Comedian

2002

USA

Director: Christian Charles
Producer: Jerry Seinfeld (executive producer), Amy R. Baird, Gary Streiner
Cast: Jerry Seinfeld, Greg Giraldo, Orny Adams, Robert Klein, and lots of other stand-up comics too numerous to mention
MPAA Rating: R (probably for language)

What it's about (from the Internet Movie Database website):

A look at the work of two stand-up comics, Jerry Seinfeld and a lesser-known newcomer (Orny Adams), detailing the effort and frustration behind putting together a successful act and career while living a life on the road.

My Thoughts:
OK, I should start by confessing that while I love comedy, I'm just not much of a fan of the modern (or should that be post-modern?) stand-up variety. And even though I LOVED the Seinfeld TV show (I still watch the reruns everyday), I've never really been too impressed with Jerry Seinfeld as a performer on his own. But my husband is a real fan (of Seinfeld, standup, and just comedy in general), so we rented this from Netflix and I prepared myself for a couple of hours of boredom.

Big surprise -- it's not a boring movie.  It's not all that funny either; which is strange, considering that the cast is made up almost entirely of comedians.  But it really isn't meant to inspire yucks -- it's basically a look at how funny men (and women) come up with their material, refine their acts, hone their skills, and go about the business of being funny. All of which turned out to be surprisingly intriguing to watch. Who knew professional comedians could be so insecure about their talents?

I had never heard of the young comic whose career is at the center of the action -- Orny Adams -- and I have to admit, nothing I saw in this film made me eager to find out more. For me, the best part of the movie was the brief clip of Richard Pryor in his prime, doing what he did best -- just being wonderfully, amazingly, incredibly, profoundly funny.

My IMDB rating: 6 stars out of a possible 10