I usually don’t
have the time to watch television because life keeps me busy.
Sometimes I try to catch an episode of Lost on ABC or maybe
Nip/Tuck on FX but rarely do I watch the MTV reality shows.
After sitting through Viva La Bam Seasons 2 and 3 I now
know why I don’t watch MTV. The shows are terrible and mindless.
Does anyone really like the sound of fingernails on a chalkboard
or eating dog feces? Most would say no. Yet for Bam Margera (a
regular on MTV’s Jackass with Johnny Knoxville) and friends
those activities are part of daily life and are done with the
utmost amount of glee. Idiotic, childish, painful, and incessant
are the words that I would use to describe Viva La Bam.
This DVD set is
made for those who are hardcore fans of the popular MTV show and those
people only. Episode after episode all that you see is constant
swearing and violence. Crotch shots, animal abuse and property
destruction are continuous and after a while these scenes become
extremely boring to watch. Bam lives with his parents (even though he
is 24) and makes their lives a living nightmare. He wakes them up with
loud music, destroys all of their earthly possessions, and just acts
like a child gone bad. I guess that they are being punished for their
bad parenting in the past. If you have to watch any of these episodes
I would recommend watching the Mardi Gras Part 1 and 2 because
they actually have a few humorous moments… poor Don Vito.
Discs One and Two
each contain eight episodes from Seasons 2 and 3 respectively. The
DVD menus are typical and blend in with the opening credits of the
show.
Disc One: Episodes
2.1-Castle
Bam
2.2- Dating Don
Vito
2.3-Fat Boy Face
Off
2.4-Mardi Gras Part
1
2.5-Mardi Gras Part
2
2.6-Community
Disservice
2.7-Tree Top Casino
2.8-Demo Derby
Disc Two: Episodes
3.1-Driveway Skate
park
3.2-Uncivil War
3.3-Fort Knoxville
3.4-Rockstars
3.5-Mutiny on the
Bam
3.6-Angry Ape
3.7-Mall of Bam
3.8-Bamiture Golf
Disc 3 is the Bonus
Disc with special features.
The DVD set is
labeled “Uncensored” which basically means that they don’t bleep the
bad words. The vulgarity is nothing worse than what you would find in
a Quentin Tarantino movie. All nudity and extra gross things are still
blurred for those under 17. The DVD extras are not edited.
THE VIDEO
The picture
quality is clear but looks like it was taped with a home video
camera. No real cinematic quality features which is not surprising
since it is a type of low budget reality television. Full Screen
Format is used.
THE AUDIO
Paramount
presents Viva La Bam in English Dolby Digital. People
screaming and swearing unfortunately sounds the same even without
Dolby Digital.
THE EXTRAS
There are about
20 deleted scenes which mostly involve Don Vito, the portly
friend of the family who is constantly abused by Bam and his
friends, being put through humiliating tasks. Maybe it is just me,
but is it really necessary to watch this poor man get abused for
hours on end? Is this what American society has been brought down
to? Can this be called entertainment?
Other special
features include 3 music videos, a photo gallery, a
behind the scenes music video featurette, and an area called
Random Ass Moments. The random moments are just more clips from
the seasons that didn’t make the air.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Unless you
absolutely love Viva La Bam or just really like watching
people abuse each other, you should skip this DVD set; it is just
plain bad. Save your money, time, and sanity.
