Who is that Canadian guy?
by Michele Dawson
the Carillon

Meet Glen Foster; he is an average Canadian male. Although he is not especially good looking, he craves attention from the masses. Consequently, he has found the perfect career; he is a stand up comedian. Foster believes that, although audiences will find his shows funny, the short attention span that is characteristic of all comedy audiences will inhibit their ability to remember his name. But, if you are a member of the short attention spanned audience, have no fear, Foster has adopted a moniker that is easily encompassed by the confines of your attention span. Foster is far better known to the masses as “That Canadian Guy.”

Shot at the Empire is Foster’s debut concert DVD. It is unusual because it was made, produced, and distributed without aid from network or production affiliates; it is a completely independent endeavor. In fact, according to Bullseye Records, “This DVD is the first independently produced and distributed concert DVD by a Canadian comedian in Canada.”

I admit it; I am a member of the audience majority with a short attention span. Consequently, I found it increasingly difficult to remain focused on the 112 minutes of material presented on this DVD. I think that this reason is probably why televised comedy shows rarely surpass the half hour mark. Let’s face it, listening to an egotistical attention craver exploit every angle for the sake of a laugh for a half hour is aggravating enough; drag it on for mare than double that time encroaches on unbearable.

Foster obviously loves to make people laugh. He does not care if they are laughing at the fact that he is overweight, or the fact that statistics have said Canadians cannot do math, or of course the many countless jokes that can be made about our friendly next door neighbours, the Americans. Half of Foster’s material is very witty and funny. He has a humourous take on political situations, for example the little problem of mad cow disease, and, of course, the tragedy of September 11. He takes situations that have caused many people grief and hardship, and makes us laugh at them, which, although it may be in bad taste, is something that needs to be done sometimes to lighten somber moods. However, some of his material is quite redundant. The audience does not need an extended bit that revolves around his weight; we can all see him, we do not need his size repeatedly explained, because honestly, who cares?

This DVD offered some laughs, but failed to capture my full and undivided interest. Although it is important to support Canadian talent, I do not really know why anybody would actually want to go out and buy this DVD. Unless you are a die-hard fun of “That Canadian Guy’s” work on the TV, or live comedy circuits, this is kind of a wasteful purchase. However, you might want to attempt to rent it, there are a few funny moments, there's just not enough to make the entire DVD worthwhile.