Friday evening, I attended a screening of the new documentary, Gilbert, which is all about the noted comedian Gilbert Gottfried. I enjoyed the film tremendously, in part because I've always enjoyed Gilbert Gottfried tremendously. If you haven't…well, there's a chance this film will change your mind about him but I'd say it's only about a 10-20% chance.
The film has basically three themes which intersect in many ways. Theme One is that Gilbert was this shy loner who was very private and guarded about letting anyone into his life. His friends were all sure he'd die alone and unwed because he seemed to live in his own private little world and let no one in.
Then one day to the amazement of all, he was suddenly engaged to be married. Not only that but he was engaged to be married to a very lovely, intelligent woman who seemed to love him dearly. Not only that but he was engaged to a very lovely, intelligent woman who seemed to love him dearly and who was carrying what would turn out to be the first of their two (so far) children! That that relationship exists and that it's transformed this sullen loner into a good husband and father is amazing and that's basically Theme One.
Theme Two is Gilbert's relationship with his two sisters, especially Arlene who is a brilliant photographer. Actually, I should say "was" because she passed away after being interviewed for the documentary. There is a lot in it about Gilbert helping her cope with cancer and before that, with the loss of their mother. It's all very humanizing of a guy who doesn't always come off as that human on TV.
And then there's Theme Three which is about Gilbert's career as a teller of what some would call very dirty and often-offensive jokes. The film deals with the rise of his career and the intermittent fallout because of this joke or that one.
It also deglamorizes the life of a standup comedian on the road and there's a very funny sequence where Gilbert is booked into some venue where he can't help but intermingle with a convention of folks dressed in the garb of past wars including a lot of guys dressed as Nazi soldiers. One says he's a big, big fan and apologizes for the uniform. All of this makes for a very entertaining and surprisingly personal look at its subject.
The screening we attended was packed with people I knew and it included a Q-and-A hosted by Paul Provenza. Q'ed were Gilbert, his wife Dara and the filmmaker, Neil Berkeley. Mr. Berkeley shot this entire film with no distribution deal or even Gilbert's formal legal consent, though Gilbert gave him way more access and cooperation than anyone who knew G.G. would have expected. It's very nice to see that it's coming out and already getting so many good reviews and good reaction.
Gilbert seemed tired at the Q-and-A. He'd just come from another screening in Santa Monica where he was interviewed by Howie Mandel — and he didn't say as much as the audience might have liked. Asked about the Louis C.K. matter though, he did remark "I'm kind of an old-fashioned guy. I prefer to do my masturbation in private." Afterward, there was a lot of milling and meeting and Gilbert obliged about half the audience in posing for selfies.
There were two folks in the audience who were past guests on Gilbert Gottfried's Amazing Colossal Podcast, which I hope you all listen to as it's very funny. One of those past guests who were present was Hank Garrett, who is probably best known for his role on Car 54, Where Are You? and the other one was Bill Macy, who is probably best known for his role on Maude. I was probably the only person present who immediately realized what else they had in common. (Do you know what it is? I'll post the answer here later today.)
I am a future guest. We were supposed to record one of Gilbert's podcasts during my recent New York trip but he was called unexpectedly outta-town to do some publicity for this fine documentary so we're rescheduling. I'll let you know when that happens. I may need to brush up on my Cesar Romero and Danny Thomas anecdotes first.
Anyway, the documentary is called Gilbert and it drops, as they say, on iTunes on Tuesday. If you've ever liked its subject or want to take the 10-20% chance that this will cause you to like him, check it out.