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List Price: $19.98 | | Label: Warner Home Video
Salesrank: 59270
Released: August 29, 2006 |
| Our Price: $1.95 |
| Used Price: $1.09 |
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MPAA Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Media: DVD |
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Editorial Review:
"Looking for Comedy in the Muslim World" is the hilarious story of what happens when the U.S. Government sends comedian Albert Brooks to India and Pakistan to find out what makes the over 300 million Muslims in the region laugh. Brooks, accompanied by two state department handlers and his trusted assistant, goes on a journey that takes him from a concert stage in New Delhi, to the Taj Mahal, to a secret location in the mountains of Pakistan. Written and directed by Albert Brooks, "Looking for Comedy in the Muslim World" is a funny and insightful look at some of the issues we are dealing with in a post-9/11 world. The comedy also stars Sheetal Sheth, John Carroll Lynch, Jon Tenney, and Fred Dalton Thompson.
Description of Looking for Comedy in the Muslim World (WS):
You don't have to be an Albert Brooks fan to enjoy Looking for Comedy in the Muslim World, but it helps. As always, Brooks (as writer, director, and star) presents a timely comedic premise that's ripe with possibilities, and he capitalizes on his ideas with witty one-liners, hilarious expressions, and comedic situations that are patently absurd and yet, in Brooks' hands, amusingly believable. At a time of great fear and turmoil in the Middle East, Brooks plays a barely-fictional version of himself (a respected comedian named Albert Brooks) and dares to ask, "what's considered funny in the world of Islam?" That's what the State Department wants to know (in the President's effort to improve U.S.-Muslim relations), so they dispatch Brooks to India and Pakistan to write a 500-page report on what makes Muslims laugh. That he never really finds an answer is beside the point, because Looking for Comedy is more about the nature of comedy itself--specifically, the nature of Albert Brooks' comedy, which is self-deprecating, low-key, and so idiosyncratic that it defies mainstream expectations. After a brilliant opening, Looking for Comedy loses some of its momentum, but it's filled with brilliant bits and throwaway gags that keep you smiling from start to finish. One can only wonder, how will it play in Baghdad? --Jeff Shannon
Looking for Comedy in the Muslim World (WS) Reviews:
Sorry, Mr. Brooks 
2009-06-23 - I know you have heart and you meant well, but I just have to warn anyone who watches this movie and does not find it funny within the first 10 minutes, that it will NOT pick up. Better to give up than to go another one hour and 38 minutes marveling at how terrible this movie is. As another reviewer noted, it's not even "good-bad." It's just really ... bad. The jokes are slow, simplistic, and stereotypical; I was actually cringing at times.
On the other hand, if you truly like this movie within the first few minutes, then you will certainly enjoy it; as the saying goes, "To each his own." For my part, however, I read the five-star reviews, and I am still mystified.
Again, I am very sorry to give this film such a poor review. On the other hand, after paying for it and spending the best part of my evening sitting through it, I feel duty-bound to warn others!
I should add one bright note, though: Sheetal Sheth offers the only relief here. She is charming and delivers a delightful performance that is, sadly, wasted on this film.
Alber Brooks in a mellow key 
2008-10-28 - Albert Brooks is one of my favorites. But "Looking for Comedy..." is one of his more mellow films; he doesn't go for big laughs this time, even though there's plenty of humor. This is a good one for the serious Albert Brooks fan, but for everyone else, it's worth it to watch at least once.
If you Like Albert Brooks, you'll like this film 
2008-08-14 - There are some baseline criteria for liking this film (note: this also applies to Woody Allen cinema).
1) You must like Albert Brooks' nebishness (corollary: you should understand a bit about Jewish fatalism)
2) You must understand and appreciate sarcasm at its finest
3) You must not be offended by vanity scripts-- yes, alot of this is about Albert Brooks, see item #1
4) You must not be embarrassed by laughing out loud when your intellect is tickled
I would have given this a higher rating, but not everyone can meet the above criteria
Really forgettable and unlikable
2008-07-02 - Well first I have to say I'am an Albert Brooks fan for the most part but this movie just had DUD written all over it. The plot about a famous comedian...alleged famous comedian since the running gag of the movie seems to be that nobody knows about him much less cares tells you right of the bat that this is far from a "thinking man's" comedy as somebody else said. Age didn't matter either in me disliking (I'am over the teenybopper age a long, long time ago).
First the film drags on and on with unfunny jokes. Why would the government trying to soften relations with Middle East send Albert Brooks why not Jay Leno or Conan O'Brien, oh well. Like somebody else the stereotypical jokes (like the Call Center well all the technical computer questions in American are received by Outsourced Pakistans) gets old quick.
Even this side story (which I guess was supposed to be romantic) with Albert and his assistant Maya I think her name is wasn't really explored though hinted at many times (like her boyfriend is really jealous at her spending so much time with Albert). The jokes Albert throws at this Muslim/Pakistan are lame, very lame. Besides the character he plays looks utterly desperate in just compiling an audience to begin with. I guess this was supposed to be funny how an alleged famous comedian can't even get enough seats to fill a gymnasium but it just wasn't funny. Deadpan humor/Dry humor whatever you want to call it isn't always funny and this movie is living proof of that.
It's just a sad, bad movie. I wouldn't even call it "it's so bad it's good" movie it just really had nothing special going for it and you'd have to pay me to watch this again. It's gotten a 5.4 rating on IMDB which pretty much is borderline average to mediocre which is about right. Again I like Albert but this isn't his best effort not by any stretch of the imagination. It probably might his worst movie to date.
"Looking for laughs" would be more apt
2008-06-08 - From the title and cover description, I thought Brooks was "looking for comedians." You know...we would see what was considered comedy in the Muslim world, performed by Muslims. Instead we get Albert Brooks doing a very low key (dare I say tired and lame?) comedy act and watching how Muslims respond. It's a 30 minute premise at best, but vintage Albert Brooks. If you have liked his previous work you will probably like this. I did get a couple of laughs. If you haven't...skip it. Unless, like me, you're getting it free from the library.
