Lewis Black: In God We Rust (2012) DVD Review

Lewis Black has long been one of my favorite comedians. I love his over-the-top anger. Remember, it's funny anger. As David Mirkin said in an interview for the Get A Life box set, "Take your anger and turn it into something funny."  Well, Lewis Black has made a career of doing just that. And he's one of the funniest comedians around. There is something almost joyous in his sarcasm.  I've never met Lewis Black. With most comedians, you kind of accept (and expect) that it's an act, that this is not how they are in their normal lives. But with Lewis Black, for some reason I think I'd be disappointed to learn he's not always this upset with things.

In God We Rust is a performance he did at the State Theatre in Minneapolis. He begins by ripping on himself, mentioning his daily disappointment and anger at seeing himself in the mirror every morning. He also riffs on how Valentine's Day shouldn't be in February. "Why would you pick the most depressing month of the year to remind many people they're alone?"

I like that he makes fun of people downloading applications to their phones. "They want to get just the right amount so that they will feel like a whole person." He talks about how you can type into your phone, "Where is the best sushi place," and then says, "I believe if you're standing on any block in America and you're asking an inanimate object where's the best place to get raw fish, you've lost your fucking mind."  It is sad that people would rather ask a phone than ask a real person who lives in the area and will probably have a better idea of the best restaurant.

And that's one of the things that makes Lewis Black so appealing as a comedian. He actually has real points to make. For example, "The discourse in this country has completely disintegrated in the past few years, and has really reached the point where when I listen to both sides what I actually hear are dogs barking. I'm serious. I wish they just brought out dogs to bark at each other."

And I love that he rails against AT&T, a company I'd love to personally burn to the ground (and then I'd want to urinate on the ashes). Of course, all phone companies are evil, and he spends some time talking about his problems with Verizon too.

His bit about Facebook and particularly Farmville made me burst out laughing, but also depressed me. Because people have become so insane, but insane in a stupid way rather than in a fun, creative way. "I would accept Sarah Palin running for the presidency of the United States if she ran from Farmville." Then, "I still wouldn't vote for her."

Bonus Features

This DVD has several good bonus features.  Often the bonus features on stand-up comedy DVDs are rather pointless, but not so with this disc.  The first special feature is titled "The Walk-out," and includes a shot of two people leaving nineteen minutes after Lewis Black opened with a bit about how he hates people walking out of his shows. This was cut from the main feature. He reacts, "Wow, that was fast." The crowd reacts too. The best bit about it is that the two who left were seated right in front of Lewis Black's parents.

My favorite bonus feature is titled "Audience Participation," and it's some great moments from the performance that were cut from the main feature, moments in which he responds to noise from the audience.  I understand why this stuff was cut from the show, but I am really glad that it's included in the bonus footage.

The bonus features also include a photo gallery, which plays as a slide show so you don't have to keep hitting the bloody arrow button on your remote, and includes shots of his parents, the crew, and the stage. And there is something titled "Promo Shoot Outtakes," which includes a description of how the giant cube on stage was made.

In God We Rust is scheduled to be released on September 11, 2012.  It's 79 minutes. A shorter version will air on Comedy Central on September 7, 2012 at midnight (so technically it will be September 8th).