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Movie Review
The Aristocrats
By Lee Tistaert Published July 26, 2005
C+
The fact that this punch line has rounded up so many high-class comedians is intriguing, but it ends up being more of a minor fascination than a laugh riot.
The Aristocrats is a documentary about what is supposedly the filthiest joke ever told. The joke is so foul and offensive that the documentary scored an NC-17 rating from the MPAA (as opposed to R), and the AMC movie theater chain has even refused to show the feature. ?The Aristocrats? is the name of the joke, and it can be told in an endless amount of ways depending on a comedian?s creative willpower. The goal is to take a simple pre-determined setup and continue the story with as much vulgarity as you can manage. Some talents can finish up the punch line in two minutes while others can spend up to two hours expanding it. This 92-minute documentary consists of a hundred comedians who try to wow us with their best version of the joke.
A lot of people are going to wonder what the ?filthiest joke? could possibly be when they hear about this movie, and if it?s even considered ?the funniest joke ever told.? While it probably is the crudest I?ve ever heard (it also depends on how much it is expanded), that doesn?t immediately classify it as the ?funniest,? as most jokes need some sort of context (or comedic timing) for the right effect. There are various versions of the joke that do fall flat as a result of comedians relying too much on a foul word to make us laugh. And that?s the problem with a feature like this: If it?s the same general filthy joke for an hour and a half, can?t it get old? Yes, it can, and while I?m going to give the doc a thumbs down since it didn?t make me laugh as much as I had hoped and my chuckle rate was in fact sporadic, I did tolerate it somewhat and I found it interesting.
The feature boasts a hot ensemble cast including George Carlin, Gilbert Gottfried, Paul Reiser, Drew Carey, Whoopi Goldberg, Eric Idle, Richard Lewis, Penn and Teller, Robin Williams, Hank Azaria, Bob Saget, Andy Dick, and Steven Wright. But as attractive of a lineup as it is, I was disappointed by the uneven pacing of the documentary and the painful reality that it really is not that funny. Perhaps my hopes were a bit too high, but with names like these I expected something special. Some of the talents are completely wasted and only have a line or two (which are not associated with a version of the joke) about the history of the punch line or just have a comment about it. At a certain point the history/foundation of the joke seems rather straightforward, and commenting on it as if it?s profound seems like a joke in itself.
The fact that this punch line has rounded up so many high-class comedians putting it to the test is the intriguing part of this feature, but it ends up being more of a minor fascination than a laugh riot. At this point in time we have all watched as television and cable programs (and even movies) test the boundaries of what is right and what isn?t in terms of acceptable material. Many of the interpretations of the joke are downright nasty, but it?s not like we haven?t heard these words before. The South Park movie adaptation was one of the first movies (if not the first) to test crude material to such a daring extent. While I didn?t think the movie was hysterical, I thought it was fun and amusing, and the approach worked because it was original (and the jokes had context).
In The Aristocrats, foul words are used excessively and there isn't enough proper comedic timing for a sufficient payoff. There is a share of shock value and a handful of chuckles and laughs, but I could only fantasize about how much better the experience could?ve been if there was more to it than one dirty joke. I was mildly entertained, but I was a little disappointed considering I know what these talents are capable of. It?s worth a look if you're really curious, but it ends up being more of a one-note experiment than it should.
A lot of people are going to wonder what the ?filthiest joke? could possibly be when they hear about this movie, and if it?s even considered ?the funniest joke ever told.? While it probably is the crudest I?ve ever heard (it also depends on how much it is expanded), that doesn?t immediately classify it as the ?funniest,? as most jokes need some sort of context (or comedic timing) for the right effect. There are various versions of the joke that do fall flat as a result of comedians relying too much on a foul word to make us laugh. And that?s the problem with a feature like this: If it?s the same general filthy joke for an hour and a half, can?t it get old? Yes, it can, and while I?m going to give the doc a thumbs down since it didn?t make me laugh as much as I had hoped and my chuckle rate was in fact sporadic, I did tolerate it somewhat and I found it interesting.
The feature boasts a hot ensemble cast including George Carlin, Gilbert Gottfried, Paul Reiser, Drew Carey, Whoopi Goldberg, Eric Idle, Richard Lewis, Penn and Teller, Robin Williams, Hank Azaria, Bob Saget, Andy Dick, and Steven Wright. But as attractive of a lineup as it is, I was disappointed by the uneven pacing of the documentary and the painful reality that it really is not that funny. Perhaps my hopes were a bit too high, but with names like these I expected something special. Some of the talents are completely wasted and only have a line or two (which are not associated with a version of the joke) about the history of the punch line or just have a comment about it. At a certain point the history/foundation of the joke seems rather straightforward, and commenting on it as if it?s profound seems like a joke in itself.
The fact that this punch line has rounded up so many high-class comedians putting it to the test is the intriguing part of this feature, but it ends up being more of a minor fascination than a laugh riot. At this point in time we have all watched as television and cable programs (and even movies) test the boundaries of what is right and what isn?t in terms of acceptable material. Many of the interpretations of the joke are downright nasty, but it?s not like we haven?t heard these words before. The South Park movie adaptation was one of the first movies (if not the first) to test crude material to such a daring extent. While I didn?t think the movie was hysterical, I thought it was fun and amusing, and the approach worked because it was original (and the jokes had context).
In The Aristocrats, foul words are used excessively and there isn't enough proper comedic timing for a sufficient payoff. There is a share of shock value and a handful of chuckles and laughs, but I could only fantasize about how much better the experience could?ve been if there was more to it than one dirty joke. I was mildly entertained, but I was a little disappointed considering I know what these talents are capable of. It?s worth a look if you're really curious, but it ends up being more of a one-note experiment than it should.
Lee's Grade: C+
Lee's Overall Grading: 3025 graded movies
| A | 0.4% | |
| B | 30.0% | |
| C | 61.7% | |
| D | 8.0% | |
| F | 0.0% |
'The Aristocrats' Articles
- Scott's review D+
August 5, 2005 The foul dialogue conjures gross images and is expected to shoulder the joke's burden. Unfortunately, things like timing and wit get lost in the mix. -- Scott Sycamore
