The Apostles of Comedy is the new DVD that brings together Christian comedians in a format that fans of The Blue Collar Comedy Tour or The Original Kings of Comedy are bound to recognize. The difference? The premise here is that comedy doesn’t need to be crude or profane in order to be funny.

The apostles in this case—and there are four of them—include Jeff Allen, Brad Stine, Anthony Griffith and Ron Pearson. Between them they cover a good mix of comedic styles.

Allen is the storyteller, with an emphasis on relationship humor. Stine is a cleaned-up version of Denis Leary; in his rage-fueled ranting he even sounds like Leary at times. Griffith is the sole African-American comedian in the bunch and has a laid back comedy style with an emphasis on stories about his childhood. And last but not least, Ron Pearson is a bouncing bundle of energy whose comedy is all over the map.

Apostles of Comedy does some things well, but also makes a few interesting choices that I think undermine the effort. The format in which the comedians are presented is puzzling. Rather than feature them sequentially performing their entire set, their shows have been edited so we cut back and forth between comics. We never get more than a joke or two from one performer before we’re off to the next. It’s a bit jarring and really interrupts the flow of the entire show.

The way the performances were filmed also caused issues for me. Most stand-up or concert films include the audience in the performance, lending an air of authenticity to the film and helping give the viewer a sense that they are participating in a live event. That’s completely missing here. We’re only barely aware that there even is an audience, and the laughter and applause sound canned. This doesn’t feel like a live show at all, but a staged event just for the cameras.

On the plus side, one thing I did like was the choice to interweave documentary footage of the comedians talking about themselves and their comedy off stage. They each have their own touching and humorous stories and the approach does serve to let you know them better as human beings and understand what drives their individual performances.

Of course, this is a DVD of a comedy tour, so the really important measure is how funny these guys actually are.  Like any comedy performance, some jokes occasionally fall flat—but all four comedians have plenty of laugh-out-loud moments. Still, the way the film is edited interferes with the timing and flow to the detriment of the humor at times.

My biggest issue really has nothing to do with the performances at all, but rather with the idea that the problem that needs to be solved in comedy is “dirty words.” I’ve long scratched my head at the idea that the words are offensive, instead of the attitudes and behaviors behind them. 

The performances here are “clean” in one sense—but are still peppered with racial and cultural stereotypes, at times mocking with arrogant posturing. I guess it’s supposed to be okay for “Christian comedy,” though, as long we’re making fun of the secular world or someone else’s denomination.

I’m sure that Apostles of Comedy will find its audience, but it’s a little too much “preaching to the choir” for my taste. The individual comedians are talented and funny in their own right and their background stories add a layer of human interest. Unfortunately, I don’t think the humor here is going to challenge a Christian audience to re-evaluate their stereotypes or behaviors, and probably isn’t going to attract much of a non-Christian audience because of the way the DVD is being marketed.

The Apostles of Comedy is rated PG for “some mild thematic elements.” The materially really is pretty clean; I doubt most people will find anything offensive with the performances or the comedy they contain.

Courtesy of a national publicist, Michael viewed a promotional screener of The Apostles of Comedy.