theatrical review vince vaughns wild

THEATRICAL REVIEW: VINCE VAUGHN'S WILD WEST COMEDY SHOW (2008)

VINCE VAUGHN'S WILD WEST SHOW attempts to recreate Buffalo Bill's Wild

West Show (as seen in Robert Altman's BUFFALO BILL AND THE INDIANS),

by touring the country with four stand up comedians, along with some

celebrity friends. Beginning in L.A., the tour, running 30 days, heads

through Vegas and down to Texas where the schedule is thrown off

course by Hurricane Katrina (the film was shot in September 2005).

They then head North, finally ending in Chicago.

The film is more about the tour, and about the comics themselves, than

it is a concert film. There are bits of each of the comic's sets. And,

we meet many of their family members along the way.

John Caparulo comes off the best as far as the comics go. He is the

most consistently funny of the group. With a sort of self deprecating

style, of all the comics, he would be the one I would be most

interested in seeing more of.

Ahmed Ahmed (his real name) has the most interesting backstory. As an

Egyptian man, who was racially profiled and held in prison because of

it, his interviews are among the more interesting.

The other two, Bret Ernst and Sebastian Maniscalco both have hit and

miss material. One had a bit about roller skating that was killer

though.

Vaughn introduces the show, and occasionally brings along a celebrity

for a bit of improv. Justin "I'm a Mac" Long and Jon Favreau both

appear, with Long doing a great impersonation of Vaughn from SWINGERS.

But the highlight of the film comes from Peter Billingsley. You

probably remember Billingsley as the star of A CHRISTMAS STORY and

REAL PEOPLE. Since, then he has become a producer, working on most of

Vaughn's films. He is the producer of this as well, and travels in the

bus. At one point, Vaughn brings him onstage to recreate a scene they

did on an after school special from 1990, about steroids.

The film goes on a bit too long. There are some bits (including a

visit to see the late Buck Owens) that seem to take the film off

course and would have been better served as a terrific deleted scene

on the DVD. And some of the comic's material (relying at times too

much on drinking and differences between men and women) isn't very

good.

But, for fans of Vaughn, or comedy films, it is worth seeing.

3 stars out of 5