Bill Hicks: Revelations (1993 TV Special) User Reviews

Pretty good

[genitalwartz · 8/10 · 4 September 2019]

Let me start by saying I think Bill Hicks is overrated. His narcissism is funnier than any joke he's ever had. His shows were a bizarre mutually parasitic circle jerk. Bill could feel like the messianic figure he saw himself as by spreading "the truth", and the audience got to feel superior to the rest of society because they "got" Bill's material. (What other choice did they have? Bill's set revolved around people not agreeing with him as being braindead) The problem with all of this is that Bill Hicks spoke on elementary social critiques. Bill and the rest of his cult show their hand as soon as they tell you that you don't "get" him (presumably because of your low IQ). If you think anything Bill Hicks talks about is deep or enlightening then I can only assume that you never thought about this stuff on your own. Nothing about his material is hard to grasp, so if you're telling me you have to be intelligent to get it, then you're just not all that smart yourself.

The special is good. The editing is well done and Hicks brings up good points for those who haven't thought about them before. I never found myself laughing hysterically, but it's definitely funny at points. The cut scenes were campy but a nice touch, and his closing bit where he talks about life being a ride was really great. That being said, there is nothing here to "get" or go over your head. If you think you're intelligent because you understand Bill Hicks, I have bad news for you.

i was at that meeting down at the docks

[buyjesus · 9/10 · 24 September 2002]

not exactly bill in peak form, but nonetheless a relic from the life a brilliant, sincere, intellectual mastermind who weaved tapestries of social commentary that provoked, intrigued, or just plain made you stand at attention. it is all just a ride and with Hicks as conductor, you're sure to understand it all a little better. you get a little bit of everything here on revelations. not all the best material is here, but like her always said "i'm not a f'n jukebox, okay?" To hear all the gems, pick up his 4 essential albums on rykodisc. you must just be inspired to squeegee open your third eye and see beyond the wool thats been draped down over you.

"Suck Satan's c***!" crazy, amazingly funny stand-up

[Quinoa1984 · 9/10 · 2 November 2008]

How did it take me so long to come to Bill Hicks? I'd heard about him for years, but only until a DVD was released with a few of his specials, and suddenly his lucid, spot-on sarcastic observations grew on me almost immediately. He goes from JFK to Terminator 2 stunts done by cripples to 'happy LSD trips' to fundamentalists running the country, and there's rarely a bit where one doesn't just let out a whole lot of laughs. His delivery is a big part of it; he sometimes is in on the joke so much so that he has no other way than to make a goofy face after saying something that we know is ridiculous about something. He also shows himself to be totally, wondrously ruthless when it comes to any lack of intelligence in a group of people- or just individuals, can't hurt- and in entire ways of living, like people in advertising ("No joke, just kill yourselves.") But he's also just got a quick tongue, varying his voice and mannerisms, to fit the joke at the unexpected places. Even a bit that might run a little long, like his Goat-boy impersonation, has sparks of genius that are far greater than middling comics best stuff.

I'm not entirely sure yet if he was a total genius or one of the 5 best comics ever like some have purported him to be. But on the evidence of Revelations and Relentless (and, even more-so, his half-hour One Night Stand appearance on HBO in 1990), he was a genuine talent, able to tackle all the big topics of the day and just in general, which makes the bulk of it last years on.

Outspoken genius disguised as a comedian.

[dankeene549 · 10/10 · 5 April 2004]

"Revelations" was my first Bill Hicks experience but unfortunately, one of his last performances. After viewing this video, Bill Hicks immediately became my favorite stand-up comedian. Probably because I share most of his views which were brilliantly expresses with his brutally hilarious humor. At times he gets a feverish intensity beyond typical humor and really makes you think about what he says whether you like it or not. What he said was more that just comedy club material, it had a meaning behind it. Maybe that's why, since his untimely death (cancer), he has been referenced and quoted by such people as the band Tool (on their 1996 "Aenima" album) and Author David Icke (in quite a few of his books). Half way through I started to wonder if this guy had any faith in humanity, but by the end his sincere closing remarks just might restore YOUR OWN faith in humanity.

Gone too soon.

[unleashed52 · 6 December 2004]

I watched all of the specials attached to Bill's Dec. 2004 DVD release, and I have to say, to see them in chronological order showed me one thing. Bill Hicks was a guy who needed focus, and as time went on, it was developing. The first 10 minutes of Revelations is funnier than his HBO half hour and Relentless combined. Not that those two weren't funny, but Revelations was focused, and he just kept pounding the audience with jokes. In his earlier days he tended to ramble, not knowing when to end a joke. As a comic, I can tell you that this is a hard thing to learn, and Bill was really getting there in Revelations. Had he survived cancer, we'd see him as a polished and brilliant comic today. Denis Leary may only be a footnote in comedy had Hicks lived on.

