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Film Jerry Lewis Quest: The Official Funnyboards Companion To A Woman's Strange Quest To Watch Every Jerry Lewis Film

Phosphorescent Skeleton

Phosphorescent Skeleton

It's a hard world for little things.
Pronouns
She/Her
At some point in the life of every True Solider of Cinema a little Jerry Lewis must fall. It is as inevitable as the swallows returning to Capistrano when ever they do that. And that point in my life is now. I feel that by watching all of The Clown Prince of Films extensive oveur I will understand something new about this world, though I'm afraid of what that might be.

We will of course begin with the films Lewis made with his original partner, Dean Martin. I'm already deep into my quest, about halfway through the Dean Martin Era, but I'll try to post a new write up at least once a day.
 
I read the thread but I forgot what I read when I started typing. I didn't stop to reread it for some reason, I just barreled forward boldly. I don't really know why. Sorry
 
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Phos you don't have to do this! And you certainly don't have to drag me into watching one or more of them with you.

You could be watching Christmas Comes to Pac-Land or something! Doesn't that sound appealing?
 
We're getting close to when they're going to circulate his unreleased holocaust clown movie, aren't we?
 
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Clov said:
Phos you don't have to do this! And you certainly don't have to drag me into watching one or more of them with you.

You could be watching Christmas Comes to Pac-Land or something! Doesn't that sound appealing?
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Oh, we're going to watch some together unsoberly.

We'll also watch Christ comes to the PacMan Land
 
This sounds great! Can't wait to read these recaps. Godspeed with your quest.

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Jerry Lewis Quest, Part 1: My Friend Irma



The first movie to feature Jerry Lewis and Dean Martin. Folks this one is tough rowing. Based on an otherwise completely forgotten radio show which had the initiative premise "what if a woman was stupid". Martin play the love interest for Irma's incredibly shitty friend. Lewis plays, from what I can gather, his love interest (a homoerotic tension between the 2 is a recurring theme throughout their films). There are some mildly funny bits of business with Jerry and Dean working at an orange juice stand, and Dean sing some of his godawful songs, but this is a 100 minute slog. This film is shot like a radio show, you could close your eyes and listen and miss almost nothing. For incurable Jerry heads and completionists only. 2/5
 
I will be following this thread closely. I like movies — and classic movies too! And have seen quite a few. But I must have some unconscious resistance (or some guardian angel) because I have gone my whole life without seeing a Jerry Lewis movie.

I have seen more Eddie Murphy remakes of Jerry Lewis movies than Jerry Lewis movies.

Weirdly, I have also seen more movies featuring Jerry Lewis impersonators than I have seen Jerry Lewis movies. (The movie in question is Bela Lugosi Meets a Brooklyn Gorilla, and the impersonator is Sammy Petrillo.)

So I’m looking forward to reading your reviews — if only to better understand the French, who think this guy’s a genius!
 
CharginChuck said:
I will be following this thread closely. I like movies — and classic movies too! And have seen quite a few. But I must have some unconscious resistance (or some guardian angel) because I have gone my whole life without seeing a Jerry Lewis movie.

I have seen more Eddie Murphy remakes of Jerry Lewis movies than Jerry Lewis movies.

Weirdly, I have also seen more movies featuring Jerry Lewis impersonators than I have seen Jerry Lewis movies. (The movie in question is Bela Lugosi Meets a Brooklyn Gorilla, and the impersonator is Sammy Petrillo.)

So I’m looking forward to reading your reviews — if only to better understand the French, who think this guy’s a genius!
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I love and will be writing about Bela Lugosi Meets a Brooklyn Gorilla.
 
Here's a sneak preview of a movie Phos is going to be writing about soon! We watched the 1953 Jerry Lewis classic, Money from Home together. I hated it!

Jerry Lewis seems to irritate me at some sort of primal, unconscious level. Dean Martin was barely in the film, and the moments he was on screen were agonizing. The movie drags on and on for a tortuous 100 minutes, many gags which weren't very funny to begin with being stretched out far past their capacity for any form of amusement. I deeply regret watching this film sober.

1/5, not funny, didn't laugh. I hope they ate that stupid horse
 
Clov said:
Here's a sneak preview of a movie Phos is going to be writing about soon! We watched the 1953 Jerry Lewis classic, Money from Home together. I hated it!

