El rey de la comedia

Saw it first time late at night and never thought about sleeping again for a couple of days.

DeNiro nails perfectly the unflappable and determined comic wannabe. We watch him throughout the whole film, wondering, Is he really just that sure of himself, or is he dangerously deranged? That question will take you through right to the end. Between Rupert, whose basement (in his mother's house) is decorated like a comedy club, and his oddball chum (S.Bernhard), there's considerable pathos. Jerry Lewis gives a lot of insight into the real person behind his easygoing public persona.

Part of what makes this movie so compelling is Scorsese's decision to keep the musical score to a minimum. Music could force the viewer to a conclusion that isn't entirely accurate. Listening to Rupert's endless exchanges Jerry, and everyone who stands in his way -- as is, without musical coloring -- enhances the "squirm factor."

Anyone who has been in the uncomfortable position of coming to regret being nice to someone will relate to this movie. It's a must-see, and despite being more than 20 years old now, it is not a bit dated.

/r

The time when Scorsese took another turn by making a disturbing dark comedy. This film turns the spotlight towards the show business industry by exploring the subjects of fame and celebrity and their influence over individuals and society as a whole. With a nice tone, excellent cinematography, good setting and a thrilling plotline, Scorsese crafted the perfect image of a delusional and obsessive sociopath portrayed by none other than Robert De Niro. I have to say that "The King of Comedy" along side "After Hours" are the most overlooked pictures in Martin Scorsese's catalogue.

This was definitely a fascinating movie to me in regards to see what lengths some people will go in order to achieve fame, and perhaps to make any dreams that they have come true. Some of which were admirable, whereas others I seriously have to draw the line and would hope others would too. I thought De Niro was excellent as Rupert Pupkin, as this struggling comedian desperate for fame. His character Rupert is friends with a woman named Masha, played by comedienne Sandra Bernhard. I didn't know she was actually acting this far back, but that being said I thought she was really good in this, and kind of creepy to be honest. Truthfully, I found her to be much creepier than Rupert. Rupert wants desperately to appear on The Jerry Langford Show as a guest and Masha is a super-obsessed fan that loves Jerry. It kind of makes sense that they're friends, given their narrow-focused obsessions towards the same person, albeit for different reasons. Jerry Langford is played by none other than the late Jerry Lewis. I'm very young, so I haven't seen any Jerry Lewis movies but I thought he was fantastic in this one. There's also a woman that Rupert is involved with played by Diahnne Abbott who does a fine job as well. I do feel like this movie is well directed by Martin Scorsese, and it looks really good too. I even like the set design of the reception area of Jerry Langford's office. There's another scene where Rupert is standing with his back turned in front of a huge blown-up black-and-white picture of a crowd and the camera pans out while a soundtrack of laughter is playing over the scene that I thought was mesmerizing to look at. I'll say that the themes in this movie are relevant today in a lot of ways, and all the more perhaps with the advent of social media. But it's real easy to see where the movie is going based upon its set-up. And the ending to me does compromise because it doesn't commit to what I thought was going to be the ending. Don't get me wrong. It's a movie and I can live with the ending they chose but at the same time I was like "yeah, right". But it was definitely an interesting character piece by Scorsese for sure.

I hate the celebrity culture. I hate the fact that people become famous, just for the sake of being famous. I hate the fact that just because a celebrity gets married or has a child, that's front page news. I hate reality TV. I hate shows like "Pop Idol" (or "American Idol"), where normal people seem to think they are destined for A-list status. The fact that this film (The King of Comedy) is as old as I am, is either an all too worrying statement on society, or proves that it was way ahead of its time. Maybe that's why I love it so much.

De Niro has always amazed me, but the fact that he seems to understand this character so well is a little overwhelming. Whether he is delivering cringeworthy gags to a cardboard audience, or embarrassing himself, obliviously, in front of Jerry Lewis, his consistency is amazing. His motives are understandable to anyone who's ever had a dream. Perhaps it's De Niro's early ambition as an actor, that fuelled this shamefully overlooked performance.

Jerry Lewis is perfect as the disgruntled TV host. A man who lives a double-life of hilarious TV personality, with a bitter persona off-screen. You can certainly relate to this man's motivations, his love for his work, but his resistance to allow it run his personal life.

The only character I can't totally emphasize with is Sandra Bernhard's Masha (her actions aren't justified as well as De Niro's Rupert). But maybe that just goes with my aforementioned hatred for celebrity culture. The scary thing is, I know that people like this exist, and I didn't for a second, question the feasibility of her performance.

As usual, Scorsese shows brilliant control, despite this being one of his most modest works.

"The King of Comedy" should be looked upon, now more than ever, as a very important film, that has a lot to say about the world we live in and the obsessions that we consume. 9/10

From Jerry Lewis's subtle, deeply personal performance, to Robert DeNiro's amazing interpretation of a neurotic nerbish whose fantasy world collides with reality on late night talk TV, "The King of Comedy" is a true original that guts the glamour from showbiz and finds it cold and empty inside. Then there's the media, always ready to create another celebrity, even if he's an autograph hound and hack comic turned kidnapper who believes he's earned a shot in the spotlight. Cynical and melancholy, at times hilarious, it bombed when first released, but has been surprising video treasure hunters ever since.