The Greatest Comedian on his Greatest Video (period)

[Goatboy-8 · 10/10 · 27 March 1999]

This video captures Bill live in London, and is the last video he made before he died. He is on fire, ranting and raving about the hypocrisy that surrounds us leaving no sacred cows. Not too many people know of Bill, he died before making it really big. If however you ever want to know what all the fuss, that some of us make, is about him check it out. I swear you will not regret it.

Unmisable American Comedic Highpoint

[Robby-17 · 10/10 · 29 February 2000]

Along with Andy Kaufman and Steven Wright, Bill Hicks is one of the most redeeming factors of American comedy. Forget about your John Belushi's or Tim Allen's or Robin Williams, Hicks was the real deal and angry, sensitive, rip-roaringly funny, acerbic comedic talent of epic proportions. Hicks was no-holds barred comedy, trampling upon his audience with a barage of put-downs and come-back lines. Where as most comedians stop at the punchline, Hicks went that one step further and punched the punchline. A man full of contradictions: loved his mum and pap, but ruthlessly satirised them in his stand-ups; was full of venom and bile on stage, but was achingly sensitive and caring off; In short Hicks was a maestro.

Revel in an all-out comedic assault and maybe you might get on the space ships too.

Genius

[hadayarim · 10/10 · 13 March 2004]

Bill Hicks, the late prophet. As a stand up comic he may not supply sitcom-style laughs every twelve seconds, but his act is the intellectual equivalent of reading twelve books. Bill Hicks opens our eyes and minds to the hypocrisy and ludicrousness of the world around us, when he presents some hard facts about alcohol versus drugs, the mind blowing statistics of alcohol induced death as opposed to death cause by virtually all other illegal drugs combined, the irony of anti marijuana campaigns followed by shameless beer commercials, the countless ways religions have strayed off of their paths to become nothing more than organized superstitions, and the list goes on. Study him, learn his words by heart, and realize how much better countries/governments/life could be if it made half the sense he does.

A slower, more thoughtful Mr Hicks.

[thenastydisease · 10/10 · 23 February 2004]

Bill Hicks is brilliant. This is no exception. Sadly since its now ten years old it is dated but if you have any brain at all you can work past it. Its especially interesting to hear Bill's comments on George Bush Snr. The same comments that are being used now about Jnr?

Well you should watch this, either you'll get it and love it or miss the point. It isn't a wild ride of none stop jokes, its a more thoughtful almost introspective comedy video. Almost sad in places, he doesn't look well.

I'm afraid I didn't pay for it, I downloaded it. Its worth buying if you can find a copy though and as soon as its on DVD i'll get me one!

The Best

[Ally-42 · 10/10 · 1 November 2000]

The best comedian ever, in his last video before his untimely death. Bill shows the world what we are now missing. How this guy is better known here in Britain than in his home country, where he did most of his work still amazes me.

Confrontational slinger

[Prismark10 · 6/10 · 7 May 2016]

This was Bill Hicks last recorded stand up routine performed at the London Dominion Theatre several months before his death in 1994.

This is not vintage Hicks and I found his earlier routines to be funnier. Still you get to see Bill Hicks angry and misanthropic as he rails against the hypocrisy of the church going conservative right establishment in the United States.

There are routines on JFK, the first Gulf War and pop stars of the time enjoying their 15 minutes of fame once they serviced Satan's tool. If he was alive I wonder what he would make of the continued success of Marky Mark Wahlberg. Hicks is spiteful towards marketing men and as always he talks about drugs.

In his latter years Hicks enjoyed touring Britain where he found a willing audience with his free thinking brand of comedy. However this show lacked focus to me and some of the material was familiar as well.

The man was a genius!!!

[jurassicmarc · 10/10 · 6 March 2005]

Bill Hicks was the best comic of his generation and when i read from todays top comics (Bill Bailley for instance) dropping his name as an influence it makes me confident that Bills legacy will continue.

The only problem i have with this performance is that i'm always hit with a tinge of sadness in his closing words.

Quite ironically Bill is one of 'the good guys'he speaks about he himself one of those who stops to tell us not to live in fear that life is just a ride and cruelly as with the other truth-sayers that came before nature robbed us of him!!!

RIP Bill

Does Not Withstand the Test of Time

[nebohr · 6/10 · 1 February 2022]

Bill Hicks: Revelations. 1993.

Unlike some of the true comedic geniuses like: Richard Pryor, George Carlin, Rodney Dangerfield, or Robin Williams the material Bill presents is drawn, predominately, from newspaper headlines; news which will be soon forgotten.

