In explaining the concert tour that is the subject of the documentary Conan O’Brien Can’t Stop, the comic muses, “Really, my main goal for this is to have fun.” Behind the camera, director Rodman Flender asks, “Do you think you could have fun without an audience in front of you?” O’Brien doesn’t answer. He doesn’t have to. A television host since the early 90s, O’Brien is a born performer; it’s just what he does. When The Tonight Show was taken away from him in early 2010, he went into his own special form of withdrawal that resulted in a 32-city music-and-comedy show.
Beginning immediately after the events that resulted in the comedian being “legally prohibited from being funny on television,” the film starts with O’Brien clearly in the mourning stage; feeling the love of his fans, but furious at NBC executives for taking away the job he worked so long and hard to get. Needing to get back in front of an audience again, O’Brien, his writers and his friends begin planning a 42-show comedy tour that would take him to 32 cities across the country in a little over two months. The resulting film is as funny as you might expect, but it’s also an interesting psychological study of a man whose identity lies in his ability to entertain.
It seems Conan is quite the perfectionist. When something goes right, his team is showered with effusive praise. When it goes wrong, Conan’s body tenses, he affects a steely gaze, and he starts firing off scathing barbs, to make his displeasure clear. However, Conan is an interesting fellow. He doesn’t seem to be able to say no to any public or fan request. There are numerous examples of the comedian expressing just how tired he is before seeing fans that want to meet him and then going out to shake hands and sign autographs. Regardless, he seems to be enjoying every moment. One gets the feeling that he’s a “what-you-see-is-what-you-get” kind of guy.
In terms of the humor, what’s offered on Can’t Stop tends to be quite a bit darker than what O’Brien offers on television. Conan is never afraid to make fun of his own foibles, situation, persona or appearance. One could say that he addresses the elephant in the room, and tries to have as much fun with it as possible.
The thing that makes Can’t Stop particularly notable is the fact that director Rodman Flender doesn’t shy away from showing the star when he’s not at his best. There are times when Conan can’t help but let his anger out. The audience is given a truly well rounded look at the television host. The documentary reveals nothing terrible about Conan, but it does reveal his human side, foibles and all, which is refreshing to see.
While the pacing is a bit choppy, Conan O’Brien Can’t Stop is a truly fantastic documentary. The film provides a wonderful insight into one of the most interesting performers working today during his most troubled period, answering questions about his emotion state and providing lots of humor. This is a definite must-see for all Conan O’Brien fans.
Presented in the 1.78:1 aspect ratio, this 1080p transfer isn’t reference quality material. This is a documentary and I’m not sure what type of equipment was used to shoot it, but I think it’s safe to assume it wasn’t high grade. Graininess from underlit scenes and wash-outs for overlit ones are par for the course. Bleeding colors are present throughout. But, this is a concert movie, so all this is to be expected.
The 5.1 English DTS-HD Master Audio track is a solid one; the audio is occasionally recorded in less-than-ideal circumstances, but audibility is, for the most part, on point. Most of the action is in the front channels, though the rears are well engaged in performance sequences—the musical numbers, in particular, are full and robust.
English SDH and Spanish subtitles are also included.
The following special features are included:
- Commentary with Director Rodman Flender, Conan O’Brien, Andy Richter, Mike Sweeney, and Sona Movsesian – This is a very amusing track. The participants all joke around together throughout while still throwing in some bits of useful information. O’Brien offers more candid and honest observations about himself and the whole shooting process, further elaborating on his passive aggressive behavior, potential addiction to performing, his attempts to occasionally hide from the director, and his compulsive habit of punching one of his writers.
- Additional Scenes (HD, 42 min) – Ten additional scenes are included here and are viewable together or individually. The majority of the footage is centered on more humorous interactions between O’Brien and his assistant and writing staff. Some straight footage from the actual show is also included featuring some amusing bits from the host and standup from ‘Conan’ writer Deon Cole.
- Interview with Conan O’Brien (HD, 14 min) – This is a fairly recent sit down interview O’Brien conducted for AT&T U-Verse. The comedian offers more insights into the impetus for the tour and more personal reflections on that very complicated period in his life, filled with the same zany and self-deprecating sense of humor that he’s known for.
- Interview Outtakes (HD, 4 min) – This is some additional material from the previous interview that features some comical adlibbing and such.
