Review of The King of Comedy (1982) by Kyle B — 11 Mar 2013

Certainly an interesting and thought-provoking one here. Very much the kind of performance that I like to see from DeNiro and Bernhard and Lewis didn't disappoint either. Certainly an ambitious project from Scorsese here as is often the case.

I feel that it paid off and the result is an intriguing and line-blurring black comedy that shows the desperation in human nature from various angles, be it the psychopathic and somewhat terrifying Pupkin, the even more terrifying Marsha or the general public in the film who welcome Pupkin's insanity with open arms.

What makes it more chilling is how convincing it's ending premise is- just look at Issei Sagawa for example- a cannibalistic murderer who went on to become a TV personality and even a food critic (apparently having a taste for human flesh means you have a good palate!?).

Despite all of it's benefits though, it's not hilarious and it simply doesn't go far enough to be as terrifying as it could be. This is understandable though, there's a lot of emphasis placed on Pupkin being a "nice guy" behind the sheer insanity and this makes for a lot of uncomfortable viewing & so the moderate not-too-funny, not-too-scary tone fits well but it still makes for a frustrating watch, something that could probably have been avoided without damaging the integrity of the film.