2006
There probably aren't many who would cop to liking Dane Cook's intelligent meathead brand of stand-up; after all, this is a guy whose filmography is iffy at best ("Waiting ..." and "Employee of the Month," anyone?) and whose contributions to serial television (the thuddingly dull "Tourgasm") are barely worth surfing past. Still, Cook exudes an undeniable sort of charisma that makes his far-from-cutting-edge material mildly funny.
"Vicious Circle," Cook's first crack at a HBO comedy special, didn't need a generous 90 minutes, let alone the two hours included on this two-disc set as an expanded "DANEgerous" version "? what Cook desperately needs is a judicious editor, someone who can cut to the essence of what makes him marginally funny in the first place. I still maintain his 10-minute "Saturday Night Live" monologue is probably the best thing he'll ever do. Aside from the longer cut of "Vicious Circle," brief promos whoring out Cook's other HBO-affiliated projects round out the set. Unless you wield the su-fi, rent this one.
"?Preston Jones
