I'll be honest. I almost feel bad getting behind and endorsing this DVD.

As a (halfway) decent member of society, so much of what I saw in Artie Lange's latest stand up disc should have reduced me to fits of epileptic rage, or at least compelled me to turn off my TV. Instead, I found myself laughing at obscenities of every variety, tasteless jokes directed towards midgets and perhaps the most graphic, over the top description of homoeroticism I've ever heard.

It's sad, I know. But "It's The Whiskey Talkin"' hits so far below the belt that it's funny, very funny. Lange's comic philosophy is obvious. It's all about shock value, as his comedy has been for much of his career on "Mad TV" and the "Howard Stern Show." Needless to say, anyone readily familiar with Lange's abrasive, loutish brand of humor should know what to expect, but his glass of politically incorrect rants and diatribes is clearly bottomless, just when you think he's hit as low as he can go, he somehow manages to find another rung at the bottom of the ladder.

Filmed live in Phoenix, the disc covers roughly an hour of Lange at his raw and uncensored best. What's interesting is how well regarded and loved he is by his fans in spite of his glaring moral depravity. But watching "It's The Whiskey Talkin'," you realize that underneath it all there is something likeable and oddly appealing about him. Granted, many of his anecdotes (namely one involving drugs and a pair of jeans) are enough to warrant putting the guy behind bars rather than on stage, but there's a strange creepy uncle/ black sheep brother/ guy you used to slam beers with in high school quality to Lange's style and presentation that makes you want to pull for him.

And therein lays the key to Lange's success. He's not a saint, not by a long shot, but he has an unmistakable way of establishing common ground with his fans. One of the high points of the DVD comes when Lange, speaking self deprecatingly of his meager film career, remarks "when people tell me they saw 'Dirty Work' I feel like I owe'em 10 bucks." When a fan stands up holding a copy of the film on DVD, Lange calls him to the front of the stage, autographs the copy, and pays the man his promised $10. "You remember what a good guy Artie Lange is," he quips, "because if you run into Ben Affleck he's not gonna give you you're money back for 'Gigli.' He's one of them, and regardless of what his most aggressive and dissenting of critics might say about him, the people will always have Artie's back, so they might as well just get used to having him around.

Also worth a look are the bonus features accompanying the stand up performance. "Backstage Pass," a behind the scenes special following Lange before, during and after a performance in his native New Jersey, does a nice job of further touching upon the comic's streetwise style of humor and the camaraderie between his fans and him. "Game Day," a short film, is also worth a look, highlighting Lange's comedy in a more structured, scripted format.

Watching "It's The Whiskey Talkin'" is a lot like watching your drunken buddy fall down the stairs. It's shocking and maybe a bit worrisome, but you're initial gut reaction is to just laugh your ass off.

Grade: B

Special Features: B

This article appeared in The Marquette Tribune on April 14 2005.