The Aristocrats (2005)

One hundred superstar comedians tell the same very, VERY dirty, filthy joke--one shared privately by comics since Vaudeville.

Directors:

Penn Jillette, Paul Provenza

Stars:

George Carlin, Don Rickles, Chris Rock

6 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Chris Albrecht	...	Himself - HBO Chairman / CEO
Jason Alexander	...	Himself
Hank Azaria	...	Himself
Shelley Berman	...	Himself
Steven Banks	...	Billy the Mime (as Billy the Mime)
Lewis Black	...	Himself
David Brenner	...	Himself
Mario Cantone	...	Himself
Drew Carey	...	Himself
George Carlin	...	Himself
Mark Cohen	...	Himself
Scott 'Carrot Top' Thompson	...	Himself (as Carrot Top)
Billy Connolly	...	Himself
Pat Cooper	...	Himself
Wayne Cotter	...	Himself

Storyline

Comedy veterans and co-creators Penn Jillette and Paul Provenza capitalize on their insider status and invite over 100 of their closest friends--who happen to be some of the biggest names in entertainment, from George Carlin, Whoopi Goldberg and Drew Carey to Gilbert Gottfried, Bob Saget, Paul Reiser and Sarah Silverman--to reminisce, analyze, deconstruct and deliver their own versions of the world's dirtiest joke, an old burlesque too extreme to be performed in public, called "The Aristocrats."

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Plot Keywords:

vaginal juice | clitoris | hand job | crotchless panties | panties | 

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Taglines:

100 Superstar Comedians. One Very Dirty Joke.

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Genres:

Documentary | Comedy

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Official Sites:

Mighty Cheese Productions [United States] Think Film Company

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

2 September 2005 (USA)

Also Known As:

The @r!$t* (r@t$

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$243,796, 31 July 2005, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$6,377,277, 22 January 2006

Company Credits

Production Co:

Mighty Cheese Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

89 min

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

This joke has been used by comedians for years as a mental stretching exercise. They would tell the joke to each other as a warm up for their acts. While the setup and punchline remain the same throughout, the middle section, describing the actual family act, is always varied to get the juices going by throwing in the most they can and keeping it funny. There are stories of parties where performers will jam and keep it going for almost an hour.

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Quotes

[first lines]
George Carlin: The joke leads me down one path and then it switches the path on me suddenly and hits me with a hammer. It's just, "Here we go folks."

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Crazy Credits

After the credits, this appears on screen: "Now that you know the joke - keep it alive, spread it around. It's easy. 'A guy goes into a talent agent's office...' All you have to remember is ONE word." Then, Paul Provenza and Penn Jillette are standing among a group of goats and say "Aristocrats!" while doing the hand flourish that Drew Carey invented.

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Alternate Versions

The South Park segment of the Aristocrats joke, in the film, has a minor edit of the line "and the talent agent just sits there". Whereas the circulated internet version contains the whole line intact is "and the talent just sits there for the longest time".

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Connections

Referenced in Brows Held High: A Serbian Film (2011)

User Reviews

A celebration of laughter

The Aristocrats uses a warhorse joke to give the audience a window into humor, obscenity, and the American conscience. I am not aware of another study capable of inducing such laughter. The premise is devilishly simple and almost a modern version of comedia delarte. This allows some of the best American comic minds to muse wildly about humor. A great achievement of the movie is the raw footage of a who's who of comedians. Comic greats such as George Carlin, Eric Idle, Whoopi Goldberg, Gilbert Godfrey, Jason Alexander, Robin Williams, Phyllis Diller, Drew Carey, Sarah Silverman, and many more weigh in on how comedians put their signature on jokes.

The editing and pacing of the movie insure that the audience goes no longer than two minutes without a good laugh. There is no shortage of obscenity and lewdness in the film. The Aristocrats is not a family film. However, the film proves that there is much to be gained from wading into the lake of obscenity. Packed between laughs about bodily functions and social taboos, are searing insights about improvisation, character, show business, and things which most of us would not willingly put in our mouths. The movie hits on many different levels and stands as an insightful sociological achievement garbed in laughter.