But, to be fair, this was funny when we first saw it 28 years ago. And we most heartily agree with his take on the whole "childbirth is a miracle" routine. There are, after all, 8 billion humans and the population increases by almost 240 every minute of every day.

Hateful hack has been brain dead

[scottalanwilliams-25608 · 1/10 · 24 December 2017]

Yeah he was so great telling everyone what was wrong with the world but where were the solutions on how to fix it.You know if I wanted to get someone's insight on the world it would not be from a drunk ,junkie .full of hate.If you think he is so great you should have been in Germany in the 1930's you would have loved this asshole to.You know what is strange is you have a mindless dick with both feet in the grave and he is telling other people to kill themselves maybe he wanted some company?A hatefull asswipe to the very end.In the the words of a funny character good riddance to bad rubbish!Enjoy hell.

The Ultimate Bill Hicks Performance On Film

[madcap81 · 10/10 · 27 November 2006]

Over the last two years, four different Bill Hicks shows have been released on DVD in North America. Of the four, Revelations, filmed in late 1992 at London's Dominion Theater, is the last chronologically, recorded mere months before he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, which ultimately killed him at the age of 32.

At the time he was tragically struck down, Hicks was at his creative peak. A thinking comedian, more Voltaire than Carrot Top, his act challenged his audience's beliefs about politics, religion, sex and popular culture. Add to that a decade spent working hostile audiences in bad comedy clubs, which polished his stand-up comedy skills and made him extremely comfortable in front of any sort of crowd imaginable.

After a decade spent in obscurity in his native USA, he had become a popular and respected performer in the UK, which he toured regularly after 1991. The British crowds welcomed Hicks' topical humor, and it is in this context that he recorded Revelations in November 1992.

Hicks' material, although heavily based on current events of the early 90's, has aged gracefully. Revelations was filmed only days after Bill Clinton's election and Hicks is obviously thrilled to see the end of twelve years of fundamentalist conservatism. He also goes back to the first Gulf War (the source of some of his greatest material), the LA Riots and the JFK assassination. He also attacks what he sees as case examples of the lousy state of American culture, such as American Gladiators or Basic Instinct, and the marketing machine behind them.

Despite often leaning towards misanthropy, Bill Hicks' message remained optimistic and positive. His parting words ('It's Just A Ride') remains one of his best and most oft-quoted allegories, describing as a poet would his view of the meaning of life.

Altogether, Revelations is Bill Hicks at the peak of his powers as a comic/poet/philosopher/goatboy. It is the most compelling proof on film as to why, twelve years after his untimely death, his star is still rising.

Best Comedy Show I've Seen

[jivemiles · 10/10 · 12 June 2016]

I've seen many stand-ups, and I'd have to say that none of them deserve the 10 stars I've just given Hicks. George Carlin comes close with maybe a couple of 9's in his belt, but Hicks is the BEST. The best. I was born in 1995 so when I first saw this, sure, I missed out on the topical jokes that he throws out there. Doesn't matter. You know why? Because the world has not changed. As they say in Ecclessiastes, "There is nothing new under the sun." Bill's act here in Revelations is timeless. All the jokes, all the timing, all the acting of this one person are completely on point even 23 years later. It's simply the consummation of stand-up comedy. In particular, Bill displayed in this act the single greatest example of what has been dubbed, "The Call Back", wherein the comedian brings up an old joke, usually in the end of another joke, to heighten the comedic entertainment. This happens when you think he has gotten off the "JFK Assassination bit" and has gone in an entirely different direction when, suddenly.... "BOOM... Back and to the left. Back and to the left, Back and to the left" he is back on the topic with full force.

The most honest, brilliant, and insightful act you have ever seen. I recommend this to every American. RIP Bill.

ultimate stand-up (and the essence of Bill Hicks)

[dragokin · 10/10 · 16 March 2013]

This is the ultimate Bill Hicks stage experience. Due to his early departure, his output was relatively small, but the best moments of his later carrier were here. If you're looking for a more comprehensive overview, American: The Bill Hicks Story (2009) would be the best source.

I've discovered Revelations during the second Iraq war. What made it even funnier was that all remarks about Bush Sr. could have been transferred to then current president - Bush Jr. There were other, more universal jokes, which were a constant part of Bill's material: Kennedy assassination, quitting smoking and religion.

There have been a few people who pushed stand-up comedy this far beyond making people laugh and Bill Hicks was arguably the best among them. His gigs were social and political commentary which, in turn, has closed some doors during his carrier. In Revelations we saw him in a great shape and in front of an audience which he guided masterfully.

Unfortunately, what seemed to be a breaking point of Bill's career happened shortly before he passed away.