Genre:
Comedy / Documentary
Directed
by: John Magnuson
Starring:
Lenny Bruce
Running
time: 72 minutes
Lenny Bruce did not only open doors for the
comedians that would come after him: He blew them open. He did so with his determination
to do things his way, constantly pushing the envelope way past what the powers-that-be
were willing to take back then. He did it, and, in the end, he paid the price
with multiple arrests for public obscenity and the trials that followed.
This film, shot in black-and-white, captures
his next-to-last live performance, in San Fransisco, before his untimely death
from a drug overdose. In front of a small crowd, Bruce mostly reads from the
transcripts of his trials, trying to defend his act. As a person who has done
stand-up and who likes to joke around, I found it sad to see such a great man
having to explain himself in such a way. There is not much worse that having to
explain humor to take all the fun out of it.
Lenny Bruce’s pace on stage is sometimes hard
to follow, but this film remains a major part of history and it should be seen
by fans of stand-up comedy. Many others were able to do what they did because
Lenny Bruce led the way.
Rating:
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