Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work (2010)

A documentary on the life and career of Joan Rivers, made as the comedienne turns 75 years old.

Directors:

Ricki Stern, Anne Sundberg

Writer:

Ricki Stern

Stars:

Joan Rivers, Patrick Alparone, Kathy Griffin

3 wins & 5 nominations.

Cast

Credited cast:
Joan Rivers	...	Herself
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Patrick Alparone	...	Himself
George Carlin	...	Himself (archive footage)
Johnny Carson	...	Himself (archive footage)
Edgar Cooper Endicott	...	Himself
Phyllis Diller	...	Herself (archive footage)
Annie Duke	...	Herself (archive footage)
Flo Fox	...	Herself
Kathy Griffin	...	Herself
Florian Klein	...	Himself
Emily Kosloski	...	Herself
Mark Anderson Phillips	...	Himself (as Mark Phillips)
Jocelyn Pickett	...	Herself
Don Rickles	...	Himself
Melissa Rivers	...	Herself

Storyline

This documentary follows one year in the life of Joan Rivers, who sees herself first and foremost as an actress, with her life as a comedienne/writer just an extension of being an actress. Now at age 75, Rivers has faced her ups and downs in her forty plus year career, the year leading up to filming being a down compared to what she would have wanted, which is a calendar full of engagements with several engagements each day. That want is in part to support her opulent personal lifestyle, but is more a need to bolster her own sense of self-worth as a basically insecure person who is probably best known now for her overuse of cosmetic surgery rather than her professional work. She feels that Kathy Griffin, who she admires, is now getting all the engagements she would have gotten in her prime. During this year, Rivers is seen going from engagement to engagement, some big - such as a Kennedy Center Honors for George Carlin, a double bill with Don Rickles in New York, and her own celebrity...

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Plot Keywords:

actress | comedienne | nbc | rehearsal | critic | 

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Genres:

Documentary | Biography | Comedy

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language and sexual humor

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

25 January 2010 (USA)

Also Known As:

O Trabalho de Joan Rivers

Box Office

Opening Weekend:

$164,351 (USA) (11 June 2010)

Gross:

$2,927,972 (USA) (10 September 2010)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Break Thru Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

84 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital DTS

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Connections

Features Tomorrow Coast to Coast (1973)

User Reviews

Brilliant and Outrageous

After seeing the trailer, my expectations were moderately high. The movie far exceeds them. It is screamingly funny (Joan Rivers is screamingly funny) and poignant as well. I am partial to people who have a passion and work their hearts out; Joan Rivers exemplifies this. As a writer who's seen ups and downs, I found her up-and-down trajectory inspirational. The humor is often raunchy and always hilarious. Because she cannot do her best jokes on television, I found the movie broadened my perspective on what she is able to do (a lot!). If you've ever liked her jokes, definitely go see this movie. While it's true that the film maker could have dug a bit deeper into some of the darker subjects, I think that would have drastically changed the amazing balance between comedy and seriousness for the worse. A lot is conveyed without belaboring the difficult issues. Although Joan Rivers was virtually in every frame (a few exceptions where some people spoke about her), I never tired of seeing and, especially, hearing her. She has a store of funny and the ability to tap into it, whatever else is happening.