Review of Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work (2010) by Lori W — 14 Jun 2010

Does this tampon make me look fat!?

If there's a bad tampon joke, then I haven't hear it! Joan Rivers has been performing stand-up comedy for more than two of my lifetimes, but unlike most people who have been around that long, she knows who Victoria Beckham is. This is relevant, because Joan Rivers has managed to keep a timelessness. That is something that peers from her original era such as Bill Cosby and Don Rickles have lost as they slowly lost touch with contemporary pop culture. Joan Rivers has not had the career she has had because she is funnier than anyone else. She has had the career she has had because she has worked harder than anyone else. Like the Jerry Seinfeld documentary "Comedian," this movie shows how important hard work and endurance are.

Whether you find her funny or not (I do), Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work is a documentary that will show you many things besides just one pop culture icon. The filmmakers have captured a very intimate portrait of the ups and downs of showbiz, not a new subject but also not an uninteresting one.