Sarah Silverman: Jesus Is Magic

Jesus Is Magic

Sarah Silverman
Directed by Liam Lynch
Produced by Heidi Herzon
Grant Jue
Randy Sosin
Mark Williams
Written by Sarah Silverman
Starring Sarah Silverman
Laura Silverman
Brian Posehn
Bob Odenkirk[1]
Music by Liam Lynch
Sarah Silverman
Cinematography Rhet W. Bear
Edited by Liam Lynch
Production
company
Showtime
Visual Entertainment
Distributed by Roadside Attractions
Release dates
  • November 11, 2005
Running time
72 min.
Country United States
Language English

Sarah Silverman: Jesus Is Magic is a 2005 comedy written by and starring Sarah Silverman, directed by Liam Lynch and distributed by Roadside Attractions.

The movie is a concert film consisting of 72 minutes of clips taken from Silverman's previous stand-up show of the same name, interspersed with flashbacks and comedic sketches. Silverman addresses a number of topics, including religion, AIDS, the Holocaust, race, sexism, political parties, people with disabilities, homeless people, and dwarves. Silverman also performs several original songs in the film.[2]

The film was released November 11, 2005 in eight theatres. Receiving positive reviews, it made just under $125,000 during opening weekend. Its performance led to an expanded release in as many as 57 theatres, resulting in a box office take of more than $1.2 million. The movie was released on DVD on June 6, 2006 in the United States, June 13 in Canada, and October 13, 2008 in the United Kingdom. A soundtrack CD was also released featuring most of the musical numbers, excerpts from Silverman's stand-up comedy, and several additional songs which did not appear in the film.

Critical reception

A. O. Scott of The New York Times wrote, "Most of the humor in "Jesus Is Magic" depends on the scandal of hearing a nice, middle-class Jewish girl make jokes about rape, anal sex, the Holocaust and AIDS. She makes fun of religion. She riffs on 9/11. But Ms. Silverman is not smashing taboos so much as she is desperately searching for them."[3]

PopMatters journalist J.C. Maçek III[4] wrote, "I would certainly recommend this film for at the very least, an attempt, especially if you like, or can handle jokes about Jesus, Aids, Hitler, 9/11 and more insults to African Americans than a skinhead pool party."[5]

References

  1. Gross, Terry (November 9, 2005). "Sarah Silverman: 'Jesus Is Magic'". NPR.
  2. Benedictus, Leo (March 21, 2012). "Comedy gold: Sarah Silverman's Jesus is Magic". The Guardian.
  3. Scott, A. O. (November 11, 2005). "A Comic in Search of the Discomfort Zone". The New York Times.
  4. "J.C. Maçek III". PopMatters.
  5. Maçek III, J.C. (2005). "Sarah Silverman: Jesus is Magic". WorldsGreatestCritic.com.

External links