Jeff Dunham's Stand-Up
Jeff Dunham: Controlled Chaos (2011)
Jeff Dunham is back in his much-anticipated fourth concert event, with all-new material and unparalleled comedy that surpasses his record-breaking specials Arguing with Myself, Spark of Insanity, and A Very Special Christmas Special. All the favorites are here, plus two never-before-seen characters certain to unleash their own unique havoc on stage. Dunham is an international phenomenon with sold out stadium concerts, one-half billion YouTube views, and television shows that remain among the highest rated in Comedy Central history. Controlled Chaos is guaranteed to deliver an unequaled number of laughs per minute – whether you're a Dunham Maniac or seeing him and his partners for the very first time.
Jeff Dunham: Spark of Insanity (2007)
Ventriloquist Jeff Dunham's second live-performance DVD, Spark of Insanity, is much funnier than his first, Arguing With Myself, perhaps because his new puppets allow him to cover more controversial territory beyond skits about family beefs and office humor. Though some puppets reappear, like the beloved Peanut, a purple monkey who loves wordplay, new characters emerge as the stars of this hour-long stand-up show. A tense laughter ripples through the audience, for example, when Dunham announces his wish to talk with a terrorist as he brings out Achmed the Dead Terrorist, a turban-sporting skeleton who's refrain is "I will kill you!" Previous show star, Jose Jalapeño, a Mexican chili pepper on a stick, returns for a discussion about whether the puppet has a green card. If his racial jokes rode a line slightly too Caucasian to clarify his point of view before, Dunham has achieved real satire in Spark of Insanity, showing his audience how ridiculous it is to create stereotypes of any sort. Additionally, Dunham mocks his own culture with Walter, a grumpy old white man whose parental chiding rings true for many. Moreover, Dunham impresses with his ventriloquism skills, and shows off some new vocalization techniques that will stun anyone interested in this fascinating art. --Trinie Dalton
Jeff Dunham - Arguing With Myself (2005)
Arguing With Myself, a recorded live performance of ventriloquist Jeff Dunham, portrays a comedian whose revival of an old-fashioned art has made ventriloquism more relevant to modern societal concerns. Starring his six main characters, from Bubba Jay, a Nascar-obsessed hick, to Peanut, a flamboyant gay monkey, Dunham's puppets have dirty but relatively inoffensive senses of humor that mock the American Dream. One can easily see why Jay Leno champions Dunham, as his skits contain a similar sly sarcasm disguised as wholesome teasing aimed at men indebted to their ugly wives, for example, or people who live their lives working in cubicles. At times, though, Dunham's humor seems to lose its ironic distance, especially as he interacts with puppets like Jose Jalapeño, a Cuban chile pepper, or Sweet Daddy D, a Black pimp, both reliant on the antiquated humor once popularized in cartoons by racial caricature. Since the entire audience in the film is white, it is difficult to assess whether or not African-Americans or Latinos would find Dunham funny. In other words, Dunham's humor isn't overtly offensive enough to make fun of ethnic heritage. However, his skills as a ventriloquist alone make him a fascinating entertainer, and anyone interested in how puppetry and ventriloquism has progressed over the decades would benefit from watching Dunham bring life to his wooden friends. --Trinie Dalton