Jerry Lewis seems to irritate me at some sort of primal, unconscious level. Dean Martin was barely in the film, and the moments he was on screen were agonizing. The movie drags on and on for a tortuous 100 minutes, many gags which weren't very funny to begin with being stretched out far past their capacity for any form of amusement. I deeply regret watching this film sober.

1/5, not funny, didn't laugh. I hope they ate that stupid horse
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I can't believe I made you watch that. It was close to the worst one yet
 
Jerry Lewis Quest 2: My Friend Irma Goes West

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Insanely bad, all the problems with the first movie amplified. Heavy emphasis on the Goes in the title, most of this movie concerns the machinations of sending Irma and friends west and bits of "comedic" business in drab train cars. When they get west, an convoluted plot involving gambling gangster forces the action into generic casinos and a rustic gangster hideout. Jerry does some good bits early on with spaghetti and a monkey, but he remains a very minor character and blows all the good will he's earned on some hideously racist red face bits. YMMV on Dean Martin's crooner bullshit, I hate it. This is the worst one 1/5
 
Jerry Lewis Quest 3: At War With the Army

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Partly musical WWII comedy. Dean Martin is a huge piece of shit in this, which is not helped by the fact that I'm not a fan of his crooner bullshit. There is zero chemistry between him and Lewis. Jerry is pretty amusing but everyone in the movie is a jerk to him in a way that's more unpleasant than funny. Jerry actually gets to sing a comedy song, and while not especially funny, its better than another boring Martin number. Scholars debate about who the worst Martin and Lewis director was, and while my money is on George Marshall, this one makes a good case for Hal Walker. Not very good, but must have been a pleasant enough reminder to the greatest generation of not dying in the war. 1.5/5
 
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Jerry Lewis Quest 4: That's My Boy

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This sucks, why am I doing this, I fucking hate Dean Martin. Ughhhhhhbbbbbb every scene stretches on forever with no jokes! Much like the My Friend Irma film, the Martin and Lewis got their start in, this feels like a radio show that just happens to have visuals. Glad people eventually realized a guy could be funny without having a serious, "handsome", asshole best friend.
This poor excuse for a comedy features a father and son with a Hank/Bobby Hill relationship. Football hero dad wants frail and nerdy son to relive his glory days as a college sports star, but Lewis' character has no interest or talent in these plans. The movie tries to tell you that its about a father accepting his son for who he really is. The father states that he learned that lesson at the end of the movies, but its all bullshit. Jerry's character actually learns to play and becomes a football hero, fulfilling all his fathers dreams. Its terrible. Also, Dean Martin is here, but who gives a shit, he barely matters. 1/5
 
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These reviews make me happy. I’m sure they’re funnier than the movies.

Why ARE you doing this, anyway? Is it indeed some strange, inscrutable inevitability that percolates through the soul?

What uncanny facts have you learned about the world, as per your original post?

And is such knowledge safe for human consumption?
 
CharginChuck said:
These reviews make me happy. I’m sure they’re funnier than the movies.

Why ARE you doing this, anyway? Is it indeed some strange, inscrutable inevitability that percolates through the soul?

What uncanny facts have you learned about the world, as per your original post?

And is such knowledge safe for human consumption?
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Honest answer, its been a good demonstration of how much fashions and tastes can change. Jerry Lewis was insanely beloved and popular, on the level of the Beatles, but his cultural legacy is PRETTY LADY, the holocaust movie he refused to release, professor Frink, and jokes about French people loving him. I think that Jerry Lewis is occasionally funny too, and I'm really looking forward to his famously strange directorial work and the ones directed by Frank Tashlin.
I think he's an interesting, influential, and historically important figure. Is he as good as Jacques Tati? Of course not! But I don't think Jacques Tati would be the same without Lewis.
 
Phosphorescent Skeleton said:
Honest answer, its been a good demonstration of how much fashions and tastes can change. Jerry Lewis was insanely beloved and popular, on the level of the Beatles, but his cultural legacy is PRETTY LADY, the holocaust movie he refused to release, professor Frink, and jokes about French people loving him. I think that Jerry Lewis is occasionally funny too, and I'm really looking forward to his famously strange directorial work and the ones directed by Frank Tashlin.
I think he's an interesting, influential, and historically important figure. Is he as good as Jacques Tati? Of course not! But I don't think Jacques Tati would be the same without Lewis.
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Very well-put! You’ve inspired me to see if I can queue up a Lewis or two over the holiday break.
Err, I might skip those Dean Martins though!
 
