The Aristocrats Review
by Steve Rhodes (Steve DOT Rhodes AT InternetReviews DOT com)August 14th, 2005
THE ARISTOCRATS
A film review by Steve Rhodes
Copyright 2005 Steve Rhodes
RATING (0 TO ****): * 1/2
I'm certainly no prude. I've liked and recommended some pretty outrageous pictures. But I had no fun whatsoever at THE ARISTOCRATS, a documentary, featuring a galaxy of comedic stars and lesser planets, about the telling of a single dirty joke, which is said to have had its origins in vaudeville.
This movie reminded me of another joke, the one about the merchant who is losing money on every sale but making it up through volume. No matter how many times the joke, whose punch line is "The Aristocrats," is told in the film, it is never humorous, only vile and disgusting. And rapid repetition, through fast paced editing, doesn't improve it.
I will not repeat the joke here, except to say that every version of it is different, only the punch line is the same. The setup usually involves two or more generations of a family, as well as an animal, performing unspeakable acts in front of an audience. Normally the joke involves fresh fecal matter, frequently eaten, and various incestuous encounters performed on stage. In a typical, how-far-can-I go version, one person is shot in the head and another person has sex using the orifice created by the bullet. There is one particularly gross and disgusting version of the joke that I have not been get out of my head, no matter how hard I try.
The only thing that even partially saves this scatological movie is its ability to get in the heads of the comedians and see how far they are willing to go in order to attempt to get a laugh. My audience lapped it up. I didn't go along with the frivolity, but I did groan a lot.
THE ARISTOCRATS runs a long 1:26. It is not rated but would be NC-17 for graphic language and would be acceptable for college students.
The film is playing in nationwide release now in the United States. In the Silicon Valley, it is showing at the Camera Cinemas.
Web: http://www.InternetReviews.com
Email: [email protected]
***********************************************************************
Want free reviews and weekly movie and video recommendations via Email?
Just send me a letter with the word "subscribe" in the subject line.
Originally posted in the rec.arts.movies.reviews newsgroup. Copyright belongs to original author unless otherwise stated. We take no responsibilities nor do we endorse the contents of this review.
