The Aristocrats

Have you ever watched your favorite comedy film five times in one night? You know how after the third, maybe fourth time the jokes become stale and by the fifth time you don't show any teeth whatsoever. Imagine that happening with this movie...except you don't crack a smile past the fifteen minute mark.

Basically, it's one hundred different comedians telling the same joke, something that sounds like a good idea... if it were five different comedians telling the joke. As one could imagine, it gets repetitive fast, and if you make it past the thirty minute mark then you either have a high tolerance for pain or you might be the most easily entertained person to ever live.

The only comedian to even make a remotely funny version of the joke in this whole movie was Bob Saget, but the downfall is he comes into the film at around the fifty minute mark, meaning there will be pain brought to your skull as you sit by and watch comedian after comedian pound out this joke. Maybe I love Bob too much when I say he was the only good thing about this movie, or maybe I can be honest with myself; who knows, all I know is that this movie got old fast.

I may get a lot of flack for disliking this movie. People may say that I'm too much of a wuss and the subject of the film is too risqué for me...not true. Gross out humor is one of the best forms of humor you could ever find...if done properly; something it was not done here. Everyone here goes for the easy laugh, and it isn't working.

Honestly, worst documentary I've ever seen in my life.

"A family walk into a talent agency," is all you have to remember. The Aristocrats is a documentary(of sorts) based upon an old inside joke with comedians. It centers around a family of people who have this act, and basically is the amalgamation of disgustingly terrible things that happen during the act. When the agent asks the name of the act, you get "The Aristocrats".

So now that you've got a basis to work on, let's give you a bit of this movie, which is basically a 90 minute telling of this very joke in different forms by some of the world's top comedians that even includes the Smothers Bros. It doesn't border on disgusting, it's TERRIBLY disgusting, but that's what makes it hilarious. It's so outlandish and far out for almost every version, that bringing it back around to it's almost mundane punchline is far too perfect.

Some of my associates didn't exactly think so, and I don't blame them. This isn't the kind of movie to bring your mom to see, unless she likes jokes about people peeing on each other, incest, bestiality, and scatology. That's right, I said all of that in the same line. There's not much one can review about for the movie other than saying that it's rated 18A for a reason, and I'm surprised it actually even was received in as many theaters as it did. But that's not taking away from how funny I thought the movie was, even though I know a lot of the people that see this movie that don't already know what it's about when going into it are going to be caught completely off guard and wonder what the hell they're getting themselves into.

With every funny movie that crosses boundaries, there are standouts and letdowns. Though you're not going to believe me, I'm going to tell you that the best comedian in this movie is Gilbert Gottfried's version of the joke when he was losing the crowd at Hugh Hefner's Comedy Central Roast. Props go as well to Andy Dick, Bob Saget, Sarah Silverman, the mime, and the guy who does the card trick version, as the best versions of the joke, but there are other people in the movie that I dislike who were even making me laugh (besides Drew Carey. I cannot find that guy funny ever), which was fun. And that's what makes the documentary type feel of this movie go so well. It's fun to watch all of these comedians try their luck at the same thing.

So go spend your hard earned money on a movie that will definitely make you laugh, as long as you can find poo funny.

*** of *****

"The Aristocrats", the hilarious documentary directed by Paul Provenza, and produced by, among others, Penn Jilette, is one of the funniest things about American stand up comedy, period! Mr. Provenza was able to amass some of the best exponents of this typical form of entertainment in which the classic joke is reinterpreted by whoever happens to be on the screen at any given moment.

Granted, this film is not for everyone who might object to be a witness a gross joke being told the way it's supposed to be told. It's a credit to Mr. Provenza and everyone involved in this project not to stray from the joke itself in all its exaggerated detail.

"The Aristocrats" is an excellent documentary that will be appreciated by all fans of comedy. The film is laugh riot because it comes out naturally with what appears to be an improvisational style. The joke being told for our benefit by some of the best talent performing today in this country.

Screened at Sundance 2005, The Aristoracts tells the story of the worlds funniest (and dirtiest) joke you've never heard before but will never forget.

The joke itself is structured to have the same beginning and the same punchline at the end. Yet each comedian that tells it has their own variation on the middle. And that's where the freedom (and generally the vulgarity) comes in.

My favorite renditions are by Kevin Pollak (doing a spot-on impression of Christopher Walken), Bob Saget, and Paul Reiser. Matt Stone and Trey Parker even animated a South Park version of the joke that had me laughing so hard I couldn't breathe.

Paul Provenza and Penn Jillette filmed the movie over a period of 4 years and between 80 to 100 hours of DV video tape.

The film has been picked up for distribution by ThinkFilm. But don't be surprised if the MPAA slaps a NC-17 on the film for the language. Save your surprise for the theater.

For all its over-the-top vulgarity -- with large helpings of pornography, scatology, and incest -- "The Aristocrats" is fundamentally an intelligent and affectionate film. One gifted comedian after another dives into the time-honored muck of this joke, keen on retrieving the filthiest possible diamond from the sludge. The result is some of the most hilarious film-making of recent years.

It's difficult to select just a few favorites from this assemblage. Bob Saget is surely the most startling (and one of the funniest). George Carlin offers both great humor and insight into joke telling. Sarah Silverman's deadpan first-person account is unforgettable, and Gilbert Gottfried's post-9/11 version is a jewel. Billy the Mime has riotous sexual encounters with various invisible family members. Only a few comedians misfire: perhaps most notably, a guy who tries to pull off a "clean" Jerry Lewis sort of physical comedy routine.

And this is the paradox of the both the joke and the movie: clean versions just don't work. The hilarity comes from the clash between the pornography and the punchline, the comedic brilliance and the carefully crafted vulgarities.

90 minutes on one joke may seem like overkill, but the film skillfully avoids monotony. The broader subject matter is the art of comedy: the comedians' insights are fascinating and their enthusiasm is endearing.

Two minor complaints. First, it would have been helpful to identify each comedian *during* the film, not just during the (excellent) closing credits. Second -- and more seriously -- some of the camera-work was intrusive and distracting, with rapid MTV cutting that flipped back and forth between full-face and profile shots. This got so bad at one point that I had to look away from the screen until the segment was over.

9/10. A masterpiece of filthy good cheer.