Aziz Ansari: Buried Alive

Synopsis

Topics during the set include Ansari's views on the institution of marriage, parenting and love. The set has the theme of a wedding, with Ansari wearing a formal suit with a white boutonnière. Ansari said Buried Alive was much different than his first two specials, Intimate Moments for a Sensual Evening (2010) and Dangerously Delicious (2012).

"This special is much, much different than my previous two," said Ansari. "As I hit 30, my material got very personal as I grappled with the gravity of the adult world—love, marriage, babies, and more. Do I really have to deal with all that now? Are my ding dong friends really getting married and having their own children? I couldn't imagine having a kid right now. After I type this sentence, I'm gonna drink an apple juice and watch Jurassic Park—if that's a guy that's supposed to be ready to be a father, I'm very concerned. That's what Buried Alive is about."

Production

The film was taped during Ansari's 2013 Buried Alive comedy tour across 75 cities around the world, where he performed at sold-out venues including New York's Carnegie Hall, London's Hammersmith Apollo and the Sydney Opera House.

Release

Buried Alive was Ansari's first special released to Netflix, where it debuted on November 1, 2013. It was released in all Netflix markets simultaneously, including Canada and the United Kingdom. At the time of its release, Buried Alive was the streaming service's biggest exclusive comedy special.

Reception

Buried Alive was well received by critics. Erik Adams of The A.V. Club gave it an A- and called it "a spectacularly entertaining hour-plus of stand-up, but it’s also an intriguing bit of cultural anthropology. Throughout the special, Ansari asks questions—as a character within his routines and to the members of his audience—and what he turns up is just as frequently funny as it is heartfelt and penetrating." Rolling Stone noted that it showed a more mature side of Ansari, but his material was still appealing to his younger fan base. "It feels more like social commentary rather than commentary on what it's like to be social. But old Aziz fans shouldn't fret – he still manages to slip in jokes about his younger self being molested and the notion of Xzibit raising a busload of babies."

Patrick Smith of The Daily Telegraph, who reviewed Ansari's sold-out tour stop at London's Apollo Hammersmith theatre, took notice of the comedian's outfit, writing, "Ansari's 70-minute set was none the less much like his attire: smart, sharp and slickly carried off... Buried Alive bristled with topicality and wit."

Buried Alive was nominated for Comedy Special of the Year at the 2014 American Comedy Awards. Louis C.K.'s Oh My God won the award.