Review of The King of Comedy (1982) by Jake C — 02 Sep 2017

An utterly unique and remarkably prescient exploration of our culture's obsession with celebrity. Particularly striking is the film's biting disclosure of a certain kind of ideation: The way many of us fantasize about the fruits of success but never the necessary labor.

Pupkin-a name like a dog, like a child, like an addled dreamer-imagines all the congratulations that will come should he just get his big break, but we never see him imagining or even enjoying the work itself.

Said otherwise, he doesn't want to be a comedian; he just wants to be a king.