Jerry Lewis Quest 5: Sailor Beware

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Back to laughs in uniform. This is the best one so far. Some smile worthy jokes and bits, especially a bizarre scene where Jerry's blood is completely clear. Martin's character is a scumbag that constantly signs up for the navy to sleep with women because he knows he's unfit for service, and Lewis' is a mega nerd who is literally allergic to women (because of their perfume). Martin has to join becaus of lowered navy standards and Lewis falls for a nurse who doesn't wear perfume (this is the first time he's gotten a love interest). Martin and Lewis have better chemistry and are more equal here, and it often feels like the real romance is between them. This is the first time they seem to like each other, which is a major breakthrough. Relaxing like reruns of 50s sitcoms are. Ends with some insane racism sadly. The second big issue is that the Martin and Lewis military comedies have far too much respect for the armed forces to really generate much laughter from the premise. 2.5/5
 
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Jerry Lewis Quest 6: Jumping Jacks

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The other day I woke up with actual depression because I had to watch another one of these pieces of shit. Gonna keep going, but probably a bit slower for the sake of my mental health. This is another goddamn Lewis and Martin in the army stinker. Is this better than the last one? I don't know. Jerry Lewis has some good bits here, he's a great physical comedian. Dean Martin is less irritating. Lewis gets kidnapped by the amry and forced to perform in stage shows to entertain the troops. A bunch of half assed and slack army jokes. This is military propaganda on par with anything Marvel has done. Mercifully their last army picture. 2/5
 
Jerry Lewis Quest 7: The Stooge

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Bland and boring, but a step up. Needed 2 more stooges. More time given to Jerry's romance subplot here, which is a trend. A movie written by Jerry Lewis about how Dean Martin is a hack and a failure as a solo act and how he doesn't fully appreciate Jerry. Incredible. The ones with Lewis and Martin as a comedy music team feel kinda lazy. They have a somewhat Daffy/Bugs relationship, probably influenced some of those cartoons. Wish I was watching those instead. Running outta things to write about these and still 6 more write ups until the first actually good one. 2.5/5
 
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My goodness, I didn’t know there were so many of these. Imagine if Tati had been this prolific! And now imagine if Tati had had a good-looking, lounge singing partner for the first half of his career.
It can be very interesting to bypass the classics and sample the regular gruel of any given time period — sometimes you find a hidden gem — and sometimes it’s up to you to provide your own entertainment! It must build some kind of imaginative or at least sociological fortitude…
 
CharginChuck said:
My goodness, I didn’t know there were so many of these. Imagine if Tati had been this prolific! And now imagine if Tati had had a good-looking, lounge singing partner for the first half of his career.
It can be very interesting to bypass the classics and sample the regular gruel of any given time period — sometimes you find a hidden gem — and sometimes it’s up to you to provide your own entertainment! It must build some kind of imaginative or at least sociological fortitude…
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Pretty much hit the nail on the head of why I'm doing this.
 
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The only Jerry Lewis film I've seen is the King of Comedy, which he's amazing in. Had no idea he was in a bunch of crappy and bland comedies of his era, lol.
 
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I swear I have followed this thread like four times and I came to check in and once again was not following it. Is a shitfaced Dean Martin sitting behind the Internet Control Board, ratfucking me out of Jerry Lewis updates? I have to believe that's the case. Anyway, I'm following again!
 
big lantern ghost said:
I swear I have followed this thread like four times and I came to check in and once again was not following it. Is a shitfaced Dean Martin sitting behind the Internet Control Board, ratfucking me out of Jerry Lewis updates? I have to believe that's the case. Anyway, I'm following again!
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I'll get back to posting write ups, have had to take a break from Jerry Lewis to prevent my brain from melting.
 
Hey there, I stumbled upon your post about your quest to watch every Jerry Lewis film, and I must say it sounds like an exciting journey. As a kid, I loved his comedies, especially The Nutty Professor. However, as I grew older, I began to appreciate films that explored deeper themes and ideas.If you're interested in learning more about filmmaking and exploring deeper themes in movies, you should definitely check out the Prague Film Institute at -. They offer a wide range of courses and workshops on film theory, screenwriting, directing, and more. I've heard great things about them, and they have some amazing instructors.
 
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dariokgladstone said:
Hey there, I stumbled upon your post about your quest to watch every Jerry Lewis film, and I must say it sounds like an exciting journey. As a kid, I loved his comedies, especially The Nutty Professor.
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I need to get back to this when I'm not experiencing the worst mental health crisis of my life
 
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