Punching the Clown

I saw the movie on DVD and was hooked immediately. The story is excellent. The dialog is better written than any film I've seen this year, including my favorite "The Social Network" which was too esoteric at times. Punching the Clown is a real treat. Henry Phillips (I had never heard of him, even though he's been on late night TV) is a phenomenal storyteller and singer. The movie is a good showcase of Phillips's music and stand-up show (he plays himself), but it's also much more than that. The first scene constitutes the funniest 2 or 3 minutes I've ever seen on the subject of censorship and, in a way, it just gets better from there. The characters are wonderfully true to life: the unsuccessful manager (Ellen Ratner, a supporting actor on Seinfeld) who takes Henry under her wing and sees neither how damaging her tactics are nor how Henry's success is unrelated to her efforts, the struggling actor brother (Matthew Walker) who is just a well of bitterness, the late night public radio DJ (Wade Kelley) who manages to squeeze some truth out of a comic and doesn't really care if no one is listening to his show, and so many other characters, all new faces... The film is a musical performance film and every song in it is incredibly witty and surprising. One of the songs, a ballad about bullies and nerds in school is a comical gem that anyone who struggled through high school in this country will appreciate and probably start humming on their way to work. Other songs, about relationships, life on the road, life in LA, are as beautiful as any great pop song from the 70s, but with such outlandish and clever lyrics that you just want to bring your neighbors or co-workers in to share a great laugh after a hard day's work. Some of the scenes look a little grainy and indie-like, but it doesn't keep Punching the Clown from being the best comedy I've seen in at least a few years.

I decided to give this film a whirl since it is streaming now on Netflix and it was the funnest time I have had watching a film in a while. We were laughing through so much of this movie. It is a very clever movie and so much of it rings true (if you are living in Los Angeles at least) This film does not really have a dull moment in it, and I enjoyed the pace as the movie moves along pretty quickly. I really became a fan of Henrys during this film as his comedy routines/songs in the movie were hilarious.There is a scene involving a Bagel misunderstanding that just killed me and it was the most clever scene i have seen in a long while. I really appreciated this movie and will watch it again definitely. I recommend watching this film to any and all fans of the comedy genre and then go tell a friend to do the same.

This is the first review I'm writing on IMDb.

That's because of the unreasonably low (6.6) rating this movie has on this website.

This movie is easily one of the funniest movies I've ever seen.

It contains a lot of good jokes and one liners in the songs as well as in the script. The atmosphere and character interactions are well thought out and authentic.

But don't take my word for it.

YouTube Henry Phillips (who plays himself in this movie) or Punching the Clown and you will see!

Do not miss this clever and hilarious film!

This is my first review on IMDb: I just want to spread the word about this small treasure.

I saved it to my Netflix queue months ago after missing the theatrical release and hearing that Sarah Silverman loved it, and then I forgot all about it. It was finally released a couple of weeks ago.

What a treat. Watched it with my over-intellectual wife and our dumb 14 year old son. (I'm a dumb 54 year old who likes his beer cold and his beef and humor very rare). We all loved it.

Thought it was a Sundance winner at first, but I realize now it's a SLAMDANCE winner... (Note to independent film people: you have to come up with better festival names, it's confusing.) but who cares, whatever: It's a great film.

The story is very quirky and written with a sharp eye. The main characters and many of the supporting parts are vivid, hilarious and multi-dimensional. The songs are almost all original and cough-up-your-popcorn hysterical. The dialog is better than anything Woody Allen wrote in 25 years, or Judd Apatow... ever.

And if that wasn't enough, the movie is heartfelt and very human. The main character, Henry, plays a fictional version of himself and really draws you in. He's the funniest soft-spoken guy in the movies, take my word for it. The director co-wrote it and apparently had total control over every detail, casting, editing etc... real talent.

What else? Entertaining DVD bonuses. Deleted scenes. Running commentary with the director, the main actor and the actress who plays the manager. Ellen Ratner. Never heard of her, but apparently she was in Seinfeld. Anyway, she's wonderful. It's a no-name cast, but it's a solid, solid comedy.

Hope to see more from these guys.

I didn't realize how ready I was for something fresh until I laughed and smiled for 90 minutes watching this amazing low-budget comedy.

I went to see the movie in New York after getting a tweet from Sarah Silverman saying she loved it and that everyone should go see it. I saw that she actually called it "the funniest movie about comedy I've seen so far." My expectations were really high after that endorsement, but I quickly understood what she meant: it's better, or at least funnier, than any film I've seen on the subject of comedy, stand-up, the music business or even Hollywood image making. I was simply blown away. Not so much by the cinematography or the general look of it (which is fine, that's not the point of the movie), but by the amazingly witty situations and the funny dialog which is razor sharp, yet, at the same time, very laid-back and realistic. The plot is very original in the genre, even if the story is kind of a classic. Classic in a good sense. In fact, part of it seems completely real, but not in a mockumentary way. In a very good way.

And I'm forgetting to state the obvious: Henry Phillips is hilarious. His songs are beautiful and funny as hell. The film is so well balanced and intelligently structured that by the end of it I felt like I'd just witnessed something unique: a comical tragedy about a tragically comic man. I wanted more. I bought Phillips's last two CDs. He's no fluke. His music is as brilliant as the movie.