Clarkson: The Italian Job

Jeremy Clarkson has been putting out a 'Christmas DVD' for petrolheads for over 10 years; this is his latest offering.

If you’ve watched Clarkson review fast cars in Top Gear then you’ll pretty much know what to expect because this is essentially TG without James May, Richard Hammond, the guests or any reasonably priced cars. The theme this time is that Clarkson is preparing for a 1970s saloon car race… so of course he goes to Italy to drive lots of exotic machinery and keep up his usual review/commentary whilst doing so, with the occasional sidestep into a gym or to have a look at the Ferrari factory.

Comparing this release to previous ones it does seem like they've dropped a lot of any 'comedy' segment there used to be; maybe they’re running out of ideas but I suspect more likely Clarkson realises that anything like that would work much better on Top Gear as it would have much wider audience appeal. Of course Clarkson's comments on the cars are full of his brand of laddish humour but you’ll no longer find segments on destroying speed cameras or cars shaped like garden sheds racing around a track.

The closest this release comes to the more widespread appeal of Top Gear is the finalé where Clarkson takes part in the 70s saloon car race in a modified Escort Mexico and it’s obviously pretty much done for real with the resulting outcomes and comments therefore less ‘rehearsed’ and more emotional.

However, it does seem like they’ve realise they really have to give a more for your money in this day and age so, with no change in recommended retail price from previous years we have some significant behind-the-scenes extended/video-diary type footage for all the different locations visited, a "best 5 car destructions" from previous discs and a digital copy to watch on your mobile device of choice. Though oddly given the more hardcore ‘petrol-head’ nature of this release than previously there is no "More Car Less Music" soundtrack this year.

In summary, if you're a real exotic car fan who enjoys Jeremy Clarkson's brand of humour you'll enjoy this, as you would his previous releases, but if you enjoy Top Gear and are wondering whether to branch out take a moment to think whether it's Clarkson reviewing the new Ferrari or the banter between the three leads on that show as they try to make cars turn into boats that attracts you to it... because if it’s the latter, it's probably better for you to pick up the Top Gear "Challenges" or "Best Of" DVDs, or wait until the series is back on our Sunday night screens, rather than go down this more hardcore route.

The DVD (UK - Region 0):
A decent 1.78:1 anamorphic widescreen picture and 2.0 stereo sound are your technical basics and, unlike official BBC releases, there are no subtitles.

Extras are four behind-the-scenes/making of featurettes (one for each location), the top 5 car destructions from previous releases, picture gallery and a digital copy.

A Blu-Ray is also available which contains Blu-Ray and DVD discs as well as the Digital Copy and also adds some Picture-in-Picture info for cars and circuits, POV Lap Circuits plus a 5.1 DTS-HD MA sound mix (why the DVD couldn't therefore have Dolby 5.1 I’m not sure...)... so it seems quite an effort has been made to add extra value if you do decide to spend a few more pennies.

One last piece of advice, if you are tempted by this release (and don’t get me wrong, I like fast cars and I like Clarkson so I certainly enjoyed it); for goodness sake wait until after Christmas to pick it up. Since it’s marketed as a Christmas stocking filler item I pretty much guarantee you’ll be able to pick it up for about 75% off sometime within the first month or two of the year…