Clarkson, Jeremy-Clarkson: The Good, the Bad & the Ugly (2006)

This review is sponsored by

BUY IT

General		Extras
Category	Documentary	Menu Animation & Audio
Rating
Year Of Production	2006
Running Time	79:50
RSDL / Flipper	No/No	Cast & Crew
Start Up	Menu
Region Coding	4	Directed By	Brian Klein
Studio Distributor	Roadshow Home Entertainment	Starring	Jeremy Clarkson
Case	Amaray-Transparent
RPI	?	Music	None Given

Video		Audio
Pan & Scan/Full Frame	None	English Dolby Digital 2.0 (224Kb/s) English Alternate Audio Dolby Digital 2.0 (224Kb/s)
Widescreen Aspect Ratio	1.78:1
16x9 Enhancement
Video Format	576i (PAL)
Original Aspect Ratio	1.78:1	Miscellaneous
Jacket Pictures	No
Subtitles	None	Smoking	No
		Annoying Product Placement	No
		Action In or After Credits	Yes

"This car is like herpes" - Jeremy Clarkson

    Along with the recently released  Top Gear Box Set Roadshow Entertainment have released this freestanding disc, Clarkson-The Good The Bad The Ugly. This is not a Top Gear product per se but obviously features Jeremy Clarkson as the presenter. The Stig also makes a few appearances.

    In this particular 80 minute special made in late 2006, Clarkson takes himself to America because he had recently reviewed an American car and found it a decent vehicle. He was so surprised by this outcome that he set out to find out if this was a general trend in American cars or some sort of aberration. He sets himself up at a racing track near Las Vegas (Willow Springs) and tests a wide variety of American cars, sometimes on their own and sometimes against European rivals. Also thrown in are a variety of silly stunts and amusing comparison tests which are certainly reminiscent of Top Gear. Cars tested include Corvettes, a wide variety of standard and custom Mustangs, Four wheel drives, the Chrysler 300C (which is available here in Australia), pickup trucks, the Dodge Viper & the Ford GT. As usual, Clarkson uses his amusing style and creative put-downs to discuss the various cars such as the one at the top of this review. If you want to understand why a car can be like herpes you will need to watch this disc. This show is a bit more focused on the cars themselves and their various features with less of the stunts that you expect from Top Gear. Personally, I missed the other two guys from Top Gear as they tend to rein in Clarkson by making fun of him regularly. Those who find the Toyota Prius annoying on principle will certainly get something from the segment included here on it.

    Regardless of the shortcomings I have mentioned, fans of Top Gear will enjoy this disc and it would make an excellent gift for the rev-head in your life.

Video

    The video quality is very good with no major issues.

    The feature is presented in a 1.78:1 aspect ratio, 16x9 enhanced, which is the original aspect ratio.

    The picture was clear and sharp throughout, with no evidence of low level noise. The picture did include some occasional grain mostly during in cabin shots of Clarkson driving. The shadow detail was fine.

    The colour was very good although washed out by the brightness of the desert based location.

    There were a few jagged edges and a little bit of mild aliasing but neither were overly annoying.

    There are no subtitles.

    There is no layer change.
    

Video Ratings Summary

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

Audio

    The quality is good and this disc includes an interesting alternate audio option.

    This DVD contains two audio options, English Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo soundtrack encoded at 224 Kb/s and a 'More Car Less Music' remix English Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo soundtrack encoded at 224 Kb/s. Both soundtracks are of a similar good quality however the first has a prominent music soundtrack in addition to the car sounds and the second greatly reduces the music to focus on the car noises. The rev-heads will LOVE it! 

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

    The surround speakers were not used except to add atmosphere when played using ProLogicII.

    The subwoofer added some bass to the car noises enabled by my amp's bass management.

Audio Ratings Summary

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

    None except for the soundtrack option.

Menu

    The menu design is nicely done, with motion and quite a good design.

    This disc has been released in the same format in Region 2 but does not seem to be available yet in Region 1.

    The video quality is very good.

    The audio quality is good and includes two differently mixed options.

    No extras.

Video
Audio
Extras
Plot
Overall