Curb Your Enthusiasm: The Complete First Season
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DVD details
Actor: Cynthia Caponera, Jason Alexander, Larry Charles, Linda Bates (II), Mark BeltzmanBrand: HBO Home Video
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Unknown), Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo; English (Subtitled); Spanish (Subtitled); French (Subtitled); English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo; French (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo; French (Dubbed), Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo; Spanish (Dubbed)
Format: Closed-captioned, Color, Dubbed, DVD, NTSC, Subtitled
Picture Format: 1.33:1
Running Time: 390 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2006-08-01
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Model: 99180
Studio: Hbo Home Video
Product features:
- Condition: New
- Format: DVD
- Closed-captioned; Color; Dubbed; DVD; Subtitled; NTSC
DVD Reviews of Curb Your Enthusiasm: The Complete First Season
DVD Review: The show is great, but what about the DVD?
Summary: 3 Stars
Since anyone considering buying this DVD set is probably a fan of the show, I will focus not on a review of the show itself, but of the DVD release. Packaging is nice enough - a cardboard slipcase with an amusing little sliding mechanism that is neat to look at and fun to play around with, but not quite as practical or durable as the standard plastic snap case. Still, points for originality. The front cover of the slipcase folds open to reveal a listing of each episode with a short synopsis, which I thought was a nice touch.
I suppose it's what's inside that counts though, and what you get is 2 discs with the 10 episodes from season 1, and not a whole lot more. Of course, part of the reason to get this is to have the shows, which are, of course, wonderfully smart and funny, just like they were on TV. For some, simply having a hard copy of all the shows will make this worthwhile. However, having been spoiled rotten by several other top notch DVD releases as of late, I have come to expect a little something extra. The inclusion of the one hour special that gave rise to the show is nice, but is more of a necessity than a "special feature", just like the inclusion of, say, episode 8, could not be considered a special feature. Other than that, we get a commentary on Episode 1 and an interview with LD conducted by Bob Costas.
Initially I was disappointed to see that commentary was only given for a single epsiode, but that one commentary was so dry and boring that I was hardly left wanting more. It consists of Larry, Cheryl, Jeff, and director Robert B. Weide basically laughing at the show as they watch and patting each other on the back for a job well done. Very few insightful comments, interesting anecdotes or useful information.
The interview (30 min) fares better. We get some interesting tidbits about the show and Larry's personal life. There are, however, some fairly annoying moments where Costas, very obviously a fan, tries to emulate the tone of the show. At one point Larry mentions that often people in his company tell him they "feel like they're on the show". Costas' too-enthusiastic "I know!" response suggests that the interview might have been better conducted by someone able to resist the urge to engage in star-struck play acting with their favorite comedy hero. David's reaction to all of this, however, the smug looks and resigned sighs of someone who's clearly experienced this phenomenon a few times too many, is priceless.
The best parts of the interview involve discussions about how the show is made. This is, unfortunately, also quite frustrating, as it reveals just how great this set could have been. We learn that each scene is shot several times over, and very often each time is different. Since the show is improvised, production seems to take a shotgun approach, allowing several takes for actors to try different tihngs, then culling from these the best moments. This of course hints at the vast library of outtakes and bloopers that surely exist, but sadly were not included in this package. For me one of the most enjoyable aspects of this show is the natural, conversational flow of the dialog and the genuine reactions of the characters, all of which is a result of the improvisation process. Outtakes would have been appreciated not only for their entertainment value, but for the insight they would have provided into how the shows are developped using this highly innovative and successful approach.
Despite its shortcomings (particularly the glaring omission of any outtakes, an obvious thing to include from a show where the actors make up dialog on the spot), fans looking to collect the shows will likely want to pick this up. If you're hoping for a pile of extras, you won't find it here, but perhaps releases of future seasons will be more generous, especially considering that the extra disc space occupied here by the one hour special will be free for the taking in future releases.
Description of Curb Your Enthusiasm: The Complete First Season
Blending fact with fiction, the television series about "Seinfeld" co-creator Larry David.Item Type: DVD Movie
Item Rating: NR
Street Date: 01/13/04
Wide Screen: no
Director Cut: no
Special Edition: no
Language: ENGLISH
Foreign Film: noSubtitles: no
Dubbed: no
Full Frame: yes
Re-Release: no
Packaging: Sleeve
Like its fellow HBO series Sex and the City, this half-hour comedy broke some TV rules and went from critics' darling to an award-winning series in three years. Curb Your Enthusiasm is the brainchild of star-creator Larry David who co-created Seinfeld and was the basis for the easily rattled George Costanza (who was played by Jason Alexander). Like George, David has a tendency to speak too much, blow things out of proportion, and, most often, fail in the end (and often liking it that way). David's new show is also like its predecessor: it's about "nothing" except following the day-to-day ramblings of a sometime writer and comic (this time in L.A.). Eternal questions stemming from universal daily dilemmas are honed to perfect comedic absurdity. A notable exception is the show is only scripted by plot; much of the action is improvised. The first season starts with a one-hour mockumentary following David's return to stand-up for the first time in years; the other 10 episodes follow a more traditional sit-com setup.
David plays "himself" (as does his friend, Richard Lewis) although his manager and wife are played by comedians Jeff Garlin and Cheryl Hines. Although this first season is a comedic gem, one can't take more than an episode or two at a time--it's acidic, biting comedy. The episodes are often built like a house of cards, which the irritable David will surely collapse by the end. Like another caustic TV character, Dabney Colman's Buffalo Bill (1983-84), Larry David is not for everybody. --Doug Thomas
Stills from Curb Your Enthusiasm- The Complete First Season (Click for larger image)
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