The town of Blaine, Missouri, about to celebrate its 150th anniversary, enlists local theater director Corky St. Clair to produce a musical history of the town. The result is "Red, White, and Blaine", and New York producer Mort Guffman will be making a special visit to take in the show, giving the somewhat shallow local talent pool some hopeful dreams of making it all the way to Broadway.

Christopher Guest helped pioneer the mockumentary genre as one of the co-writers and stars of Rob Reiner's classic "This is Spinal Tap", about a heavy metal band oblivious to their own incompetence. He takes the reins in "Waiting for Guffman" as director and co-writer (with Eugene Levy), and also stars as Corky St. Clair. He even enlisted his old band mates from "Spinal Tap", Michael Mckean and Harry Shearer, to help write the songs for this film. "Waiting for Guffman" follows the process of developing "Red, White, and Blaine" - from the town council's recruiting of Corky, to the auditions, writing the songs, rehearsals, and finally opening night. As the performance (and Guffman's visit) approaches, one thing after another complicates the proceedings - such as Corky quitting the production when the town council won't approve his $100,000 budget request, or the loss of one of the main leads. As true professionals, though (yeah, right), the show must go on - and go on it does, for better or worse. The play itself is something to see - the earnestness with which they incorporate the town's history is hilarious. Blaine being the stool-making capital of the world inspires the song-and-dance number "Stool Boom", for example. The true highlight of the film, though, is the characters themselves. Fred Willard and Catherine O'Hara are a husband-and-wife team with a travel agency (although they don't travel themselves), and some experience in community theater. Eugene Levy is a dentist who seems to think he has discovered his true calling as an entertainer. Parker Posey is the young girl who, if she doesn't make it in theater, can always go back to the Dairy Queen. Guest himself is perfect as Corky St. Clair, the effeminate director who lives for the theater and whose wife always happens to be "out of town". Even the minor characters have some hilarious moments, such as Jerry Turman (who auditions with a scene from "Raging Bull"), Paul Dooley (as a UFO witness who is still suffering from his experience being "probed"), and Michael Hitchcock (as a town councilman who dreams of being in the show, but had to take inventory at the store on the day of the auditions). Christopher Guest is quickly becoming the leader of the "Mockumentary Genre" and fans of "This is Spinal Tap" and "Best in Show" will surely appreciate this solid entry into the field.

Picture: The anamorphic widescreen transfer is excellent, with solid colors and crisp, sharp detail. I didn't notice any dirt or grain at all, and was surprised at how clean and clear the image looked. I kind of assumed that "Waiting for Guffman" was made on a modest budget, and didn't expect it to look this good, but frankly, it looks great. Sound: The Dolby Digital 2.0 soundtrack is fairly straightforward, with most of the sound centered in the front speakers as would be expected with this type of movie. Dialogue is clear and strong, and easily understood. The sound opens up a bit with the music during the final act, the climactic performance of "Red, White, and Blaine".

The extras start with a "Cast and Crew" page, which is just a list of the main credits. Then there is a commentary track with Christopher Guest and Eugene Levy. Next we have 14 additional scenes, which are presented with or without commentary by Christopher Guest. The "Behind the Scenes" is a skimpy 3 page text feature, and finishing out the extras is the theatrical trailer (which is pretty funny).

If Christopher Guest really hit his stride with last year's highly successful "Best in Show", then the lesser-known "Waiting for Guffman" is the foundation that it was built upon. Both were directed by Guest, co-written with Eugene Levy, and utilize 12 common actors, including 5 of the principals from both films. He and his troupe are masters of improvising characters and situations that are both realistic and hilarious at the same time, and I hope he continues to give us a new mockumentary every few years. "Waiting for Guffman" is an excellent DVD in picture and sound quality, as well as containing a solid selection of extra features, and is wholeheartedly recommended.