My name is Ross and im 26, I like travelling, reading, music (mainly metal),going to gigs, photograp...
My name is Ross and im 26, I like travelling, reading, music (mainly metal),going to gigs, photography, painting, hiking, and cinema.
Cheers to everyone who has read my reviews! Comments are always welcome.
Member since:12.06.2009
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As a huge fan of Bill Bailey, I had high expectations for 'Tinselworm' after the hilarious 'Part Troll', but Bill's newest dvd left me feeling very disappointed indeed. Bill's career has been going from strength to strength of late, his hard-won and much deserved popularity culminating in this, his latest dvd, in which he takes his latest tour to Wembley for his first arena performance. Inevitably, the intimate feel is lost, and combined with the lukewarm nature of his new material the whole show feels like Bill Bailey dumbed down for the masses. His clever, surreal and often philosophical material doesn't translate well to an arena setting, and his performance often seems forced, as if he is uncomfortable but doing his best to put on a brave face.
Much of the material is recycled from his previous shows; a comedic reworking of a popular theme tune, a drum and bass track themed around George Bush, and a Kraftwerk-esque song about trouser presses all appear, coming across as simplified, less funny versions of older jokes. Much of the new material is very weak, such as Bill engaging in conversation with different aspects of his personality on the giant screens behind him and an "ages of Bill" section which is essentially just images of Bill in a series of silly costumes. In place of his usual brilliant material we get 'sing along with Bill' sections such as 'Hey! Asda! I aint gonna be your bitch', set along to some admittedly impressive stage effects. The belly laughs which normally accompany Bills shows are conspicuous by their absence however- I only laughed once or twice throughout the whole dvd.
There are a few good moments, such as the Emo song, a well crafted and funny number in which Bill tells the lamentable tale of a miserable emo kid who works in Starbucks, and a part in which Bill shows off his tattoos, all of which are of things you would expect to peer at through dense forest undergrowth, so hairy is his back, but laughs are generally few and far between. Bill's rambles often seem to lead nowhere, and on several occasions he seems to lose even the audience.
A lot of runtime is dedicated to extremely well performed but not at all funny musical numbers such as a guitar vs sitar take on the banjo duel from deliverance and a self-indulgent Hindi version of Radiohead's 'Creep' complete with Indian backing singers. Put simply it's not the Bill Bailey I know and love, and it frequently feels like Bill is cashing in on his success by effectively parodying his own act. The closer of the show is simply a repeat performance of the brilliant 'Betrayal song' from part troll, albeit less well executed, and with the audience singing along.
The dvd extras are also pretty poor, consisting of a few flimsy clips and nothing much else. I found the whole thing a big letdown, and found myself hoping that Bill would stop seeking such mainstream appeal and go back to doing what he does best: crafting intelligent, creative and hilarious performances that make you laugh but also make you think.
Come on Bill, youre better than this!
Summary: A poor effort by a fantastic comedian, buy Part Troll instead
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From the imagination of Bill Bailey, experience tinselworm - A visually stunning comedy ... more
and music extravaganza. Filmed at Wembley Arena at the end of a sell-out tour of the UK, it's everything you'd expect from Bill and more. Using huge screens, films ...
From the imagination of Bill Bailey experience tinselworm - A visually stunning comedy ... more
and music extravaganza. Filmed at Wembley Arena at the end of a sell-out tour of the UK it's everything you'd expect from Bill and more. Using huge screens films ...
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![Bill Bailey - Tinselworm [DVD] [2008]](http://picnica.ciao.com/uk/70181546.jpg "Bill Bailey - Tinselworm [DVD] [2008]")
Jun 12th, 2009
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