The Comedian

R

Released Feb 3, 2017

2 hr. 0 min.

Comedy

Drama

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List

24%

113 Reviews

Tomatometer

28%

1,000+ Ratings

Audience Score

Jackie Burke, an aging comic icon, has seen better days. Despite his efforts to reinvent himself and his comic genius, the audience only wants to know him as the former television character he once played. Already a strain on his younger brother and his wife, Jackie is forced to serve out a sentence doing community service for accosting an audience member. While there, he meets Harmony, the daughter of a sleazy Florida real estate mogul, and the two find inspiration in each other.

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Critics Consensus

The Comedian boasts an incredibly talented cast, but they're put to poor use in an aimless rom-com whose handful of memorable moments never add up to a compelling story.

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Nathan A

Everyone that is rating this movie low has no idea about the culture of stand up comedy and zero understanding of good raunchy humor. This movie is beautifully written, the actors do a fantastic job portraying hardship and love. One of my favorite Dinero movies and one of my favorite movies that dive into the comedian world. It makes me angry that it has such a low score. You people are too soft and have no taste for a crude, rough, and out of the box movie. It's emotional and relaxed at the same time. 5 stars no doubt.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

11/15/23

Full Review

Arthur F

As stated by multiple reviewers, a disappointing waste of incredible talent. The script doesn't work as a comedy or a drama and there is nothing likeable, or interesting in the character of Jackie. The one insight that rings true is the curious phenomena of how so many comedians grow increasingly bilious as they age. After viewing this movie, I'm desperate to see "King Of Comedy" to clear my palate of this sour tale.

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

10/12/23

Full Review

Liberal M

Funny movie abour the after-career life of a comedian played ba de Niro, I liked it

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

09/11/23

Full Review

bob c

One of de Niro's best movies. Hard to see why the critics were so hard on it. Maybe it's just aged well and looks better in 2023 when I caught up with it. He's on top form with a bitter sweet semi funny performance supported by half a dozen great characters. It may be an old persons movie. But 24 is a ludicrous score for a minor masterpiece.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

07/24/23

Full Review

Gail E

I don't find humor in F bombs in almost every sentence.

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

01/01/23

Full Review

kevin c

I wanted to like this more than I did. Great cast led by Robert DeNiro as an ageing cantankerous comedian who after an incident with a heckler, needs to complete community service where he meets a woman played by Leslie Mann and tries to revive his career. The comedy in this isn't exactly funny and DeNiro isn't exactly an endearing character in this. It's a decent movie but I wished it was better. Danny DeVito, Harvey Keitel and plenty of cameos from the world of comedy.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

Full Review

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Taylor Hackford

Director

Robert De Niro

Jackie Burke

Leslie Mann

Harmony Schutz

Danny DeVito

Jimmy Berkowitz

Edie Falco

Miller

Harvey Keitel

Mac

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The Comedian: Trailer 1

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Jason Bailey

Flavorwire

Hackford's never been much good at pacing, and the film sort of sloshes from one scene to the next, which calls greater attention to its considerable flab - it's full of full scenes and subplots that could disappear without any real damage.

Feb 17, 2017

Full Review

David Sims

The Atlantic

A fetid, overlong drama laden with bizarre subplots and an inexplicably star-studded supporting cast, built around the dated idea that standup comedians can, indeed, be jerks.

Feb 9, 2017

Full Review

Richard Brody

New Yorker

The plot is forced and flimsy, the characters are thinly conceived, and the comic writing is often cringeworthy.

Feb 6, 2017

Full Review

Matt Brunson

Film Frenzy

The Comedian benefits from the nice rapport between De Niro and Mann, the contributions of a knockout supporting cast, and hard-edged humor that isn't afraid to go for the low blow.

Rated: 3/4

Aug 17, 2021

Full Review

Richard Crouse

Richard Crouse

Promises much but doesn't deliver and in comedy delivery is everything.

Rated: 2/5

Mar 4, 2021

Full Review

Steven Prokopy

Third Coast Review

It plays it safe and the end results are astonishingly mediocre.

May 1, 2020

Full Review

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Synopsis

Jackie Burke, an aging comic icon, has seen better days. Despite his efforts to reinvent himself and his comic genius, the audience only wants to know him as the former television character he once played. Already a strain on his younger brother and his wife, Jackie is forced to serve out a sentence doing community service for accosting an audience member. While there, he meets Harmony, the daughter of a sleazy Florida real estate mogul, and the two find inspiration in each other.

Director: Taylor Hackford
Executive Producer: Scott Karol, Wayne Marc Godfrey, Robert Jones, Iain Abrahams, Fredy Bush, Dennis L. Pelino, Mark Axelowitz, Lawrence Smith
Screenwriter: Art Linson, Jeff Ross, Richard LaGravenese, Lewis Friedman
Distributor: Sony Pictures Classics
Production Co: Imaginary Forces, Sony Pictures Classics, Anvil Films, Atmosphere Entertainment MM LLC
Rating: R (Language Throughout|Crude Sexual References)
Genre: Comedy, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Feb 3, 2017, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): May 2, 2017
Box Office (Gross USA): $1.7M
Aspect Ratio: Scope (2.35:1)

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