Montreal is incredibly lucky to have the Just For Laughs festival. In July, you have the rare chance to see a show of world-class comics without travelling to the US, or dealing with the two-drink minimum like you would in all of the best American clubs. With Andy Kindler's longest running Just For Laughs show, you just get what you want to pay for: great comedy from start to finish.
After Kindler triumphantly pointed out that he hated Louis C.K. before it was cool, and goofed around with some new material about his OCD, he kept the energy of the show high with his idiosyncratic introductions and his adorable habit of hugging every comic before they performed. From then on, the talent ranged from the young up-and-comer comic Joel Kim Booster to the legendary Maria Bamford, but everyone was pretty much equally funny.
Bamford's stream-of-consciousness song about maintaining a long-term relationship was enchantingly amusing, while Joel Kim Booster's frank jokes about how people are just "built to cum" was cuttingly funny contrast. After that, Laurie Kilmartin's mocking of Andy Kindler's introduction delightfully highlighted both her longstanding friendship with Kindler and her natural confidence on stage, plus her material about having an 11-year-old delivered consistent laughs.
Lastly, Scott Thompson and DeAnne Smith both showed that Canadian comics can easily match the calibre of the American ones. Thompson's set in-character as Buddy Cole milked the bizarre idea of centaur rape for hard-hitting laughs, while DeAnne Smith made both the crowd and the comics in the balcony giggle with her summarization of egotistical male standup comedy.
After Kindler triumphantly pointed out that he hated Louis C.K. before it was cool, and goofed around with some new material about his OCD, he kept the energy of the show high with his idiosyncratic introductions and his adorable habit of hugging every comic before they performed. From then on, the talent ranged from the young up-and-comer comic Joel Kim Booster to the legendary Maria Bamford, but everyone was pretty much equally funny.
Bamford's stream-of-consciousness song about maintaining a long-term relationship was enchantingly amusing, while Joel Kim Booster's frank jokes about how people are just "built to cum" was cuttingly funny contrast. After that, Laurie Kilmartin's mocking of Andy Kindler's introduction delightfully highlighted both her longstanding friendship with Kindler and her natural confidence on stage, plus her material about having an 11-year-old delivered consistent laughs.
Lastly, Scott Thompson and DeAnne Smith both showed that Canadian comics can easily match the calibre of the American ones. Thompson's set in-character as Buddy Cole milked the bizarre idea of centaur rape for hard-hitting laughs, while DeAnne Smith made both the crowd and the comics in the balcony giggle with her summarization of egotistical male standup comedy.
