Fishing with John

After reading the viewer comments, I felt compelled to weigh in with my input. Let me first point out that humor is very personalized, and it's often hard to objectify. I personally find the humor in "Fishing with John" perfectly suited to my tastes. It is irreverent and dry. As far as trying to read anything into the relationships between the prncipals, I feel it would be a mistake. John Lurie is not a fanboy- he has been involved in the undergound film and music worlds for a long time. These people (excluding Matt Dillon) were well known by Lurie before they went on these trips. It is interesting to get a glimpse into these people away from their comfort zones, but one should be wary about making any assumptions based upon this series.

Enjoy the beautiful locales. Enjoy the meaningless banter. Enjoy the wry sense of humor of the narrator. Don't get caught up in looking for deep meanings or symbolism. Don't miss the point.

"John knows nothing about fishing, but his friends don't know that...." Narrated by Robb Webb, it watches like a combination between those terrible fishing programs on PBS and the audio slide shows you watched in grade school....only those never included Tom Waits dropping live fish in his pants or Jim Jarmusch questioning the morality of shark fishing with a handgun. If you don't get the Independent Film Channel - go find a video store that stocks this marvelous program! It's a must!

I have just discovered this 6 part series on Bravo in Canada and have made it part of my must-see tv schedule. From the doleful signature tune to the Armageddon '50s voice overs, this quirky travelogue is about the guy stuff between fish that mainstream fishing shows edit out. Now if I could just get the "Fishing With John" theme out of my head ...

That ran only 6 episodes and was aired sporadically on cable.

Musician and actor John Lurie invites celebrity friends on exotic fishing excursions, to laughable results. His guests include Jim Jarmusch (who he takes out shark fishing off Montauk), Tom Waits (Jamaica), Matt Dillon (Costa Rica), Willem Dafoe (Maine ice fishing), and in the final two-parter, Dennis Hopper (Thailand). Each episode features overly dramatic narration by Robb Webb which is punctuated with non sequiturs and outright fabrications. This may be too dead pan and laid back for most viewers, but those on a certain wavelength will find it hilarious (as I did). It's one of the earliest DVD releases from Criterion.

one of the few dvd's i can watch over and over again. i laugh and feel warm from head to toe. sure it is odd but what do think you are going to get from john lurie? nypd blues? be real. it also includes a great lounge lizard video to put the icing on the cake. oh yeah, i own the music cd too. waiting for something new john.... please.