Comedian Sarah Silverman cheerfully ignores any and all taboos in this performance film based on her hit off-Broadway show. Combining stand-up material with comedy sketches and musical numbers, Sarah Silverman: Jesus is Magic is dominated by Silverman's typically edgy monologues, including bits on racism, September 11, family dysfunction, drug abuse, rape, the Holocaust and plenty of other unlikely sources of comedy guaranteed to make viewers squirm while they laugh. Sarah Silverman: Jesus is
Magic had its American premier at the 2005 South by Southwest Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
Jesus Is Magic is the second part of the title of comic Sarah Silverman's very funny, very wrong movie, which weaves wacky musical numbers and odd backstage moments with an L.A. performance of her one-woman show.
If you can stand the profanity, the crudeness, and the merciless strafing of all things noble and sacrosanct, then you'll find yourself huddled over in a painful ball of nonstop guffaws.
Her comic persona is that of a clueless and politically incorrect hipster who says terrible things without being aware of their shock value. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't.
Ultimately, it's difficult to resist...especially when she comes out with lines like: "I don't care if you think I'm racist - I just want you to think I'm thin."
Her high-wire stage performance is unmissable all the same, particularly when she's taking aim at such untouchable sacred cows as Martin Luther King. "They only mention the good stuff! He was a litterbug."
Bad-taste material, delivered with an insouciance that looks easy until you see lesser comics trying it, is what she does best: killer gags about seven-year-old lesbians and Jews killing Jesus.
Hit'n'miss gags that target 9/11, rape, the Holocaust and Aids ("If God gives you Aids, I say, 'Make Lemon-Aids'!") prove that Silverman is a gifted performer but that sometimes busting taboos isn't enough in itself.
It's uneven and the relationship between your sense of taste and your sense of humour will determine whether you enjoy it, but at its best, Jesus Is Magic doesn't look out of place alongside the best stand-up concert movies.
Not to everyone's taste but her legions of internet fans won't be disappointed. Anyone who can come up with a line like 'I don't care if you think I'm a racist, I just want you to think I'm thin,' is okay in our books.
Sarah Silverman: Who cares? Different religions. I guess the only time it's an issue I suppose would be if you're having a baby, you have to figure out how you want to raise your baby or whatever, which still would not be an issue for us. Because you know, we'd just be honest, and say "Mommy is one of the chosen
people, and Daddy believes that Jesus is magic."
A strangely edited concert film showcasing Sarah Silverman. One's enjoyment of Silverman as a comedian is certainly going to be the deciding factor here. I am on an OK level with her work as a comedian. I can appreciate her balance between being edgy and borderline racist and I do like how very deliberate she is with her choice of words, pauses on stage, and throwaway one-liners.
This film is kind of messy. There is a very unfunny framing device, musical numbers that are OK, and the majority of the film is one particular stand-up session. I never found anything really laugh out loud hilarious, but it was often humorous and a good look at what Silverman has to offer as a comedian.
Ok film if you like her style.
Sarah Silverman: When God gives you AIDS - and God does give you AIDS, by the way - make lemonAIDS.
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