Terry Fator: Live from Las Vegas Reviews

THE FLICK
In Terry Fator: Live in Las Vegas, American's Got Talent winner Terry Fator proves he is about as well rounded a showman as there can possibly be. He sings, he does a bit of moonwalking, he does impersonations...and, oh yeah, he's a master ventriloquist, too.

The thing about Fator, and his 70-something minute routine, is that he makes everything he does look so incredibly easy. Granted and understood that is his job as a performer yet he never breaks a sweat as far as the audience can tell. The man is completely at home on the stage, with his hand inside a puppet, talking to Vicky the cougar or Winston the Impersonating Turtle. He tells a story in one of the commentary tracks about bringing the puppets (or figures) to the kitchen table growing up and treating them like a real person. There's a level of comfort between each puppet and Fator which immediately draws the audience in.

With an easy-going charm and an act everyone can relate to in some way, Live From Las Vegas doesn't feel like a Vegas show. At least, not in the classical sense. With the exception of his assistant, who comes on stage a couple times, this is a one man show, the success of which (obviously) rests directly on Fator. And from the moment Emma begins to belt out "At Last" at the top of the show all the way down to a near-perfect Louis Armstrong with "What a Wonderful World" at the end, he rarely misses a note.

(In the middle of the show, Fator does mix up voices and has an incredibly hard time getting back on track. I'm not at all convinced it wasn't scripted.)

This show, taped over two nights earlier this year, is a trimmed version of the live show, but you wouldn't know it. Jokes and characters don't overstay their welcome while the pace of the show is brisk and ever-moving. Only one of the puppets-Ricky the Annoying Neighbor-grows irritating simply because of his personality. While each figure is a caricature or stereotype in someway, Ricky the stoner is the worst of the bunch, constantly bopping his head, speaking quite illiterately and more than enough "man"s and "dude"s for any California surfer. His schtick is also perhaps the least memorable out of all of them, to boot.

Which leaves the tough choice of who is the best, or most amusing. Walter is given a number of witty jokes (mostly about having sex and turning names into naughty jokes-Clay Aiken is the funniest). Maybe it's Winston, with his coying, shy personality. But for my money, none of the puppets-as good as they are-can hold a candle to a moment when Fator calls an audience member up on stage, makes him up as a famous female celebrity and controls his movements. To tell which one would be a massive spoiler and completely ruin the fun.

THE LOOK
Presented in a 1.78:1 anamorphic transfer sports no real problems of note. The original stage-built from the ground up-comes complete with multi-colored lights and flash, all of which is rendered nicely on DVD. There is a slightly hazy quality to the picture, something I attribute to the location (the Mirage in Vegas) more than a shoddy transfer. Details are relatively strong; there's not much to see outside of puppets and Fator. Blacks tend to be fairly deep. The only qualm I have with the presentation are a few instances of moire effects in grating on the stage and a strange glow around the overhead lights. It's entirely possible the glow is completely natural, a by-product of the type of light source. It's not terribly noticeable if you're not looking for it, however.

THE SOUND
The only available mix on the show is an English 5.1 track. As expected, most of the audio information comes from the front speakers, with audience reactions and music seeping into the surrounds. The most important thing here-the dialogue-is unencumbered, coming across richly and accurately. Moments when Fator throws his voice to simulate puppets in the distance are especially fun, considering the words come from a set of speakers other than the front. Subtitles are not included.

THE STUFF
Live From Las Vegas comes packed in a standard black keepcase with a slipcover replicating the cover art. Two small inserts are included: the first is a note explaining why Fator left a Michael Jackson impersonation in the show despite his death in June; and the other is an 11-page excerpt from his autobiography. The special is broken down into 17 chapters. On the main menu, "Showtime" will play the show straight through while "Acts" goes to the chapter selection.

The only other bonus features here are two separate commentary tracks. The first includes Fator, his comedy writer Rick Kerns and director Mark Gottman. Gottman is the odd man out here, barely getting a word in edge wise between Fator rehashing the history of each puppet and the act while Kerns talks about writing and what the show was like before he joined. It's a fun track, passing very quickly due to the jovial, informative nature of the three men. The performer makes several references to his father not being supportive of his ventriloquism dreams yet never really tells us what he thinks today. That's a very, very minor nitpick, considering just how much information they manage to impart.

Less educational is the second commentary, this time featuring the puppet characters. (It's also dirtier, more sexual and much more adult than the show itself). Julius, Walter, Emma, Vicky, Maynard, Ricky and Winston are all present and accounted for, jibber-jabbering about nothing in particular. The Emma character begins to be annoying approximately five minutes in, consistently whining about not getting enough screen time...but that's about the worst of it. A novel idea, but one you can really skip.