The Aristocrats
May 2006 Reviewed by: Marc Mickelson Format: DVD	(all ratings out of 5): Overall Enjoyment Picture Quality Packaged Extras Sound Quality

A man walks into a talent-agent's office and says, "I have an act that I think will interest you."

"What kind of act?" the talent agent asks.

"Well," the man says, "my wife, children and I come out on stage and…." What follows is a free-form description of the act, complete with references to every bodily function and form of sex known to man.

After the description, the talent agent says, "That's quite an act. What do you call it?"

"The Aristocrats," the man answers.

This is the joke on which the movie The Aristocrats is built, and perhaps the only joke that can sustain an entire movie. What gives this joke legs is the description of the act, which in most versions includes a compilation of crudeness that gives comedians the creative space to riff like musicians. "You make it your own," one of the comedians featured in The Aristocrats points out. "It's a jazz theme, a basic melody that anyone can improvise on," another explains.

The movie's fast-paced structure gives a virtual who's who in comedy -- 100 performers are claimed, but I didn't count -- the opportunity to tell their versions of the joke, all of which are exceptionally obscene (you've been warned). The comedians also discuss style and delivery, and these are some of the funniest parts of the movie, with various explanations on how to describe vulgarity for maximum impact. There are also wild variations on the joke that involve impressions, parts of other well-known jokes, magic, and sleight of hand. There's also a version "told" by a mime, and it's uproariously funny, although Martin Mull's wry adaptation had me howling the loudest.

Among the extensive extras are a group telling of the joke, with spliced-in snippets from many of the comedians featured in the movie, commentary from director Paul Provenza (who has acting, writing, directing and producing credits on his long resume) and producer Penn Jillette (half of the comedy-magic team Penn & Teller), a video joke gallery, a tribute to Johnny Carson, and many outtakes from the movie. These comprise over two hours of great material to begin watching after the movie has ended.

While "a movie about a joke" may seem like a setup for monotony, the 79 minutes of The Aristocrats work because they retain the pacing of good comedy, building toward a big finish. In this case, it's Gilbert Gottfried's performance of the joke at a Friar's Club roast of Hugh Hefner in late 2001. Gottfried breaks through the anxiety and sorrow that followed 9/11 by telling the joke in an unrelenting way. For those few minutes, there was no room in the audience's mind for anything other than laughter; Gottfried simply wouldn't allow it. A joke that can do that deserves its own movie.

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