Product Details

• Actors: Larry David, Cheryl Hines, Jeff Garlin, Craig Anton, Regan Burns
• Directors: Andy Ackerman, Bryan Gordon, David Steinberg, Larry Charles, Robert B. Weide
• Writers: Larry David
• Producers: Jeff Garlin, Gavin Polone
• Format: Box set, Closed-captioned, Color, NTSC
• Language: English, Spanish
• Rated: NR (Not Rated)
• Number of tapes: 3
• Studio: Hbo Home Video
• VHS Release Date: January 13, 2004
• Run Time: 390 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (235 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B0000E5NQ1
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #274,011 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Like its fellow HBO series Sex and the City, this half-hour comedy broke some TV rules and went from critics' darling to an award-winning series in three years. Curb Your Enthusiasm is the brainchild of star-creator Larry David who co-created Seinfeld and was the basis for the easily rattled George Costanza (who was played by Jason Alexander). Like George, David has a tendency to speak too much, blow things out of proportion, and, most often, fail in the end (and often liking it that way). David's new show is also like its predecessor: it's about "nothing" except following the day-to-day ramblings of a sometime writer and comic (this time in L.A.). Eternal questions stemming from universal daily dilemmas are honed to perfect comedic absurdity. A notable exception is the show is only scripted by plot; much of the action is improvised. The first season starts with a one-hour mockumentary following David's return to stand-up for the first time in years; the other 10 episodes follow a more traditional sit-com setup.

David plays "himself" (as does his friend, Richard Lewis) although his manager and wife are played by comedians Jeff Garlin and Cheryl Hines. Although this first season is a comedic gem, one can't take more than an episode or two at a time--it's acidic, biting comedy. The episodes are often built like a house of cards, which the irritable David will surely collapse by the end. Like another caustic TV character, Dabney Colman's Buffalo Bill (1983-84), Larry David is not for everybody. --Doug Thomas

Stills from Curb Your Enthusiasm- The Complete First Season (Click for larger image)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

40 of 40 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars It really grew on me., March 10, 2006

By 

K. Bell "professional student" (Vancouver, WA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Curb Your Enthusiasm: The Complete First Season (DVD)

At first I was like "um...no," but then I continued watching because I rented the disks from Netflix and then I ended up laughing my ass off. This is a weird comedy show. The timing is really strange, because it is improvised apparently. Now I can't get enough of the show. Larry David is just so...inappropriate sometimes it makes you die laughing. And the cast is just great too. They all play it off like pros. I have ordered the series now and can't wait to watch them all again. One episode was so funny I had to watch it like four times in a row. Maybe that says something strange about my creepy life that I'm watching Larry David so much, but c'est la vie! My advice is to watch the entire first season and see if it doesn't sink into your skin. Larry David's humor is not for everyone, but if you are smart and kind of dorky sometimes with a wicked sense of humor you should like this.

21 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars If you thought Seinfeld was funny... you are in for a treat!, April 26, 2006

By 

READ&LISTEN "SKI BUM" (ASPEN, CO) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Curb Your Enthusiasm: The Complete First Season (DVD)

I just finished watching the season finale of the fourth season and I must say I am going to miss this show. In the past few months I have watched all four seasons and this is the ONLY television show that almost every time leaves me with a huge laugh at the end. This show is intelligent and so brilliantly simple and complex at the same time. Do yourself a favor, WATCH this show, comprised of people who are at the top of their craft!

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Larry David's Other Show, December 18, 2005

By 

Dave_42 "Dave_42" (Australia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Curb Your Enthusiasm: The Complete First Season (DVD)

"Curb Your Enthusiasm" is a very funny show from Larry David, the co-creator and executive producer of "Seinfeld", as well as the person behind the character George. In this case, Larry himself is the central character, with the two main supporting characters Jeff Garlin (as Jeff Greene, Larry's agent), and Cheryl Hines (as Cheryl David, Larry's wife). There are certainly similarities between "Seinfeld" and "Curb Your Enthusiasm". Jerry Seinfeld played himself in the first series, while Larry David plays himself in this series. Also, both shows tend to be about the minutia of life, and that is where they get their humor.

There are differences as well; "Seinfeld" was more of an ensemble show, while this show has a single character focus. "Seinfeld" was also a network program, while "Curb Your Enthusiasm" is from HBO, and so there are virtually no restrictions as there were with the prior series. "Seinfeld" was scripted, while in "Curb Your Enthusiasm" the dialogue is improvised.

There are only ten episodes in this season of "Curb Your Enthusiasm", and yet despite this several of the episodes seem to follow a formula. In this formula, Larry gets into an argument with a character early in the episode, only to have it come back and cause a problem for him later on. They are still very funny to watch, but it does take away a bit from the overall enjoyment. My favorite episodes from this season would be "The Bracelet", "Beloved Aunt", and "The Group".

There are a few additional features in this two disk DVD set. On Disk 1, there is an audio commentary with Larry David, Jeff Garlin, Cheryl Hines, and the director Robert B. Weide for the first episode. Disk 2 has the original 1 hour HBO special from which the show came, and there is a 30 minute interview of Larry David by Bob Costas. If you like Seinfeld, then you will probably enjoy this series as well, although you should be aware that there are differences. The show gets a lot of humor from arguments, and the language is coarser.