Synopsis: Talentless comedian stalks his hero to try and kickstart his career
Director: Martin Scorsese
Actors: Jerry Lewis, Robert de Niro, Sandra Bernhard, Diahnne Abbott
Date: 1982
How viewed: Bought on Amazon
Rating: 3/5
David Meyer says:
By turns it's funny, unsettling, surreal, and unbearable. Consider it an exercise in truth through exaggeration.
I say:
This feels like quite a disturbing films on a number of levels. Robert de Niro plays Rupert Pupkin a sad, lonely, budding comedian with enormous self-belief and no talent, who stalks and harasses his hero (Jerry Lewis playing a top talk-show host) for a slot on his show - and not taking 'no' for an answer, resorts ultimately to kidnap to achieve his dream (and he believes, his right). It feels like the precursor for all the current reality shows - people with no talent being able to achieve fame and fortune just by being pushy. So, this is one of those films that I'm sure some people find extremely funny, but others (including me) find just a little bit sad, and creepy, and irritating. I'm still not convinced de Niro does comedy (maybe in this film that's the point), but Jerry Lewis is sensational as the successful but world-weary talkshow host (such a contrast to his previous incarnation playing the stupid partner of Dean Martin) and Sandra Bernhard is manically brilliant in one scene. So, what else to report - the musical score is by Robbie Robertson (mainly music by Ray Charles which can't be bad), I liked the way the scenes switched between reality and Pupkin's daydreams, and there's plenty of cameos to look our for (including Martin Scorsese himself). The ending suggests that indeed infamy trumps real talent (but alternatively that may simply have been another of Pupkin's daydreams). 
No comments:
Post a Comment