The Show
When I first saw Greg Behrendt and his energetic, high-energy stand-up act a while back, I thought he was great...and very gay. Then I found out he wrote the book He's Just Not That Into You and worked on "Sex and the City"... very, very gay. Then I found out he had a wife and kids and I was just plain confused. Either way, he's very funny, delivering a stand-up that's a mix of Dane Cook and Jack Black, though focused on being an 40-something family man who feels like a younger man than he is.

Performing under a giant light-up sign that says "UNCOOL," like some sort of glowing social indictment, Behrendt enthusiastically explains to the audience the dangers of growing old in terms of maintaining one's coolness. Difficulties like avoiding being the creepy old guy at a rock concert, dealing with the oddities of being married and being a parent, or having your musical tastes insulted by a younger generation, are related by Behrendt in a way that's never boring and often quite vocal.

Your enjoyment of Behrendt's set will be somewhat proportional to your connection to his situation, that of a husband and new father who hopes to be cool. If you are living that life or can hook into that idea, you'll have a good deal of fun watching this show. At several points, I was literally in tears from laughing so hard, as I could identify with him and his attempts to stay relevant as he gets older. Younger audiences might not see the humor in the concept of "game night" or a free Sunday, but Behrendt curses often enough to keep things lively.

While I thought Behrendt's been funnier, as previous bits about being "ripped like Jesus" and loving cake were hysterical, this is a solid 60-minute set. Jokes about needing glasses to watch porn and his inability to use a robe correctly are fantastic, while longer bits on women's willingness to see each other naked and his love of Halloween are both ridiculous and funny thanks to Behrendt's energy level. The Halloween story is one of the best he tells in this show, as it mixes his twisted childlike innocence.

The only part I could do without is the ending, which, without giving anything away, was a bit over-the-top, self-serving and unnecessary. Sure, it tied together several ideas from his show, but it wasn't funny or all that entertaining. It can be forgiven, considering the strength of the rest of his show.

The DVD
Packed in a clear keepcase with a well-designed double-sided cover and insert that lists the chapter stops, "Greg Behrendt is Uncool." is a one-disc release. The disc features a static, full-frame main menu, with options to watch the show, select chapters and view special features. The scene-selection menu has a text list of chapter stops, while there are no audio options, subtitles or closed captioning.

On a side note, the case lists the run-time as 128 minutes, which seems impossible, as the show is just over 60 minutes long, and the extras are less than 10 minutes long.

The Quality
The full-frame video is very nice, with spot-on color and nothing obvious as far as digital artifacts go. Though this is stand-up, Behrendt moves around a lot, and the camera work does a good job of keeping up with him, utilizing a number of angles. The detail, especially on the curtains and floor boards, is very good.

The audio, presented in 2.0 Linear PCM, is just right for the subject matter, giving a clear presentation to Behrendt's voice, as well as the crowd noise. There's nothing dynamic about the mix, but its clean and without distortion, which is all that matters when it comes to stand-up DVDs.

The Extras
Two featurettes are included on this DVD, starting with the 3:31 "What is Cool?" Made up entirely of talking heads, the featurette has Behrendt and some friends, including David Cross, Brian Posehn and Jenny McCarthy, talking about the idea of "cool." It can get pretty funny, but it's also very short.

The other featurette is a faux documentary titled "Greg Behrendt Does Not Rock," which runs just over five minutes in length. It tells the story of a band formed by Behrendt, with a couple of real rockers, with the purpose of not making music. In concept it's funny, but in execution, it's more cute.

The final two "extras," which list books and a web sites for Behrendt, are strictly promotional.

The Bottom Line
Greg Behrendt is one of the better stand-ups to make his mark recently, even though he's been working for 15 years. It may have taken him a while, but he's well-worth checking out if you've never seen his act, or if you enjoy his books. The DVD quality is more than acceptable, but nothing to blow away home theater enthusiasts (as expected for stand-up), while the extras are good, though small. If you enjoy the manic style of Dane Cook and a good relationship-based comic, you should like Behrendt, and this DVD is a quality showcase for his act.

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*The Reviewer's Bias section is an attempt to help readers use the review to its best effect. By knowing where the reviewer's biases lie on the film's subject matter, one can read the review with the right mindset.