This movie isn’t for everyone, but it was definitely for me. As someone who really loves comedy and is slightly obsessed with celebrity culture, it was almost a perfect fit. I felt like it was genuine and fun.
This movie has taken a lot of thought for me to think about because of how long DeNiro spent to work on this project. At each point of the movie, it felt like it was saying something more and I’m having a difficulty determining whether it was or not.
The story is rather generic and boring. The twists and turns were not surprising and dull at times. The performances were hit or miss. I felt like I was rooting for DeNiro and DeVito, but not really anyone else. I did enjoy the performance by Edie Falco. I thought she was great each time that she was on screen and her arc was great. Other than that, none of the other characters were that intriguing and felt off. I loved the cameos by all of the comedians involved.
The reason I enjoyed this movie so much was because of how life after fame was portrayed. It’s hard to show what life is like as an artist when you retire because most people in the arts don’t want to stop what they’re doing. It’s hard to tell someone to stop working and retire when they genuinely love what they do. It’s different than other professions because most people don’t mind quitting their jobs. That’s the main struggle that DeNiro is trying to explain.
The main conflict in the film comes in the form of staying true to who DeNiro is. He’s a brash comic from New York who has to come to the realization that the world is changing. It’s a struggle because it’s hard to adapt to new technology for an old guy. I liked how DeNiro is starting to challenge the idea that you don’t have to change your entire personality to stay relevant in the world that he’s in. I would say that’s the greatest takeaway from the movie as DeNiro’s character struggles to fit in with the older comedians and the newer ones.
Overall, I would say that it was worth the 8 years that were put into the project. I think it really says a lot about fame and I liked what DeNiro had to say. The story could be better, but I think it got the job done at the end of the day.
Grade: B+
