« Eastwood's Double Feature | Main | Borat - The New Trailer(s) »
September 03, 2006
Dane Cook
I have to say, I feel pretty much exactly the same way as Heather Havrilesky does about the Dane Cook Experience.
I don't find him funny. I thought his SNL episode was one of the worst ever... and that's saying something.
I have considered that maybe he is simply "for the kids" and I am no longer a kid. And this Havrilesky piece also reminds me of the July 9 New Yorker Tad Friend piece on the Blue Collar Comedy Tour, which also speaks a language I don't understand. (The New Yorker never posted the piece, but it was one of the best I've read in a while, really understanding the cultural rift.)
Cook reminds me of the classic comedian stereotype of getting a laugh by emphasizing syllables instead of saying something that really reaches for ideas that touch people deeply and honestly, even if they're silly.
Posted by poland at September 3, 2006 02:59 PM
Comments
I've laughed at a few of his jokes, but his great success astonishes me. At least with Dice, there was a real personality there and you either liked him or hated him. Cook is just a total blah. I don't get it. From what I've seen though, his humor seems to play well with young girls, which is sort of an untapped stand-up demo.
Posted by: martin
at September 3, 2006 03:17 PM
Preach it. After hearing Cook's name for over a year, I finally broke down and downloaded one of his specials. I knew nothing about the guy, had no expectations, and no reason to dislike him. Yet. An hour later, the show was over, and I hadn't even chuckled a single time.
It was the first time I ever felt old, and I'm only 30. I mean, is the generation gap that huge? There wasn't a single funny line in 60 freaking minutes, but the audience was laughing as if Richard Pryor, Eddie Murphy and Robin Harris had combined into one Super-Comedian.
Posted by: Josh Massey
at September 3, 2006 03:19 PM
I don't get him either, so welcome to the club. He comes across like a real prick on that HBO show Tourgasm, too.
Posted by: EDouglas
at September 3, 2006 03:29 PM
Dane Cook's routine reminds me of an energetic Jay Leno monologue. It's not funny in the least, but he's so gosh darn nice (or in Cook's case: nice looking) and so gosh darn sincere that the audience feels compelled to applaud the effort.
Posted by: Wrecktum
at September 3, 2006 04:15 PM
Tourgasm sucked, and he's stolen material from Louis C.K., but for the most part he's pretty funny. I guess because he's good looking and girls like him, he's uberpopular *shrugs*
Posted by: brack
at September 3, 2006 04:53 PM
The worst part about Dane Cook is that none of his routine feels even just a little spontaneous. Every line and spastic body movement feels planned out. To me, comedy isn't funny if someone is trying too hard and it comes off as pre-programmed shtick.
Posted by: palmtree
at September 3, 2006 04:56 PM
"he's good looking and girls like him"
yikes, not I. I don;t think he's funny at all. Give me the three stooges anyday.
I do hope he doesn't get as many future movie vehicles as the also unfunny uncharismatic Jimmy fallon.
Posted by: Lota
at September 3, 2006 05:45 PM
I think Cook is wildly untalented but he is selling tickets somehow. I don't see a long career but who knows. I see a number of failed movies and a sitcom in his future.
Posted by: Pat H.
at September 3, 2006 06:05 PM
agreed, the mere mention of his name gives me douche chills.
Posted by: martin
at September 3, 2006 06:23 PM
I defended him for a while, and found some of his stand-up pretty funny despite its robotic nature, but when I found out he'd been stealing material (and not writing checks for the purloined bits like Robin Williams used to do), that was it. Fuck him.
Posted by: Jeremy Smith
at September 3, 2006 06:33 PM
You either think something's funny or you don't. Trying to get at comedy from some intellectual angle is a waste of time. Like Gene Siskel said, "You can't convince someone of funny or sexy."
What turns you on and what makes you laugh is embedded pretty deeply inside and nobody is going to change that by explaining what's right or wrong about it.
I realized this when I was sitting in a theater watching "Rosencrantz & Guildenstern Are Dead" surrounded by some pretty smart people who were rolling on the floor with laughter at something that was putting me to sleep.
Posted by: scarper86
at September 3, 2006 08:31 PM
What? You all are telling me that 'Employee of the Month' is not going to be the funniest movie ever? Shit. Now what am I going to watch that weekend?
That being said, Dax Shepard was pretty funny in 'Zathura'...I thought he was the star of EotM...then I find out people know who this Dane Cook guy is. And I'd never heard of him. I think I'll skip his stand-up stuff.
Oh, and Jessica Simpson, as a cashier? Riiiiiight. I can suspend my belief, but only so much.
Posted by: Aladdin Sane
at September 3, 2006 09:42 PM
Finally, the truth!
When I heard he was the Next Big Thing with all the kids, I gave him a listen. Didn't even get a smile from me— I was just mystified. This is funny? Not offensive, not 'edgy,' just blah. I don't even dislike him that much; he's just the very definition of milquetoast.
I am 32.
Posted by: Campbell
at September 3, 2006 11:05 PM
I'm right in his target demo and I still find him painfully unfunny. It seems like the people who like him are the kinds of people that have never heard another comedy act in their life.
Posted by: Brett B
at September 4, 2006 09:10 AM
Zach Galifinakis and Patton Oswalt are much funnier to me.
Posted by: CaptainZahn
at September 4, 2006 11:29 AM
Age is meaningless. Buster Keaton is funny if you're 6 or 106. If kids think Cook is funny, then it's because they haven't been exposed to anything better. Remember, this is the same generation that made comedy stars out of Tom Green and Andy Dick.
Posted by: Cadavra
at September 5, 2006 12:11 PM
Andy Dick was funny on News Radio.
Posted by: Wrecktum
at September 5, 2006 05:28 PM
If you say so.
Posted by: Cadavra
at September 6, 2006 12:15 PM
Agreed, Wrecktum.
Posted by: Josh Massey
at September 6, 2006 03:31 PM
To be completely honest, most everyone's comment above sounded pseudo-intellectual; and for those of you who just said 'Thank you!' in your head- it's a bad thing. Not only that, but you sit here and say the 'younger' generation is what makes him who he is.
He has a presence- a stage spirit powerful enough to reach peoples. What feels like a sincere enjoyment for what he does is what makes people enjoy his stand-up.
For those of you who didn't smile- I suggest finding something a bit happier in your life; open the windows and let some sun in, so to speak. You all seem so predisposed to have a stick up your ass at all times that getting a smile out of you is probably considered a rarity and treat by your friends.
Not to push my beliefs upon others, but what the hell- fundamentalists have done it all their lives:
Try to walk around and smile. Just smile, and don't think about how stupid you might look. Just enjoy yourself.
On that note- Cook isn't the best out there; not close. I gave some fairly defined and definite chuckles, but I've heard better.
I think he's an amazing individual though; someone who can bring comedy to life for those looking to have a bit of fun.
Or a frown to those who think maybe fun has to be had a certain way, or not at all.
Posted by: Dalton
at March 12, 2007 12:53 PM
Good Luck Chuck is so hilarious. I can’t believe how funny Dane Cook was in the movie and on air with Ryan Seacrest during an interview. Did you happen to catch it? If you didn’t you can hear it on this link http://www.kiisfm.com/cc-common/losangeles/podcast/onair.html
Posted by: THEKIISFMCASTER
at September 29, 2007 07:22 PM
Post a comment
Thanks for signing in, . Now you can comment. (sign out)
(If you haven't left a comment here before, you may need to be approved by the site owner before your comment will appear. Until then, it won't appear on the entry. Thanks for waiting.)