Dave Chappelle's Block Party (Unrated) (DVD)

In 2004 Dave Chappelle threw a surprise concert featuring big time musical acts such as Kanye West, The Fugees, Mos Def and The Roots. He was also smart enough to have director Michel Gondry (Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind) film it while making the format highly interactive between the talent. It was a brave and innovative documentary that took a long time to get to the silver screen, presumably due to distribution issues. Now the movie has come home and I have the chance to take the trip once again and reevaluate the effect it has on me only a few months after its theatrical release. The judgment is somewhat mixed but even though I'm going to point out some of the problems I still think this is a DVD worth putting in the collection.

I've had some time to properly reflect on Block Party and I remain a fan (fawning initial review here) but I'm no longer convinced it's for everyone. If you aren't a rap fan, a music fan, or a Chappelle fan you'll simply find this one boring. I also think this DVD suffers a ton on the small screen because the sound doesn't overwhelm you the way it does in the theater. Now, if you have one of the crazy surround sound set-ups and no neighbors that care if you throw it up to high volume you might be able to recreate some of the magic, I'm not sure because sadly enough I've just got the normal sound going because I don't get to a ton of DVDs.

The other issue is that the film was shot in September 2004, this fact hurts the relevancy seeing how it is almost two years later and counting. The film will start seeming classic in five years (Like Rattle and Hum and... Glitter?) but now it's caught right in between. The DVD does feature the unrated version which also gives you extra and extended scenes. Besides more curse words they also have more expository information, one of the key ones being more about the neighborhood the block party went down in. There is also a version of the movie where the musical acts are extended. I felt the music was already prominently featured so I'd suggest the extended music acts edition for only the most hardcore of fans.

The other main feature of the disc is a "making of" featurette, which includes a lot more Gondry for your dollar. He's a guy I'm interested in and if you can cut through the heavy French accent you'll probably like him too. Another interesting aspect is learning how close Hurricane Ivan was to cancelling the whole show. It's strange to think of a Hurricane in Brooklyn but if you search your memory back 22 months ago you may remember such an occurrence. Next we come to "Ohio Players," a feature looking at Dave's hometown and the people in it who attended the show and have thoughts in general on Dave. Dave being from suburban Ohio is one of the many strange things that contribute to the makeup of a gifted and talented man. The last bonus feature is an ad for the soundtrack which is effectively useless.

I'm no longer convinced Dave Chappelle's Block Party is the best movie of the year but I know it's top five for sure. An innovative and spirited look at black America and the interactions with other cultures that go down during the concert are worth tuning into. Take my caveats at the beginning of the review into consideration, but if you're young and tuned into the hip hop world this one is a can't miss.