A Celebration 19 Years In The Making
19 years ago Jimmy Carr arrived on the comedy scene, bringing with him a dark sense of humour and an ability to really push the threshold of taboo jokes. Fast forward to 2019 and this British comedian returns in a Netflix special showcasing his best jokes over the years. Combining his usual slew of rapid-fire one-liners with audience interaction and word play, Jimmy Carr shows he can still deliver the goods all these years later. After a brief introduction, the comedy begins right off the bat with a couple of one liners. As Jimmy riffs about burn victims, his following self-aware jibe at the audience about his style of humour really sets the mood for what’s to come. From here, Jimmy Carr shows no subject is off-limits as he jokes about paedophiles, disabilities, Donald Trump and Shane’s Mum. The latter coming as a result of his usual audience interactions peppered throughout his shows. If you’ve never experienced Jimmy Carr’s comedy or seen his stand-up routines before, this is a great place to start. Some of his jokes are pretty explicit though and depending on your joke threshold, a lot of the appeal with Jimmy comes from the shock factor. There’s some great wordplay here too, including one particular segment involving the shortest possible jokes, really well rehearsed and never-failing to get good laughs. In a bid to try to accentuate some of his older material, including one particular segment involving heterosexual bar talk, the anticipation for the punch-line is dragged out a tad too long and doesn’t always work as well as intended. On top of that, some of the camera angles feel a little distracting when perhaps a more static perspective may have worked better. Numerous rotating shots are shown throughout the hour-long stand up and they really don’t do much to enhance the jokes. Having said all of that, Jimmy Carr’s Best of Ultimate Gold Greatest Hits is a lot of fun. It’s a collection of Jimmy’s best material and a showcase of just why he’s so well-regarded in the industry. Having seen him live twice, Jimmy Carr never fails to deliver the goods. His audience interactions combined with his witty jokes and continuous ability to really push the bar are most of the reason he’s sustained such a good following over the years. While there’s nothing that new here to chew over, this Netflix special acts as a celebratory reminder that Jimmy Carr is a solid comedian, one that certainly stands the test of time.
