Amazon.com: Phil Hartman was one of the most versatile comedians of his time: whether he was playing the voice of Troy McClure on The Simpsons or portraying the pompous Bill McNeal on NewsRadio, his comedy was always fresh and outrageous. His breakthrough was as a cast member of the late-night program Saturday Night Live, where he satirized everything from politics (Bill Clinton, Admiral Stockdale--Ross Perot's misguided running mate--and Barbara Bush) to entertainment (Frank Sinatra and Phil Donahue), creating unforgettable characters along the way. This "best of" video captures his funniest SNL moments and includes the TV special Saturday Night Live Remembers Phil Hartman plus more. Among the highlights are the commercial Compulsion; Bill Clinton jogging to a fast-food joint (which, filmed long before the Lewinsky incident, seems surprisingly prescient as Clinton comments, "There's gonna be a whole bunch of things we don't tell Mrs. Clinton. Fast food is the least of our worries."); Discover the World of Science, where Hartman portrays an annoyingly daft TV host to Jon Lovitz's scientist; Barbara Bush hosting Nancy Reagan at tea in the White House; Cooking with the Anal Retentive Chef; and Unfrozen Caveman Lawyer. Brief snippets of Hartman in a variety of his roles show some classic moments without slowing down the pace of the collection. This video also features SNL cast members Dana Carvey, Jan Hook, Chris Rock, Chris Farley, Victoria Jackson, and more. Of all the Saturday Night Live retrospectives, this is one of the most consistently funny compilations and truly showcases the best of Phil Hartman. --Jenny Brown
Customer Reviews
Average Rating:
Rating: - A legend in his own right
Phil Hartman was easily one of the funniest people to be on SNL ever. Why he left to be on the less funnier Newsradio is beyond me. Ususally the best of collections dissapoint me, but I found this to be rather entertaining, You've got Clinton, Sinatra, Unfrozen Caveman Lawyer, and the analretentive chef. The 5 second bits were also highly hysterical, im suprised they dont do that more on other SNL best ofs.
Rating: - Decent overview of his work
This DVD is certainly very enjoyable. I wish it had more of Phil's Sinatra and Donahue impersonations however. Definitely a buy for any Phil Hartman fan.
Rating: - SNL's MVP
4.5 stars
Hartman was a comic genius, period. He was the best supporting actor ever on SNL, hands down, able to take a walk-on in a crappy skit and turn it around with one line. He was also a fabulous impressionist; his Sinatra, Clinton, etc etc are classics.
I agree with the other reviewers here that this is NOT the best stuff he did for the show, but there are a few of his best here, and those alone make this a must.
Unfrozen Caveman Lawyer may be my all-time favorite SNL short; a perfect script and Phil milks it to the hilt.
Lots of other nuggest here; just watching ... Read More
Rating: - Could Have Been So Much Better.
Anything with Phil Hartman in it is worth five stars under normal circumstances, but I think they intentionally kept some of his best material off of this DVD just as SNL did with their Will Ferrell edition. There were so many great skits left out here that I just cannot give it five stars. And that is not to say it's a function of time as some of what they left in was rather mediocre.
As for Hartman, there were few more gifted comedians in history. His impressions were masterful and an absolute joy. He had that winning combination of talent and intensity that is possessed by few others. The ... Read More
Rating: - Disappointed
I bought the DVD hoping to see one skit -- the funniest one my family had ever seen on SNL. We had it recorded on VHS many MANY years ago and somehow lost it. But we would sit and laugh until we cried watching the skit where Phil played the drill sargeant who came up with nicknames for his new recruits -- "Smiling Laughing Joking Around Man" ... "Man Who Reminds Me Of My Doggie" ... "Hair Head!" I thought for SURE that THE funniest skit in all of SNL history would be on there, but no...it was just a 20 second clip. I was SO disappointed!!
And it was quite surprising to see some of the skits ... Read More
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