Eddie Murphy: Raw

Like Richard Pryor, I must admit, it is fun to watch another foul mouthed comic, up on stage. Though not matching the credentials of the late, brilliant insightful comic, Pryor, who I believe was even a better actor, what we have is 86 minutes guaranteed worth of raucous laughs. From infidelity to poverty, where the poor Murphy family were reduced to eating slinky springs, Murphy kicks up a storm of laughs, while remaining coolly confident, which a few budding comedian must envy. Murphy knows how to dress too, his attire more effective than his ruddy sort in Delirious. Too, the start was inventive, with Eddie's childhood, Samuel L Jackson, playing a small but fine role as the Grandfather, egging little Eddie on in the tellings of a dirty joke, seeing star potential. And to split opinions, where personally I didn't like Best Defence, I'd choose Beverly Hills Cop over 48 Hours, any day. I must admit, Murphy isn't afraid to be dramatic about the underlying realities of his jokes. it. His impersonations are fantastic, Bill Cosby, is almost nailed, plus others that impress. Here's a great night in, to save you from going out in the cold to a concert. If you don't mind profanity, that is.

This is not quite as funny as Delirious, but nothing could be. However, it is still is one of the funniest stand-ups around. The first half an hour is on par with his previous stand-up. The first half an hour he does impressions of some of the same people he did impressions of in DELIRIOUS. This includes Michael Jackson and Mr. T again. He also does impressions of what I can only surmise has to be a real life phone call from Bill Cosby. This is one of the funniest parts of the show as his voice and idiosyncrisies of Bill are right on. His ensuing conversation with Richard Pryor is also quite funny.

There is also some great bits in here about women, dating, and marriage. And while many people have claimed that Eddie is nothing but a misogynist with his rantings now, it has to be said that there has to be some truth to what he is ranting about.

The show does lack a little near the end but that is okay because the rest of the show is one hilarious skit after the other. He even takes on his parents again and does quite a good job.

Raw is not quite as funny as Delirious but it is a great follow up to his first one.

7 out of 10

I'm not kidding, my stomach is sore from all the laughing. After a brief sketch that serves as a lead-in and to some extent, a setup, this is 77 minutes of pure and gradually increasing hilarity(and there is actually insight to a ton of what he says). This and Hot Fuzz(which had the greater effect on me, but you really can't compare these) are the only two things where I've ever felt like I might croak, that my (23-year old and trim as of writing this, mind you) body might be overwhelmed from my enjoying the crap out of what I was seeing and hearing. I love Murphy when he is allowed to do what he does best, and not asked to do it in an irritating manner. The man has a machine-gun for a mouth(in the sense that it can fire off absolutely lethal verbal projectiles at such a speed that counting them soon becomes an exercise in pointless behaviour) and he can behave arrogantly as well as self-deprecating(if the scales aren't necessarily equal). His impersonations are excellent, and Bill Cosby, Richard Pryor(R.I.P.), Michael Jackson(R.I.P.), Africans, Jamaicans, Italians, etc. must have been embarrassed, if they don't have(or had in those 2 cases) a sense of humor about themselves. This is a performance by Eddie, and like other stand-uppers, he ties it together and repeats certain punchlines. The whole thing keeps to an astounding pace(with very few exceptions), and flies by. This is filmed and edited with skill, evident especially in the fact that you don't notice it; it doesn't draw attention to itself, and off the man. There are stereotypes in this, and it is in general quite controversial. The main focus is on relationships, women and sex, though he does talk about gay people, us whites and our inability to dance, and there is a brief bit of bodily function jokes. There is a constant stream of strong language in this. I recommend this to any fan of the comic the way I would a hot meal to someone hungry. 8/10

Offensive, crude, infantile, empty. Sure, 'Raw' is all these things. It's also laugh-out- loud funny. This is Eddie Murphy at his best, when he still knew how to make people laugh. He takes the stage and commands for the duration of the film. He's so in control and confident it's amazing. I saw it again recently. It aged well.

This opens with a young Eddie Murphy shocking his family during the Thanksgiving gather in 68. It's his standup in Madison Square Garden. He's afraid of Mr. T but not so much Michael Jackson after making fun of them in Delirious. He imitates Bill Crosby chastising him and praises his hero Richard Pryor. It's a night of foul-mouthed nasty stories with references to various pop culture personalities. He and his purple outfit has the audience in the palm of his hands. This is Eddie Murphy at his highest point. He is irreverent and fearless. He comes off as a homophobic misogynist and it doesn't matter. He takes on anything and anyone. He's full of power and energy. Robert Townsend captures it all.