Bill Bailey-Live at the Apollo: Part Troll (2004)

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General		Extras
Category	Comedy	Main Menu Introduction Menu Animation & Audio Featurette-Augenblik Featurette-D V Diary
Rating
Year Of Production	2004
Running Time	93:22
RSDL / Flipper	RSDL (73:19)	Cast & Crew
Start Up	Menu
Region Coding	2,3,4,5,6	Directed By	None Given
Studio Distributor	Universal Pictures Home Video	Starring	Bill Bailey
Case	?
RPI	$29.95	Music	None Given

Video		Audio
Pan & Scan/Full Frame	None	English Dolby Digital 5.1 (448Kb/s) English Dolby Digital 2.0 (192Kb/s)
Widescreen Aspect Ratio	1.75:1
16x9 Enhancement
Video Format	576i (PAL)
Original Aspect Ratio	1.75:1	Miscellaneous
Jacket Pictures	No
Subtitles	None	Smoking	Yes
		Annoying Product Placement	No
		Action In or After Credits	No

    If you are not sure who Bill Bailey is and have just clicked through on the off chance that this may interest you, then please let me explain. Bill Bailey is an English comedian, best known in this country for his role as the beardy weirdo Manny Bianco on the BBC comedy series Black Books, which first aired in Britain in September 2000. If you have not heard of (or especially if) you don't like Black Books, then thanks for your time. On the other hand, if you like Black Books or English comedy in general, hang around because this is a very funny show and well worth a look.

    Bill Bailey - Part Troll is a 90 minute live comedy performance filmed at the Hammersmith Apollo (a large theatre) during Bill Bailey's tour of Britain in 2004. The tour was called Part Troll, which refers to him believing he was part troll during his childhood. Generally speaking, nearly all of the comedy and song parodies included here hit the mark with only a small section of jokes about drugs not working for me. Some of the topics covered include religion, travelling, Australian customs, hunting, vegetarians, America, Popular music, the Taliban, George Bush (including the musical scale of Evil), public transport, England's position in the world, philosophy and rock music. The parodies of U2 & Kraftwerk were very amusing indeed. There were some references which would only be understood in England, however, generally the comedy was not specific. Despite his distance from them his interplay with the audience and his ad-libbing were highlights of the show. Visually, he had a number of instruments on stage which he used during the performance including a Theremin and films were played on a large screen behind him. A well produced show, which I enjoyed very much.

    Recommended for stand-up comedy fans, especially if you enjoy Black Books.

Video

    The video quality is very good.

    The feature is presented in a 1.75:1 aspect ratio 16x9 enhanced which is presumably the original aspect ratio.

    The picture was clear and sharp throughout, with no evidence of low level noise. The shadow detail was very good.

    The colour was generally good, however there was a bit of noise in some coloured backgrounds.

    The only noticeable artefact was some occasional mild aliasing.

    There are no subtitles.

    The layer change occurs at 73:19 and caused a slight pause.
    

Video Ratings Summary

Sharpness
Shadow Detail
Colour
Grain/Pixelization
Film-To-Video Artefacts
Film Artefacts
Overall

Audio

    The audio quality is very good.

    This DVD contains two audio options, an English Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack encoded at 448 Kb/s, and an English Dolby Digital 2.0 stereo soundtrack encoded at 192 Kb/s. I really like what they did with the 5.1 track here, making you feel like you were sitting in the middle of the audience. It really gives you the feel of a live comedy show, including the slight echo of a large theatre. Please note this soundtrack is very loud so turn down you amplifier from its usual volume if you value your ears!

    Dialogue was clear and easy to understand and there was no problem with audio sync.

    The surround speakers added mostly crowd noise and also some music. As I mentioned above this really created the atmosphere of a live show well.

     The subwoofer was not used very much, really only adding minor bass to the music.

Audio Ratings Summary

Dialogue
Audio Sync
Clicks/Pops/Dropouts
Surround Channel Use
Subwoofer
Overall

Menu

    The menu included motion, and the ability to select scenes, the music sections only and choose audio tracks.

Augenblik (4:40)

    A short featurette showing development and rehearsals for the Kraftwerk parody. Mildly amusing.

DV Diary (25:32)

    One of the most boring 25 minutes I have EVER spent. Basically digital video footage taken by Bill in every services, hotel room and dressing room on the tour. Inspects the trouser press and tea & coffee making facilities in every hotel room. Don't do it to yourself!

    This disc is available in Region 2 in exactly the same format.

    The video quality is very good.

    The audio quality is very good.

    The disc has two extras of very dubious quality.

Video
Audio
Extras
Plot
Overall