Following up one of the night’s more depressing observations, he tells the crowd, “That line never gets a laugh, but once you write it, it stays in the act forever.” He even gets some quality mileage out of great lines that aren’t meant to be funny. For every summary of a church (“a weird Byzantine temple with green carpeting where everyone has bad breath”), he can sum up an entire four-year college experience in a single fact (“I didn’t drink water the entire time”). It’s a line that earns him the chance to punctuate that section of the show by saying, “He was the weirdest goddamn person I ever saw in my entire life.” Instead of hopping right to that, it’s the kind of full-bodied storytelling that still can wink and engage with people who like their jokes direct or with a little bit of pizzazz.Īnd Mulaney’s just as good when he’s concise as he is when he embellishes a little. It’s more like the first sentence of a chapter on a page or a line in a 1950s screenplay than something you’d expect to be part of a Netflix standup special. That’s something that everyone in the audience gets a chance to create for themselves while Mulaney gets to relive his second-grade bewilderment. That’s not just a great joke to hear said out loud. “John Mulaney: Kid Gorgeous at Radio City”
But instead, he made his living in murder.” What puts it over the top is this description of how this mugging-obsessed fellow exists in Mulaney’s memory: “He looked like he should be the conductor on a locomotive powered by confetti. Mulaney paints a picture (that gets more absurd by the sentence) by recreating the physical parts of Bittenbinder’s wildly ineffective advice to a crowd of grade-schoolers. Weaving a tale worthy of a character who sounds like he got his name from a Great American Novel, Mulaney relays a story of an elementary school safety assembly led by an imposing, larger-than-life figure. To see what magic Mulaney can whip out of thin air, though, look no further than JJ Bittenbinder. It might be his pitch-perfect Trump metaphor, his over-the-top Mick Jagger impression, or his rant against colleges looking for alumni donations. Who knows what part of “Kid Gorgeous” will stick beyond this week. Stefon became a household name because of Bill Hader’s performance, but the idea that he could create an entire world just by listing off a handful of disparate things came from the laser-like attention to the words he was saying. His “Saturday Night Live” tenure is scattered with legendary characters and bizarre creations (may “ Rocket Dog” outlast us all), and most of those best creations come from attention to detail that elevates a simple setup into something truly quoteworthy. Read More: Every 2018 Netflix Stand-Up Special, Rankedīut in spite of all that, what really comes through in “Kid Gorgeous” is that Mulaney is still one of the sharpest writers working. At one point, Mulaney gets a solid reaction from just jiggling his mic cord back and forth. Alex Timbers’ direction highlights those key moments when Mulaney races across the Radio City stage to emphasize a particular point in a story. When he pretends to be a seven-year-old being interviewed on the news, he keeps his mic at an angle to maintain that illusion. And there are some parts of “Kid Gorgeous” that play to Mulaney’s strengths as an overall performer. Whether by his voice work, his Broadway show, or the natural evolution of a standup career, the man on display in “John Mulaney: Kid Gorgeous at Radio City” is someone who consistently has that same efficiency, the same control that made his “New in Town” a modern classic and “The Comeback Kid” a reliable Netflix go-to.
KID GORGEOUS KID PRESENTABLE MOVIE
Netflix Goes Into Test-Run Mode: How Theatrical Does It Need to Be?Įmmy Predictions: Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie - 'Lotus' BudsĮmmy Predictions: Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series: Brett Goldstein Reps for 'Ted Lasso' Netflix Sued by Former Vanity Fair Staffer Over 'Inventing Anna' Portrayal
0 kommentar(er)
