Featured DVD Review: Patton Oswalt: Finest Hour

April 23, 2012

Patton Oswalt: Finest Hour - Buy from Amazon

As I've said many, many times in the past, I hate reviewing stand-up comedy concert DVDs. I never know what to say. How do you review something when all you can say about it is, "Here are some of the jokes the comedian said. Sorry for spoiling them for you." So if I hate reviewing these DVDs, why did I request this one? Simple. Patton Oswalt is one of my favorite stand-up comics and I wanted to know if Finest Hour lived up to his past work.

The Set

The set begins with Patton Oswalt talking about being a new father and how he discovered the joys of sweat pants. It's not the only family related bit of humor he has in his act, it also includes a great bit about dancing with his two-year old and what she's learning from him. A lot of times when a stand-up comic becomes a father, their humor is softened, but that's not the case here. A lot of his bits have a more controversial nature to them, including his thoughts on religion, which transitions nicely into whether or not Jesus could become a member of the X-men. His geekiness gets a chance to shine with that topic, among others. He also tells a number of personal stories, like the month he spent living in New York vs. what it is like living in Los Angeles, for instance. Not all of his bits work. There's a story about a deli counter encounter that I didn't laugh at as much as the crowd did. Also, there were a few times I thought a segue was missing. It interrupted the flow just a little bit. However, that's literally like four times in the entire hour-long set I wasn't laughing.

Is this the best work Patton Oswalt has ever done? I'm not willing to go that far, but it is damn close.

The Extras

The extras on the DVD start with Encore: KFC Bit, a follow-up to his very famous bit about the Famous Bowls. On a side note, what is a Famous Bowl? I've never had one, but from what I read about it, it sounds like a Shepherd's Pie, but upside down. Pre-Show Superstitions is a combination of fans talking before the show cut with Patton Oswalt talking about what he doesn't want his audience to be like. Finally, there's Stuff that Patton Mentions, which is a montage of things Patton Oswalt mentions during his act. In total, there's about 20 minutes of material here, with the first bit being by far the best.

The Verdict

Patton Oswalt: Finest Hour lived up to expectations, there's no doubt about that. There are also more extras than I was expecting and the encore is one of the funniest bits on the whole show. Easily worth picking up if you are a fan of stand-up in general, and especially if you are a fan of Patton Oswalt's style.


- Submitted by:

Filed under: Video Review