Content: Sascha Grammel is the new star in the German comedy sky. He has succeeded in giving the art of ventriloquism a fresh, unspent image. His mixture of standup comedy, magic tricks and of course ventriloquism performances is fresh, likeable and for long stretches really funny. Grammel is able to convey to his audience very well and above all believably that he pursues his vocation with a lot of joy. And exactly this joy is then also transferred to the viewer, no matter whether he is sitting live in the audience, or watching the show on Grammel's first DVD.
Stars of the show are of course the lovable puppets, which Grammel brings to life in a quite wonderful way. First of all, there is Prof. Dr. Peter Hacke from Hamburg (in the truest sense of the word), an ecotrophologist by trade, who presents his latest book to the audience, which he has written in the name of science. Finally we learn why Germans are increasingly overweight. Thank you, Dr. Hacke!
Next, Frederic Freiherr von Furchensumpf, a cross between an eagle and a pheasant, enters the stage and makes sure that there is not a dry eye in the audience. The cheeky bird then takes us behind the scenes during the interval, which also makes this part of the programme extremely worth seeing.
But the secret star of the show is Josie the turtle, who delights as the first living EC machine. Josie is just adorable with her nervous nature and her squeaky voice. Simply great. A very special kind of audience participation, in which Grammel unceremoniously turns two audience members into puppets, and many other nice ideas make "Hetz mich nicht" a real highlight in the German comedy landscape. Absolutely recommendable!
Picture + Sound: The technical realization is absolutely satisfactory according to the genre. The sound is good and also captures the live atmosphere of the show well, the picture is largely clean and pleases with its vibrant colors.
Extras: The double DVD has some nice extras to offer. Starting things off on Disc 1 is a whimsical and entertaining audio commentary that Grammel recorded along with his head writer Stefan Ellerhorst. Although the actual program is more entertaining than the commentary, the relaxed atmosphere, the many insights into the creation of the program and the show make this extra quite recommendable.
Not an extra in the actual sense, but still very much worth seeing is the beautiful menu of the first DVD, through which turtle Josie and Frederic Freiherr von Furchensumpf lead. So it's worth taking your time with the selection and just letting the menu run through (about 7 mins long).
Continue on the second disc. Here the bonus material starts with a look at how Sascha Grammel prepares the audience for the recording of his live show. Here we see why the likeable comedian can quickly win over the audience. The next extra shows what happens when the show can't start because of dirt on the set and Grammel has to bridge the time with not really successful jokes. Two cut but very amusing moments from the program follow - definitely worth watching. This also applies to the nice interviews with Josie and co, some mishaps during the show and a wordless performance by Grammel, which also fell victim to the scissors.
Finally, there is a promotional trailer for the show that is declared as a short film, as well as a final thank you note from Sascha Grammel. All in all, a very funny, watchable and likeable bonus package.
Conclusion: "Hetz mich nicht" is not only a refreshing chapter in the history of ventriloquism, but in the German comedy scene in general. The double DVD pleases with a funny menu and amusing extras. A must for all who appreciate good comedy.
Total length (program + extras): approx. 145 min.
FSK: from 0
Number of discs: 2
Languages: German (Dolby Digital 2.0 + DTS 5.1)
Subtitles: None
Image Format: 16:9
Extras: Audio commentary, short film, breakdowns, rehearsals, interviews, acknowledgements, etc.m.
Regional Code: 2
Label: Comydor (Universal Music GmbH)
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