UHF

Some people have the gift of being multi-talented. "Weird Al" Yankovic, unfortunately, is not one of them. Making a splash during the '80s with his amiably silly parodies of hit songs, Yankovic (judging from 1989's UHF) can neither write decent sketch material nor act. As George Newman--the human equivalent of a 15-watt light bulb--Yankovic spends most of his time winking at an audience he must believe loves him unquestionably (although $6 million at the box office doesn't exactly suggest undying loyalty). The minimal plot has clod Newman taking over a failing UHF TV station, and reviving it with incredibly dumb shows ("Wheel of Fish," "Town Talk With George," "Conan the Librarian"--cute idea, this last, but it consists of about three lines). Yankovic's idea of humor is to have a shop teacher cut off his finger on accident, or shove dog biscuits into a friend's mouth, or throw poodles out the window to see if they'll fly. It's cruel, it's stupid, and--fortunately--it signaled the end of Yankovic's film career as a leading man. But, to be honest, this puppy does have a bit of a cult following (my 19-year-old son Chris's VHS copy is worn to the nubbins), and the DVD release will certainly make those folks happy: the commentary track by Yankovic (for which he clearly prepared), director Jay Levey, and actors Michael Richards, Emo Philips and Victoria Jackson, is much funnier than the film itself, and the deleted scenes reel (hosted by Yankovic--"Do you know why these scenes were deleted? Because they suck!") holds a certain rubbernecking-car-wreck fascination. Also included are a behind-the-scenes featurette on the "Wheel of Fish" sketch, production stills and the "UHF" music video. Optional. (R. Pitman)[Blu-ray Review—Nov. 4, 2014—Shout! Factory, 97 min., PG-13, $22.98—Making its Blu-ray debut, 1989's UHF features a great transfer and a stereo soundtrack, Extras include audio commentary by star “Weird Al” Yankovic and director Jay Levey, the “Wonderful World of Weird Al” retrospective panel from San Diego Comic-Con 2014 (51 min.), deleted scenes (20 min.), the music video for “UHF” (5 min.), a behind-the-scenes featurette (4 min.), production stills, a poster gallery, promo materials, Easter eggs, and trailers. Bottom line: “Weird Al” fans will appreciate this Blu-ray debut.]