Reviewer's Bias*
Loves: "Newsradio," stand-up comedy
Likes: Joe Rogan
Dislikes: Frat boys, UFC
Hates: "Fear Factor"

The Story So Far...
Joe Rogan made his bones as a stand-up comic (and Tae Kwon Do champion) before becoming a television celebrity via his role on the ensemble classic "Newsradio" and his hosting duties on the gross-out competition "Fear Factor." But anyone who knows him only from those two shows would be surprised to hear his comedy act, which mixes philosophical musings on humanity and frat-boy observations. The first chance for such surprises came in September 2006 when Netflix made his stand-up special "Joe Rogan: Live" available only to its rental audience. DVDTalk has a review of that release here.

The Show
From the start of this special, which sees Rogan in a limo on the way to his show, talking about the true nature of humanity in the grand scheme of the universe, it's obvious who he is: a very smart man willing to engage in very silly conversations with himself for the benefit of others. It's the kind of thoughts normally thought in the wee morning hours after extensive rounds of pot smoking, when you really should be sleeping, but are way too buzzed to not discuss what would happen if all the smart people disappeared. Rogan pulls all those random thoughts together and stands on stage ong enough to spew them with enough energy to power a small town.

Filmed in Tempe, Arizona in 2006, Rogan's 55-minute stand-up act is all over the map, covering everything from Noah's Ark to the N-word, Osama Bin Laden to needy women, smart people to our dumb president. While he sometimes strays into vulgar crap, like when he mimes aggressive sex, and makes his points by screaming and cursing, when he talks about how stupid people breed faster than smart people and what that means for our future, it's not funny, but I just want to hear more. I didn't even have a real laugh the entire time, but I had no interest in turning it off. Rogan is simply engaging as he rants and raves.

Among his more entertaining bits, are a stretch where he compares Bin Laden to a comic book supervillain, before seamlessly transitioning to a joke about cell phone reception, his theory about how George W. Bush's presidency is just a plot by dark forces to see how dumb a president we can have, and his imitation of a mentally retarded person watching a show about the Bible. But the bits that stick most is his very realistic thoughts about how complex our lives are, despite us not being able to understand enough to make them work ourselves. When he's demonstrating why there are people in Paducah, complete with vigorous thrusting, it's easy to overlook his smarter jokes, but it all part of what kind of comic he is.

The stand-up set is directed by actor/director/"The Daily Show" alum Michael Blieden, who was responsible for "The Comedians of Comedy" and "Zach Galifianakis: Live at the Purple Onion," and it is shot as if the camera is stalking Rogan, peeking out from around corners, moving around and getting right into his face. While it does a good job at visually representing the manic, high-energy nature of Rogan's performance, it doesn't make watching it very enjoyable. Why people keep trying to reinvent the comedy concert film is a mystery. It's a person standing on a stage talking. Only so much you can do with that.

The DVD
Packed in a standard keepcase, this one-disc release features an animated full-screen main menu, with options to watch the show, select chapters, adjust audio, and check out the special feature. Audio options include English Dolby Digitial 5.1 and 2.0 tracks, but there are no subtitles and no closed captioning. This is essentially the same DVD as previously released, with the exception of the special feature.

The Quality
The anamorphic widescreen transfer is rather impressive, considering the amount of movement and the lighting, as the image is consistently crisp and highly detailed, without an noticeable digital artifacts, and no dirt or damage. Colors, for what there are, are reproduced well, without any blurring or bleeding. The only negative is seen in one of the long-range angles, which is soft and a bit blurry.

The Dolby Digital 5.1 track is just as impressive as the image, creating a full soundfield that puts the audience around you and Rogan up front, with a proper mix that keeps everything clearly separated and strongly delivered. This is probably as good as a stand-up act could sound.

The Extras
Just one extra here, in the form of a 37-minute mini-documentary on Rogan, titled "Joe Rogan: Beyond Fear." Basically, the camera follows Rogan around as he prepares to shoot the main feature, getting to know him better. It's put together quite nicely, blending interviews with Rogan, clips from the show and footage of his day, so if you care to find out more about the comic, including his home decorating preferences and love of animals, this isn't a bad place to look.

The Bottom Line
I can't say I laughed too often during Rogan's 55-minute set, but I definitely enjoyed it, mainly because he made some really smart points in his observations about how stupid the world is. If we have to have angry comics, at least they can be angry about the right things and admit them don't really have any answers, like Rogan does. The DVD looks and sounds terrific, and the one bonus feature is on par with the main show. If you checked out the previously released version from Netflix, and are a fan of Rogan, it's worth another rental to check out the new featurette. If you've never seen him do stand-up, it's definitely worth your time to check this disc out, though the short runtime is a bit of a disappointment.

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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.