Misery Loves Comedy

Released Apr 24, 2015

1 hr. 34 min.

Documentary

Comedy

List

35%

26 Reviews

Tomatometer

33%

250+ Ratings

Audience Score

Comics Martin Short, Nick Swardson, Jimmy Fallon and others talk to actor Kevin Pollak about the dark side of being funny.

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Critics Consensus

Misery Loves Comedy starts with an idea worth exploring, but proves frustratingly unable to enlighten or amuse.

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Audience Member

Could have been sooooo much better. You will get better interviews listening to podcasts. I felt like I watched the PG version of what this could have been.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

02/11/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Miser was seeing that fat drunken slut Amy Schumer

Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars

02/26/23

Full Review

Audience Member

An interesting conversation with some of the most successful comedians. Which is odd that's it's not more funny.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

02/03/23

Full Review

Audience Member

As a fan of films and documentaries, it's a bit annoying how thematically unfocused this talking heads doc is. As a fan of comedy, however, it's impossible to not get enjoyment from the insightful and hilarious interviews from the 50+ comic superstars who make up this movie.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

02/24/23

Full Review

Audience Member

A very insightful view into the lives of many stand-up comedians and the heartbreak that accompanies the joys of performing. Funny, authentic and heartfelt. A must see documentary for Comedy fans.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

01/20/23

Full Review

Audience Member

A straightforward series of interview clips that kept my attention from start to finish. Visually, it isn't an artistic triumph but it didn't attempt to be either. If you love stand-up comedy and are fascinated by the psychology behind some of your favorite comedians & actors, this documentary will scratch that itch. Good stuff.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/05/23

Full Review

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Kevin Pollak

Director

Jason Alexander

Actor

Judd Apatow

Actor

Scott Aukerman

Actor

Maria Bamford

Actor

Kevin Pollak

Writer

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Ryan Gilbey

New Statesman

It's a decent enough film for comedy buffs though there aren't a whole lot of surprises.

Nov 11, 2015

Full Review

Steve Rose

Guardian

Do you have to be sad to be funny? You'll have to sit through a slew of micro-anecdotes and shop talk before you get any answers from this choppy documentary - longer than any decent comic would defer a punchline.

Rated: 2/5

Sep 17, 2015

Full Review

David Hughes

Empire Magazine

If only he had probed a bit deeper, and widened his scope beyond the predominantly white, male subjects (including our own Rob Brydon, Steve Coogan and Stephen Merchant), this could have been a fascinating film as well as a funny one.

Rated: 3/5

Sep 10, 2015

Full Review

Michael J. Casey

Michael J. Cinema

If 'Misery Loves Comedy' is a stream-of-consciousness exploration of the world of comedy, then that consciousness belongs to Pollak.

Rated: 2.5/5

Sep 16, 2021

Full Review

David Kettle

The Arts Desk

Pollak only gets round to misery right at the end, in a quick-fire sequence of comedians either agreeing or disagreeing that you have to be miserable to be funny. By then, though, you'll probably have stopped caring.

Rated: 2/5

Nov 21, 2017

Full Review

Jonathan Kiefer

SF Weekly

[Kevin] Pollak isn't taking a solve-for-x approach here so much as simply geeking out with his fellow tribesmen (and a few -women), who may or may not be your favorite funny people, anyway.

Aug 24, 2017

Full Review

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Synopsis

Comics Martin Short, Nick Swardson, Jimmy Fallon and others talk to actor Kevin Pollak about the dark side of being funny.

Director: Kevin Pollak
Executive Producer: Ben Galecki, Ashton Newhall, Liz Davidson, Jess Ravich
Screenwriter: Kevin Pollak, John Vorhaus
Distributor: Tribeca Film
Production Co: Heretic Films
Genre: Documentary, Comedy
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Apr 24, 2015, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Dec 28, 2015
Box Office (Gross USA): $5.3K

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