Margaret Cho's 2 previous filmed standup efforts - "I'm the One that I Want" and "Notorious CHO" were great fun: relevant, uproarious, uplifting and endearingly offensive. This one just does not have the charm or humor of its predecessors. The jokes feel forced, and the more vile and provocative bits of her set -- which are usually the most hysterical -- here feel too contrived and deliberate.
There are a few good laughs (detailing the expulsive results of a persimmon diet), but they are too often countered by jokes that are only mildly amusing (random catch phrases dedicated to a certain portion of the female body) or flat out dull. What's worked in her other routines is her ability -- like Richard Pryor -- to find humor in her heartbreak. Her identity and others' perception of her body have always come across as apropos and moving; that is not the case here. Even her tried and true tales of her mother's suffocating brand of love feel obligatory this go around.
Its short running time and padded jokes seem to confirm the notion that perhaps Ms. Cho needs a much-deserved break to give her time to add more depth and humor to her routine. She's been hysterical in the past and I'm sure she will again, but this one didn't do a whole lot for me.
There are a few good laughs (detailing the expulsive results of a persimmon diet), but they are too often countered by jokes that are only mildly amusing (random catch phrases dedicated to a certain portion of the female body) or flat out dull. What's worked in her other routines is her ability -- like Richard Pryor -- to find humor in her heartbreak. Her identity and others' perception of her body have always come across as apropos and moving; that is not the case here. Even her tried and true tales of her mother's suffocating brand of love feel obligatory this go around.
Its short running time and padded jokes seem to confirm the notion that perhaps Ms. Cho needs a much-deserved break to give her time to add more depth and humor to her routine. She's been hysterical in the past and I'm sure she will again, but this one didn't do a whole lot for me.