[MOVIES]RANDOM MOVIE REVIEW "Pete Holmes: Nice Try, The Devil"
5/13/13
BY MICHAEL GOODPASTER
I normally review movies here because it’s called “Random Movie Review”. It’s a pretty simple concept. Still, I’ll sometimes stray from this to review some other visual video type of presentation. Today I’m going to review a comedy special that was aired too late on a Sunday with too little promotion.
I’ve been in the middle of a lot of comedic writing lately myself. When you’re in that “gear” your brain is triggered in a weird way. A lot of stuff goes in one ear and out the other because I’m too caught up filtering the funny. I came across this stand up special expecting to be amused and came away with a lot more. Comedy Central has been cranking out some really good specials over the past few years. The problem is that I’ll watch them, enjoy them in the moment, and then forget about them. I don’t think that’ll be a problem with “Nice Try, The Devil”, Pete Holmes’ hour special.
Pete Holmes’ special “Nice Try, The Devil” has to be one of the most enjoyable standup comedy specials I’ve seen in a REALLY long time. I’m not saying he’s better than Louis C.K., Bill Burr, or anything sacrilegious like that. I’m just saying this special was special. Most stand up sets fall into a certain set of categories. Some will be edgy push the sexual limits, the political limits, the quirky limits, the awe-shucks limits, etc. These labels aren’t a bad thing. I can probably name a dozen comedians who fit into each of those groups that I am a fan-boy of. It’s just there is a certain “style” that Pete Holmes brings to the table that’s hard to match. He’s accessible, likeable, and seems like a guy that would be friends with everyone. He’s got a charm to him that makes him almost too likable. The whole time you’re caught in this “grandma friendly” personality he’s delivering some great non-“grandma friendly” material. His material IS edgy and quirky but he also brings a really honest perspective. I don’t want to “review” his material because repeating the dude’s jokes here wouldn’t do them justice. The content covers things people can relate to and random Pete musings. He talks about how parents mispronounce celebrity names, winning “one”, making his bed, a creepy man-crush on Ryan Gosling, and the best description of a pimp ever.
What made me want to review this special was more about how refreshing and entertaining it was. It’s all about how it was presented. Pete is not angry or trying to put on a show. I mean he is, but he it comes off more genuine here. A lot of the Comedy Central specials and mainly the “alt comics” have this stage presence to them as if they’re presenting themselves. It can be funny and cool, but it’s almost become cliché as 1980’s shoulder pad blazers. Holmes’ gives off a vibe that he’s just walking out there and telling strangers his stories. He has no problem laughing at himself. I appreciate that. I know when I make a random funny remark to a friend I’ll laugh with them. Why wouldn’t a comedian unless they were trying to put on some sort of persona? You laugh with him and it makes you feel good. The energy is just “on”. These are obviously jokes he polished over time and his cadence and delivery is well versed, but this hour still feels like a great “captured moment”. I think it’s mainly the enjoyment of seeing someone do something they enjoy. He’s having fun so you have fun. Pete has the energy of a properly medicated Robin Williams. No suspenders of Flubber necessary.
I just really enjoyed this special. I guess I am a little bias though. I do listen to Pete’s “You Made It Weird” podcast regularly, was a fan of his first half hour, and am stoked to see his upcoming talk show after Conan. Is being a fan being “bias”? Who knows. I’m just rambling off one guy’s opinion. I’m just confident that even after this buzz of “new toy” freshness of this special fades that we’ll be able to look back at this hour in the same respect as Donald Glover’s first half hour, Aziz’s first hour, or even Hedberg’s first half hour. Almost like a “oh shit, this dude is for real” coming out party. Holmes keeps his A-game crispy. A!
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