24x24 Wide Open with Jeff Gordon (2007)

24 x 24: WIDE OPEN WITH JEFF GORDON explores the life both on and, more importantly, off the track of one of NASCAR racing's greatest and most beloved icons. The heart and soul of this fast-paced documentary create an in-depth look behind the man by spending one 24-hr-period with Mr. Gordon, as well as a documentary-style retrospective of his career and lifestyle. Throughout this program viewers will get to know Jeff the driver, the family man, the adventurer, the entrepreneur, and the philanthropist. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Product Description

Jeff Gordon

I have always been a fan of Jeff and when this was produced I knew i was going to get it. I really enjoy this DVD and it gives the viewer an inside look on the driver of the #24 dupont chevy. With over 80 wins he is without a doubt one of the best in history. This is a must have for any Jeff Gordon fan July 9, 2008

Nascar DVD

I am very pleased with purchase. Very fast shipping and in excellent condition. I highly reccomend this seller to all. June 5, 2008

Oh, yeah, Go Jeff

Well, what more can I say??? I'm a diehard Jeff Gordon lover and enjoyed every minute of this DVD. I wish it had been longer and showed a little more of his home, cars, lifestyle. But I enjoyed watching him go through his days of running his business. The best thing about this DVD is watching Jeff climb into that #24....he is the best. November 29, 2007

Jeff Gordon

I ordered 2 they arrived when I was told they would , seller very informative , product arrived in great shape thank you !! October 21, 2007

A few flat tires along the way keep this from getting a top five finish.

Even though Jeff Gordon is my favorite driver, I found this to be too overindulgent. Oh, he's such a great guy, so wonderful...blah, blah, blah. Enough already. I get it. He's great. Now get lost, and follow Jeff around like you're supposed to! How much filler did they need anyway? How many times did they have to have such celebs as Wayne Gretzky, Troy Aikman, Jay Leno, Pat Riley, Mario Andretti, Tony Hawk and Charles Barkley talk to the camera about how fantastic Jeff is? Only Kelly Ripa's brief comments didn't seem to be overkill. Once with each of these people would be enough, instead we're forced to hear from them several times throughout this 80 minute, widescreen, feature (2 minutes are end credits). Plus why is it in mono (LPCM)? Only the ugly menu screens are in stereo. Also, so many of the outdoor scenes are badly lit and look like they were filmed in a cave--talk about low budget.

There's not much narration in this Dvd. It's mostly just Jeff and others talking, which is fine. The announcer sounds like the guy that did the "NASCAR Beyond the Wheel" shows on the Speed channel. In addition, Patrick Dempsey ("Grey's Anatomy") does a credible job of asking Jeff the typical softball questions that Larry King might ask, and we learn that Jeff likes to watch "The Price is Right". Throughout the feature, we even get to hear from Jeff's new wife, Ingrid, as well as his teammate, Jimmie Johnson and some of Jeff's crew chiefs.

Some of the things I enjoyed from the main feature, that elevated it to 3 stars, instead of just 2 or 2.5 stars were the following: the brief clip from the NASCAR Awards Banquet Dinner, where Jeff toasts Dale Earnhardt Sr. with a glass of milk; some funny clips from his appearances on "Saturday Night Live" and some footage from "Live with Regis and Kelly" (where he's co-hosting with Kelly). In addition, I liked some of the fan interviews. One guy jokingly thought that Jeff wasn't redneck enough because he "annunciated" his words too well. As well, the husband (a Dale Earnhardt Jr. fan) of one married couple, (whose wife is a Jeff Gordon fan), would intentionally fly the Gordon 24 car flag, upside down, below his right-side up, Earnhardt Jr. one. His wife points it out and the husband admits to her that it's never done by accident.

Following Jeff Gordon around turned out to be a mostly dull affair. He went fishing, cage-diving with sharks (unfortunately nobody was eaten alive), did a photo shoot, signed stuff for fans and visited his newly built, Jeff Gordon's Children's Hospital with his wife. That part was actually quite touching.

Yes, there was some actual racing footage in this feature, but it was all too brief to be of much value. Still, it was better than nothing and at least there was also some of Jeff's childhood racing footage included as well.


DVD SPECIAL FEATURES (19.5 minutes-all in widescreen):

Three Deleted scenes (15 min.): Featuring two meet-and-greets, and a look at his new Nicorette (green) car.


Outtakes (4.5 min.): Virtually useless, except for Kelly Ripa's funny answers to the following questions:

1) Who would she save if a boat containing Jeff Gordon and her agent capsized ?

2) Where will Jeff Gordon be in 5-10 years?

So, if you're a Jeff Gordon fan like myself, it's worth a rental. If you can't find it for rent, it's cheap enough to buy anyway. If you're curious about Kelly's Ripa's answers to the above questions, then I'll list them BACKWARDS (so as not to spoil them for buyers), below.


ANSWERS (Don't read them if you're going to buy this):

1) .yllaicnanif fo erac nekat llew eb nac sdik reh taht os ,krow reh gnitteg rof elbisnopser s'eh esuaceb ,tnega
reH

2).yenom sih fo flah yojne nac ehs os ,reh yb decrovid neht dna deirraM

Yes, the above answers are in english, just read them backwards, starting from the far right, at the end. October 15, 2007

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