Richard Pryor Live On The Sunset Strip
Considered to be his ācomebackā performance in 1982 after nearly killing himself by setting himself on fire, any scholars of great stand-up comedy should study films like this for decades to come. It also harkens back to the old days of āconcert filmsā, in which a performance would be professionally filmed and released in theatres in order to showcase that musicianās or comedianās talents. Playing to a packed house at the Palladium on LAās Sunset Strip (which included Jesse Jackson), Pryor touches on a number of topics (some outdated today, some not) which include but are not limited to, sex, racism (of course), drugs, prison life, relationships, money, lawyers, the Mafia, and marriage. Perhaps the most amazing thing about Pryorās work is, unlike many comedians, he doesnāt so much as poke fun at certain people or groups in as much as he usually makes fun of himself, and that self-depreciating humor is no doubt what won him fans of any skin color and enabled him to become a legend. Clearly nervous when he first takes the stage, Pryor considered comedy to be almost a cathartic release, a form of self-therapy where he opened up on stage and literally let his demons out in hilarious ways in a public forum. Only two times during the performance does he get a bit carried away and the humor level ebbs: while talking through an extended bit about visiting Africa and soon comes off as sounding more like a motivational speaker than a comic, and for a popular bit (spurred on by the audience) where he takes on a character named āMudboneā and proceeds to basically ramble on for about ten minutes in some kind of senile old-timer persona. However, the last twenty minutes, where he opens up about his drug use that led to his accident and the repercussions of it, are nearly revelatory in their honesty, and at a couple of points he almost seems to be breaking down from talking about such a painful chapter in his life, while still managing to keep it funny. Overall, an amazing feat from someone who helped inspire Eddie Murphy, Dice Clay, Chris Rock, and almost every other ham-and-egger who managed to score their own HBO Comedy Special and / or sitcom dealā¦
8/10