The Aristocrats
Looking to laugh this summer? Do you like scatological humor? How about incest? Bestiality? Would a few racial and religious jokes keep you chuckling? If you said yes to every question, then The Aristocrats is for you. This documentary was conceived by comedians Penn Jillette and Paul Provenza, who went out to many of the top comedians around and asked them to give their rendition of The Aristocrats, an old Vaudeville joke that allows for and encourages extreme improvisation.
I won’t ruin any of it, talking about this film is like giving away the punch line to a joke while someone is onstage telling it. I will say that if you are in any way squeamish about jokes involving bodily fluids or sex with your immediate family and pets, then you want no part of this film.
Provenza does an average job of piecing together all of the different comedians’ interviews. There were times when the pacing felt a bit odd, but I’m sure getting everything to fit right was a nightmare, so I’m not really bothered by it. Nor was I bothered by any of the jokes, but that’s because I have no soul.
And there were plenty of jokes to laugh at. While building up the nerve to tell their version of the joke, each comedian also gives some background on how/when they first heard The Aristocrats and what it means to other comedians. I was especially floored by Sarah Silverman and Bob Saget. The South Park portion was pretty good as well.
Also worthy of mentioning is that AMC decided to ban this film from its theaters because they were afraid too many people would be offended. I love when people boycott films; it only ends up helping the ticket sales of the movie. When will people learn? Though I will say there were a few walkouts and theatre management where I saw the film confirmed loads of people are leaving prematurely. Yet another good reason to see this film.
An average documentary artistically but worth much more by entertainment standards, I’m going to give this one a 3 out of 5 and use the 6 pack of Old Style for a drinking game. I’ll take a sip every time someone mentions sex with their son or daughter. That should last the 90 minutes. I think.
P.S. Stick around for the credits, there’s a good joke about a Catholic priest. No, I’m not kidding. Wait, where are you going? Come back. Aw.
I won’t ruin any of it, talking about this film is like giving away the punch line to a joke while someone is onstage telling it. I will say that if you are in any way squeamish about jokes involving bodily fluids or sex with your immediate family and pets, then you want no part of this film.
Provenza does an average job of piecing together all of the different comedians’ interviews. There were times when the pacing felt a bit odd, but I’m sure getting everything to fit right was a nightmare, so I’m not really bothered by it. Nor was I bothered by any of the jokes, but that’s because I have no soul.
And there were plenty of jokes to laugh at. While building up the nerve to tell their version of the joke, each comedian also gives some background on how/when they first heard The Aristocrats and what it means to other comedians. I was especially floored by Sarah Silverman and Bob Saget. The South Park portion was pretty good as well.
Also worthy of mentioning is that AMC decided to ban this film from its theaters because they were afraid too many people would be offended. I love when people boycott films; it only ends up helping the ticket sales of the movie. When will people learn? Though I will say there were a few walkouts and theatre management where I saw the film confirmed loads of people are leaving prematurely. Yet another good reason to see this film.
An average documentary artistically but worth much more by entertainment standards, I’m going to give this one a 3 out of 5 and use the 6 pack of Old Style for a drinking game. I’ll take a sip every time someone mentions sex with their son or daughter. That should last the 90 minutes. I think.
P.S. Stick around for the credits, there’s a good joke about a Catholic priest. No, I’m not kidding. Wait, where are you going? Come back. Aw.
posted by Upgrayedd at 8/15/2005 05:45:00 AM
1 Comments:
I can't remember sitting down to watch a movie and not finishing it. But I disliked this movie so much that I could not finish it. This is the one movie I have a visceral hatred for. Don't get me wrong, I was not offended by the joke or any of the details of its telling. But it was a five minute joke stretched into movie length format. And since it was the same joke being told over and over again it was just boring.
The point of the joke is to shock those listening with its disturbing vulgarity. That's cool. But when every comic uses the same details the vulgarity is no longer shocking. I think the only person who got into intricate, unique, and gory detail which made his telling stand out from all the others was George Carlin. Bravo.
I would give this film a bag of hammers.
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