Bill Maher. Religulous. 2008

Religulous is a comedic documentary written by and starring political comedian Bill Maher. According to Bill Maher, the title is a combination of the words religion and ridiculous. This statement adequately explains the documentary. The documentary examines and satirizes organized religion and religious beliefs. In the documentary, Bill Maher travels to different religious destinations such as Jerusalem, the Vatican, and Salt Lake City, interviewing believers from a wide range of backgrounds and groups. Some of these groups include, “Jews for Jesus”, Christians, Muslims, Hassidic Jews, and Mormons. Bill Maher also travels to Speaker’s Corner (an area where public speaking is allowed) in Hyde Park, London where he satirically preaches Scientology beliefs. In addition to his documentary, Bill also performs stand-up and is hot of Real Time with Bill Maher on HBO. He performs to a multiracial, multi-ethnic
audience.

Religulous. Dir. Larry Charles. Perf. Bill Maher. Film. Lions Gate Entertainment, 2008.

Steven Lynch. “Priest”. Live at El Ray

This song is a segment taken from a DVD recording of Steven Lynch’s stand-up performance at the El Ray Theater in Los Angeles. Steven Lynch’s style of stand-up is different from the usual form of stand-up in that he performs songs instead of talking. In the posted segment, Lynch is performing a song about the “temptations” of catholic priests towards altar boys. In his performance, Lynch brings up the issue of catholic priests molesting small boys and girls. In his performance, he also brings up other issues of catholic dogma that he attempts to scrutinize in his song. Stephen Lynch’s songs often deal with a wide range of issues, from religion to politics, immigration, drugs, aids, and crime. Stephen Lynch has also been known to bring in stories from his childhood into many of his stand-up songs. He performs to a multi-ethnic but mainly white audience, and has a large following in both the United States and Europe.

Stephen Lynch, Live at El Ray. Perf. Stephen Lynch. DVD. Razor & Tie, 2004. YouTube. 19 Nov. 2007. 31 Mar. 2009 .

South Park: The Snuke

The creators of this show South Park are Matt Stone and Trey Parker. They are most well-known for this show, but they have also written and directed a couple of movies, such as Baseketball and Orgasmo. The video in this posting is an episode from the show, called The Snuke. It seems to some watchers that I have spoken to that the creators of South Park put a lot of time and thought into each episode, so that each one has a certain message for the audience, often with moral values and ideas. The main theme of this episode is intolerance of other people's cultures, although it also contains politics and (as always) bathroom humor. The episode seems to suggest how ludicrous it is to judge someone just based on their ethnic background. The audience for this show is pretty broad, although it is mainly for adolescents and young adults. Here is a link to the video.
Tu.tv. 29 Oct. 2007. Tu.TV: HISPAVITA. 8 Feb. 2009

Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle

In this film, Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle, John Cho(Harold) and Kal Penn(Kumar) show their journey to the famous fast food restaurant, White Castle. This film not only shows the hilarious trip, but also, the happiness after breaking the harsh obstacles. The two stoners Harold and Kumar see a White Castle commercial on television and start the long trip to the White Castle. It is almost impossible for them to reach White Castle as if they are magnetically separated. However they go through awesome experience including nudity, drug use, and life threatening obstacles. This film allows the viewers to laugh not only because of the amusing journey they go through, but because the theme “destiny” keeps the story connected and meaningful. This film is unrated, but highly not recommended for children too young; otherwise, it is a perfect film for a laughing break for all ages.

Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle (Unrated). Dir. Danny Leiner. Perf. John Cho, Kal Penn, Neil Patrick Harris, Anthony Anderson, and Fred Willard. DVD New Line Cinema, 2004.