The Aristocrats

My husband and I watched "The Aristocrats," he with a faint smile, me howling. That is, until "Billy the Mime" came on, when he began laughing uproariously, and I almost passed out from hysterics.Up to that point, I was laughing away at pretty much everyone, while he shook his head and announced that this was "white" humor."It's not white humor," I replied. "It's Jewish humor. Or even more precisely, Jewish show-biz humor." Which means, once we return to basics, that "The Aristocrats" is the most American of American humor."The Aristocrats" is not for everyone, but if it's right for you, it's a howler from beginning to end, as are the out-takes, and even the voice-over extras. Some have noted that "The Aristocrats" is not for those who dislike foul language. Let me be more precise. I dislike foul language for its own sake, employed simply to be coarse and vulgar. I find foul language should be reserved for (a) when a hammer hits your finger (b) when comedians at the top of their game know EXACTLY when to use vulgarity, without a single wasted, gratuitous, Def Comedy Jam "F bomb" dropped.What is amazing about "The Aristocrats" is how perfect the comedians' pitch is in their retelling of the vulgar joke -- this is a lot of Miles Davis virtuosity and very little Kenny G.In addition to "Billy the Mime," my other favorites were Sarah Silverman and the guys who tell "the Aristocrats!" joke as Christopher Walken (Kevin Pollack) and Liza Minelli (Mario Cantone).Taylor Negron was mesmerizing and daring.Kudos to the ventriloquist, the fire jugglers, the card-trick guy, and Matt and Trey of South Park for finding non-linear new ways to present the joke.God bless Tom and Dick Smothers, Carrie Fisher, and Drew Carey, for being quietly flawless with the joke and good sports about not taking their clean images too seriously.That "The Aristocrats" is at times poorly shot only adds to its charm and authenticity. The editing is at times inspired in the interweaving of the performances, and at times less so.One quibble -- the editors could have killed the interviews with Eddie Izzard, Bily Connolly and Eric Idle, maybe even Chris Rock, and taken Merrill Markoe's entire joke unedited off the DVD extras and into the main DVD -- that's if they DARED!

Both gross and funny, this unconventional documentary looks at the sociology of the world of stand-up comics through the lens of a particular joke that for almost countless decades was known only to comics. (The filmmakers seem unable to identify the joke's precise origins, but it might go back at least to the nineteenth century.) Called "The Aristocrats" in America but known by other names in the United Kingdom ("The Debonaires" or "The Sophisticates"), the aim of the joke was to gross out other comics and to display story-telling skills, because the actual punchline of the joke is not that funny. Almost anyone can get a laugh with a clever punchline, but the humor of the Aristocrats is entirely in the telling.Throughout the film, famous and not so famous comics tell the story, each in his own way. For example, surreal humorist Steven Wright tells a surreal version. George Carlin of the "seven dirty words" fame arguably tells the most unforgettably gross version. Sarah Silverman dramatizes the story by making herself into the victim of the obscene action.In one of the most powerful scenes, Gilbert Gottfried's performance of the Aristocrats at a gala that was held shortly after the 9/11 attack revealed this joke's sub-cultural significance to a wider audience for the first time, but more importantly reaffirmed that we could still laugh. Gottfried had started off with a joke about flying at which the audience indicated they regarded jokes about airplane disasters as being in bad taste. "It's too soon," someone called. "You want to hear a joke that is in bad taste?" asked Gottfriend. Whereupon he launched into an impromptu telling of the Aristocrats. About half of the audience were professional comics who recognized it, and they were rolling on the floor. The rest of the audience had never heard it before, and were both shocked and caught up in Gottfried's telling. (Could anything shock the late Hugh Hefner? Evidently, this joke did.)If you are intrigued, now, and want to hear the joke, just watch this movie. It is the ultimate dirty joke, though, and you have been warned.

It's more of a documentary about the world's dirtiest joke. And it's a dirty joke. Definitely not ment for kids. If you don't feel you need to watch the whole movie, look up Gilbert Gottfried Aristocrats joke, probably not in public though.

It may be dirty and not appropriate for all ages but did I laugh!!!! One of the funniest documentaries... movies ever.

The Aristocrats. A documentary about a joke you may never have heard told, but may have heard about.This oughtn't to be half as good as it is- but not for anyone who finds strong language offensive- this is about the contruction of a joke that is supposed to provoke outrage, and no-one minces words when recalling versions.As a social history, thearical history, comedic insight, or anything worthy you might want to call it- it is a hoot. I bought this for a friend as I loved my copy.

che degli adulti si divertino follemente a nominare escrementi mi lascia basita, tutto il dvd si basa su una barzelletta ripetuta in varie versioni, ma sempre sono presenti escrementi usati in vario modo da un gruppo di persone per suscitare disgusto, la battuta consistre nel nome che questi si scelgono, e che per contrasto dovrebbe suscitare ilarità. ad onor del vero non l'ho visto fino alla fine, ma a parte il fatto che dopo la prima versione l'effetto sorpresa viene a mancare, la repetizione di tanta idiozia non mi è stata sopportabile.

Not for the sensitive ones

Funny and Filthy, not a lot to say other than do not watch this with your parents.