Plot: What’s it about?
“You might be a redneck if…” into a career. I can remember seeing him for the first time back in the late 80’s at “Opening Night at Rodney’s” as part of a television special. The show featured Tim Allen before “Home Improvement” and a few others of note. Foxworthy’s shtick was unlike something we’d heard before and now 15 years later, I think it’s time to put this baby to bed. Foxworthy, of course, is just one-fourth of the quartet “The Blue Collar Comedy Tour”, the other more notable is Larry the Cable Guy, best know for his catch phrase “Get – R – Done” which is already fading into the ranks of the obscure. Personally, until this arrived I’d never seen the tour in full force and though they’re funny, I found it a bit grating. Lest we forget the other two members of the group, Ron White (always with a drink and cigarette in hand) and Bill Engvall.
“The Blue Collar Comedy Tour: One for the Road” marks the last appearance of the group and they filmed a “movie” at their final performance in Washington D.C. – this is it. Now that we’ve seen Foxworthy and Larry the Cable Guy become major stars, I suppose it’s time for them to break away from the pack and try to do their own thing and though each member has their particular brand of humor, I suppose my humor is a bit more refined. I don’t mean to sound like a snob, but I just feel that I’m a bit beyond the material that these four men cover. Naturally with the special taking place in our nation’s capital, they make time to go do a little sightseeing at the White House and they have a little Q and A session with the audience. Either “The Blue Collar” type of humor is yours or it isn’t, but this pretty much delivers what it promises and more likely than not, this will be the last we see of the group until they do a reunion.
Video: How does it look?
“The Blue Collar Tour: One for the Road” is shown in a very good-looking 1.85:1 anamorphic transfer. Comedy specials like this often do look good, more like a concert video or something to that effect. I noticed no artifacting and just the slightest bit of edge enhancement. Colors seemed warm and natural, though it’s hard to get an accurate read on the true colors as it was on stage, with lights, etc. However, judging by the transfer, I’d say that everything is accurate. There’s not a lot else to say about how this looks, it’s certainly above average and though Paramount has offered a full-frame version as well – this is the one to get.
Audio: How does it sound?
The Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack is surprisingly active at times; we really get the feeling that we’ve been immersed into the audience. Laughter comes at the audience from all angles and at times it an almost dizzying effect. The dialogue is very clean and though the majority of the soundtrack is relegated to the front stage, surrounds kick in from time to time. I wasn’t expecting much, but this does sound pretty good. Impressive.
Supplements: What are the extras?
There are a few supplements on the disc, a trio of featurettes that show some behind the scenes materials and even one that concentrates on the fans of the “Blue Collar” gang, there’s also a photo gallery should you want to gawk at your favorite member of the group. I have to admit that the “Blue Collar Tour” really wasn’t for me, but that’s not to say that Paramount didn’t do a good job with this disc, because they did.
