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Brick Wall Comedy
Brick Wall Comedy
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Word of Mouth

Doug Stanhope

Prime Video · 2002 · 1 h 30 min

Misanthropic barroom philosophy delivered from a dive bar stage.

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Doug Stanhope walks onto the stage half-drunk and proceeds to deliver a set of misanthropic barroom philosophy. He goes after American foreign policy, calling the country a “big bloated celebrity that thinks it doesn’t have to pay the cover charge”. The material leans heavily on self-destruction, anchored by extended tangents about his life being a shambles, frequenting smut shops, and hiring hookers.

Recorded in May 2002 at the Velveeta Room in Austin, Texas, the 84-minute release captures the comic just as his profile was rising. He was about to take over as a co-host on Comedy Central’s The Man Show and had recently won a critical award at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. Released independently by Sacred Cow Productions, the DVD found an audience largely through bootlegs and early internet comedy circles. It includes a bonus feature of Stanhope and a friend tripping on mushrooms in a hotel room.

The set list

3 bits

  1. Airport security and camouflage soldiers

    Dismantles airport security theatrics by mocking men standing around in camouflage gear who haven't done push-ups in five years.

  2. Osama bin Laden's perceived uselessness

    Ridicules bin Laden's post-9/11 effectiveness, joking that he cannot even get a single follower to leave a flaming bag of dog crap on an American doorstep and ring the bell.

  3. Unabashed drug consumption and Viagra

    Unapologetically celebrates illicit drug usage and recounts personal experiences with recreational substances and Viagra.

How it plays

Tone
Brutal, satirical, dirty, and unapologetically offensive.
On stage
Abrasive, profane, confrontational comic performing while drunk and drinking beer on stage, displaying raw honesty and debauchery.
Pace
Animated and erratic, described as jumping around the stage like a hyperactive child while occasionally fighting off the sluggish effects of alcohol to find the right words.
About
Airport security and military posturing, U.S. government hypocrisy and freedom propaganda, Recreational drug use and pharmaceutical experiences, Osama bin Laden and post-9/11 reactions, Explicit sexual encounters and bodily functions

What the critics said

Praised by receptive reviewers as a brilliant, insightful masterpiece of dirty wit and hardcore political and social satire, though noted as deeply polarizing and offensive to conservative or sensitive viewers.

In the room: Loud, disruptive, and interactive, with Stanhope actively encouraging unruly behavior to fuel his set and joke at the crowd's expense.

Summed up from reviews, articles and listings. Sources: en.wikipedia.org, imdb.com, wikidata.org, musicbrainz.org, rampantscotland.com, themoviedb.org.

Backstory

Filmed in May 2002 in the post-September 11 climate, an era marked by heightened government patriotism and airport security tensions that Stanhope aggressively confronted.

Details

Released
Taped
The Velveeta Room, Austin
Runtime
1 h 30 min
Where
Prime Video
Director
Kevin Booth
Topics
Before
Die Laughing (2002)
After
No Refunds (2007)

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