The Comedian (2016)

“Once you can make a woman laugh then you can make her do anything, they say. I don’t know if that’s true. ” – Jackie

Number of Times Seen – 1 (4 Nov 2019)

Brief Synopsis – A talented comedian who is known for his straight forward insults to anyone he meets tries to reevaluate his life.

My Take on it – This is a film that I came across by accident and was quite surprised as to how enjoyable it was.

Robert De Nero isn’t the very first actor that would come to mind to play an insult comic, but he does an amazing job with this role.

His is able to deliver his jokes in such a way that despite knowing that every line of dialogue is heavily scripted, his insults all seem very genuine and off the cuff.

They do a nice job showing the kind of life this character leads and they find a way to keep things so enjoyable throughout.

The chemistry between De Niro and his costar Leslie Mann is great and despite their age difference, it’s easy to believe that they form a genuine connection.

This is a movie that blends humor and drama really well and there are scenes that are both poignant and funny at the same time which woks quite well.

Bottom Line – De Niro is great in this role and despite the story being scripted, his quips all seem as if they are completely off the cuff. The story works really well in showing the life of this character and things remains so much fun from start to finish. De Niro has great chemistry with Mann and despite their age difference, their connection seems quite genuine. The movie knows how to be both funny and poignant at the same time which helps keep things interesting throughout. Recommended!

MovieRob’s Favorite Trivia – Robert De Niro was trained by comedian Jessica Kirson, and adopted one of her signature “moves”: talking to herself sotto voce while turned away from the audience. He didn’t take the move quite as far, preferring to cover his face with his hand while turning slightly to one side. Kirson appears in the film longer than any other stand-up comic, but she is not shown using this technique. (From IMDB)

Rating – Globe Worthy (8/10)