The Aristocrats (2005)
Average Rating: 7.1/10
Reviews Counted: 147
Fresh: 117 | Rotten: 30
Can a joke stand up to repeated tellings? Hilarious and revealing of the way comedy works, The Aristocrats demonstrates that it's possible.
Average Rating: 7.2/10
Critic Reviews: 42
Fresh: 35 | Rotten: 7
Can a joke stand up to repeated tellings? Hilarious and revealing of the way comedy works, The Aristocrats demonstrates that it's possible.
liked it
Average Rating: 3.2/5
User Ratings: 86,389
My Rating
Movie Info
"A family walks into a talent agent's office..." So begins "The Aristocrats," a joke kept mostly secret by stand-up comedians for decades. An intentionally "bad" joke, the laughs in The Aristocrats aren't in the punch-line (one of the only elements that's the same every time), but in the set-up, made unique by each comedian who tells it in an attempt to fashion the world's dirtiest joke. The cat was finally let out of the bag by Penn Jillette and Paul Provenza, the seasoned funnymen who gathered
Cast
ADVERTISEMENT
The Aristocrats Trailer & Photos
All Critics (151) | Top Critics (43) | Fresh (122) | Rotten (30) | DVD (28)
The first feel-good movie made out of fecal matter.
Top CriticThis all-star open-mike night loses its luster before its own loud laughter dies down.
... The Aristocrats proves that sometimes you don't have to be a great filmmaker to make a great documentary.
What the film really reveals is the role of the comedian in society and the craftsmanship of joke-writing and joke delivery.
Let me reiterate. This movie is really, really dirty.
See it if you aren't too jaded to appreciate a few laughs in these mostly mirthless times.
A joyful film, full of men and women alight with the pleasure that comes from negating every compliment civilization has ever paid itself.
A plethora of comedians discuss and tell their own inspired rendition of "the dirtiest joke in the world" in a contagiously funny documentary that symptomatically gives context to the lasting influence of vaudeville humor.
Each take on the gag reveals a different facet of comic technique.
Its very about-itself unimportance is what makes it a liberating experience for its own sake.
A tedious dud that sparks once or twice with big laughs
...the brilliant Sarah Silverman transcends the mean-spirited nature of the joke...
In its simplest form, the joke isn't funny; it's all in the telling, and Provenza proves once again that some people can tell a joke, and some people can't.
I honestly think this is something that could have been covered in about 30 minutes, not 90.
With a showman's respect for the power of the build-up, Provenza touts his product thoroughly before unveiling it.
Audience Reviews for The Aristocrats
Discussion Forum
There are no discussion threads for The Aristocrats yet.
Latest News on The Aristocrats
January 26, 2007:
Sundance News: "The Ten" And "King of California" Picked Up For DistributionAs Sundance 2007 enters the final stretch, we've just learned of two more movies that'll get their...
February 8, 2006:
"Flightplan" Soars on Sales, Rental ChartsIt was a smooth DVD landing for Buena Vista Home Entertainment's "Flightplan," as the...
January 10, 2006:
Online Film Critics Offer Their Annual NominationsThe OFCS, which is hosted right here at Rotten Tomatoes and (full disclosure) includes yours truly...
What's Hot On RT
Bradley Cooper's Best Movies
Trailer for new Coen Bros movie
Fast & Furious cars gallery
Blockbusters ranked!
Featured on RT
- Total Recall: Bradley Cooper's Best Movies 27
- Parental Guidance: Epic and Beautiful Creatures 2
- Comic Book Movies You Can Watch Online 6
- In Pictures: The Cars of Fast & Furious 0
- Digital Multiplex: Warm Bodies and Aftershock 8
- Discover the Best-Reviewed Films in Summer Movie Scorecard 2013 0
- RT on DVD & Blu-Ray: The Last Stand and Side Effects 17
Top Headlines
-
Vin Diesel Says Fast & Furious 7 Will Take Place in L.A.
0
-
10 Things You (Probably) Don't Know About the Hangover Movies
1
-
Zack Snyder, Christopher Nolan, and David S. Goyer Talk Man of Steel
0
-
New Transporter Trilogy in the Works
0
-
Richard Linklater Plans "Spiritual Sequel" to Dazed and Confused
0
-
King of Kong Filmmaker Seeks Funding for Lost Limb Documentary
0
-
Which Film Franchise Has Been the Best for Female Characters?
6
Fresh Links
Featured
Star Trek Movies Ranked
HitFix offers their own take on the worst-to-best of the Enterprise crew's cinematic adventures.
Top 10 Star Trek Villains
Rolling Stone unveils the Enterprise's most irksome adversaries.
Celebrity Yearkbook Flashback
We'll bet you never realized how many stars were cheerleaders and high school athletes!
50 Most Classic Movie Moms
In celebration of Mother's Day, TimeOut offers up 50 iconic matriarchs from the big screen.
Weirdest Movie Siblings
From Twins to The Royal Tenenbaums, Moviefone explores cinema's oddest siblings.
Promos
Follow RT on Twitter!
Spice up your feed with hourly Tomatometer updates!
