An extensive and penetrating exploration of Carlin’s political comedy
No one would accuse Judd Apatow to be a concise writer or director. When he’s best – “Made pregnant“”Funny people”- his playing times give characters the opportunity to evolve and breathe and create embodied worlds. But recently, the same penchant for slow pace has shown its limitations, especially in his latest film, “Bubbles.“His documentary work has been similarly sluggish in its pace, but also shows a deep ethnographic affinity for the world of stand-up comedy. Follow-up on his 2018 “The Zen Diaries by Garry Shandling“Apatow and co-instructor Michael Bonfigliois expansive HBO documentary “George Carlin’s American Dream”Can run close to four hours, but it is also Apatow’s most politically sharp work to date.
Using interviews with Carlin and his contemporaries and fans – Colbert, Seinfeld, Chris Rock, Bill Burr, Kevin Smith, Patton Oswalt, etc. – Apatow and Bonfiglio both present a comprehensive portrait of the famous cartoon, while arguing that his supernatural ability to cut into the heart of American politics makes his stand-up as important today as it was during his 40-year run. . Although primarily a portrait from cradle to grave by Carlin, ‘American Dream’ is also centered around his gradual shift towards left-wing political commentary. Further, his family life and addiction are explored mainly through interviews with his daughter Kelly Carlin.
For those who only associate Carlin as the white-haired, ugly-mouthed hippie cartoon he was in the ’90s and early’ 00s, ‘American Dream’ is organized around the many stages of Carlin’s career. The first episode roughly traces his childhood, his Lenny Bruce worship, his suit-and-tie comedy routine with Jack Burns, through his meteoric rise in the 1970s, which coincided with his hippie-like demeanor and stable integration of political material into his routines. Apatow and Bonfiglio touch on everything from his famous “seven dirty words” routine – and the Supreme Court case, as it spurred – to his role as host of the first “Saturday Night Live“Second episode takes hold as Carlin faces declining popularity in the ’80s before re-emerging in the’ 90s as the definitive counterculture comic, partly helped by his roles in”Bill and Ted” and “Dogme. ”
Throughout, the vast amount of material that Carlin produced is brought to the fore. We see excerpts from various shows and routines where he apparently has a set of jokes about all the political issues that are. His work ethic is incomparable and also speaks to his addictive personality – a decent amount of screen time is dedicated to his cocaine addiction, often told through his routines and by Kelly. As various comics describe, Carlin leaned into any problem and often had a sharp remark or two to something that America was – and still is – dealing with, often at the expense of government institutions and conservative politicians, which makes it so strange as his words. has often been co-opted by both political parties given his well-documented liberalism.
While the first three or so hours are fascinating, they are also routine, working through Carlin’s interviews to give ample time to each decade he appeared in. Yet the film culminates in the fourth hour in an insane montage that equates Carlin’s routines – ca. police work, abortion rights, drug culture, climate change and homelessness – against contemporary political actions. While it’s a bit jarring to see the BLM protests overlaid with Carlin’s set on racist policing, it also hammers on Apatow and Bonfiglio’s central thesis. Carlin’s work was of a particular moment, often specifically by calling members of the Reagan administration up, for example. But it also speaks to universal truths about the American experience, namely that we are constantly struggling with the same problems as thirty or forty years ago.
While Carlin was more focused on talking about what he was against than actually presenting a coherent alternative, it becomes clear, as Chris Rock at one point says, that Carlin was responding to a modern philosopher and that Apatow has found a new direction as a prominent historian of stand-up. [A-]