II decoding, the track does get a little be fuller and more enjoyable. The sound effects (though still overwhelmingly loud) even come through in the surrounds from time to time. Take it for what it is, though. You won't be showing off your surround system with this audio presentation, but it gets the job done.

Extras:
Elite Entertainment has stepped up to provide a nice array of extra material for this DVD release. This is actually the second DVD release of The Double-D Avenger (the first is not an Elite Entertainment DVD) and although it does not include the William Winckler/Kitten Natividad audio commentary from the first release, it does have a good mix of special features to keep you titillated (absolutely, pun intended) for hours.

The main attraction of this disc, and the cornerstone of the extra material, is the Joe Bob Briggs audio commentary. On this, his third commentary track for Elite Entertainment, Joe Bob really seems to be settling in. While not quite as serious as his previous tracks have been, it's clear that he's having fun with these commentaries. He certainly pokes more fun at The Double-D Avenger than the previous films he's recorded tracks for, but this movie is also worse than those other films. It's definitely an easy film to poke fun at. Anyone can make fun of a bad movie, though, and what sets a Joe Bob Briggs commentary apart from all the others out there is that he's so much more than just a funny man. He's incredibly smart and knowledgeable about films of all kinds. He also happens to know the most obscure and inane facts about practically everyone involved with the film. Along with his jokes, he also provides a lot of biographical information about the people behind The Double-D Avenger and a great deal of insight into the film itself. Not to mention the fact that he runs off about 500 different hilarious slang terms for breasts in his commentary. Always funny and always intelligent, a Joe Bob Briggs commentary is never one to be missed, and this track is certainly no exception.

Also included on this DVD is a behind-the-scenes feature titled "The Making of The Double-D Avenger." Presented in 1.33:1 full frame format and Dolby Digital 2.0, I was surprised to see that this featurette runs a very long 75 minutes. Yes, if you were wondering, that's just as long as the film itself. There is a plethora of behind-the-scenes material in this feature and there also are interviews with just about everyone involved with the film. The problem is, however, that the featurette is just too damn long. It starts off all well and good with William Winckler himself doing push-ups in the full Double-D Avenger costume - he did Kitten Natividad's stunts for the film as well. We then see him behind a desk as he explains how the film came into being. It's hard to tell, in these interviews, whether the people speaking are actually being serious or simply making fun of themselves. Winckler seems completely serious when he talks about the virtues of The Double-D Avenger, but G. Larry Butler seems to know exactly how laughably bad the movie is and plays the interview for comedy. It's scary to think that Winckler actually believes everything he's saying, but I wouldn't put it past him. Nevertheless, the inclusion of behind-the-scenes material, rehearsal video, and interviews makes this featurette fun to watch for a while, but it's not long before it gets tiring. A well made behind-the-scenes documentary that just runs way too long.

We also have a nice photo gallery of 22 still images from the film and behind-the-scenes. They are easy to navigate and look just fine. And rounding out the extra material are two trailers for The Double-D Avenger. The theatrical trailer is incredibly cheesy, while the cable spot is simply an advertisement for the previous DVD release of the film. Both are presented in full frame formats and Dolby Digital 2.0, and look and sound just fine.

Final Thoughts:
While I could easily pontificate on the astounding virtues of The Double-D Avenger for days on end, I don't think I could ever do it as quickly, and as well, as Joe Bob Briggs himself does in his Drive-In Totals on the back of the packaging:

Two dead bodies. Fourteen breasts. (All in a photo montage. Thank you, William.) Jungle dancing. Spoon-bending. Near-fatal lap dancing. Machete attacking. Head-cracking. One catfight. Mace-whacking. Two fistfights. Pistol-bending. One German chicken dance. Evasive doo-doo ejection device. Earthquake. Papier-mâché avalanche. Head-bashing. Garbonza battery. Soundtrack music apparently recorded by the orchestra in a Vegas showroom. Gratuitous Princess phone destruction. Gratuitous lingerie dressing-room montage. Kung Fu. Garbonza Fu. Lemonade Fu. Joe Bob says check it out.

One shoddy movie. One hilarious essay. One great commentary track from Joe Bob Briggs. One unnecessarily long, but fun to watch behind-the-scenes featurette. One surprisingly tame photo gallery. Two equally cheesy trailers. Static menus with funny sound clip transitions from Joe Bob. One happy customer. Commentary Fu. Joe Bob Fu. DVD Fu. Scott says check it out.