If I should die of smallpox, put my remains in the Snuff-Box. (Snuff Box (DVD))

Member Name: Mutalisk

Product:	Snuff Box (DVD)
Date:	20/09/09 (64 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Good rappor, well-written, very funny in places, some hilarious quotes and quips.

Disadvantages: A ltitle hit-and-miss, music is quite poor.

Snuff Box was a 2006 comedy sketch show starring Matt Berry and Rich Fulcher, two names you might recognize from The Mighty Boosh, The IT Crowd or Garth Marenghi's Darkplace. Both actors, using their real names throughout, play the role of professional hangmen. Although sticking vaguely to plotlines, the show often goes off onto tangential sketches, all of which are entirely surreal and confusing.

The show only ran for one series, on BBC3 only, with 6 half-hour episodes and this DVD does not come with any extras. Picture quality is as expected.

Berry and Fulcher's unique style of comedy relies heavily on non-sequitors, surrealism and incredibly explicit outbursts of profanity in situations that don't call for it. Also, a few themes recurr throughout the series, such as Matt losing his rag and smashing things up when a potential lady-friend of his announces that she has a boyfriend, or Matt and Rich representing their respective countries in sporting events, and Rich losing badly. A lot of the comedic emphasis in on Matt and Rich's rappor, Matt a charismatic lothario, and Rich a hapless moron. This device almost approaches "Buddy comedy" but is done in such a unique and original way that it works really well, although is sometimes a little hit-and-miss.

As well as being a decent comedy show, if a little obscure and certainly an acquired taste, Snuff Box serves as a vehicle for Matt Berry's fairly awful electronic pop music. He writes all of the music throughout, and each episode culminates in a few characters singing a different version of the show's theme song, often quite profane and inappropriate.

All in all its indisputibly an acquired taste. Fans of Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps proably won't like this, and its aimed more at the same massive cult following as Garth Marenghi, Dean Lerner, The Mighty Boosh, The IT Crowd and Black Books.

Overall its worth paying the six or seven pounds on Amazon for if you're into this sort of comedy, despite the lack of DVD features, but don't expect anything mainstream. You know what you're getting into with contemporary alternative comedy.

Summary: Certainly worth a look.