Courtesy of Comedy CentralIf you don’t know who Russell Brand is, he’s that annoying English guy you might have seen in “Forgetting Sarah Marshall” or hosting last year’s MTV Video Music Awards.
On March 8, Comedy Central will be premiering an hour-long special of his standup in New York City. If you were one of the people who haven’t heard of him yet, this Sunday would be a perfect time to find out who he is. And if you have heard of him, this would be a perfect opportunity for you to change your mind about him.
From what America’s seen of him so far, he appears to be some pompous, offensive Brit with pompous, offensive hair. This might be true, but at least he means well. The hour- long special encompasses a variety of topics, ranging from America’s misconceptions of Brand, to filming his first movie, to the trend of “seagulling” in England (you don’t want to know what that is). Brand manages to be consistently entertaining throughout the show.
Early in his set, he talks about filming “Forgetting Sarah Marshall,” joking about his disbelief that Mila Kunis’ boyfriend is actually the “Home Alone” magnate Macaulay Culkin. Brand also reminisced on how obnoxiously happy the people were in Hawaii while they were filming on location: “It’s like being beaten over the head with a … rainbow.” He also talks about the surfing and horseback riding lessons he took for the film 8212; both were cut from the movie because he was so horrible at each of them.
Halfway through the set, he changes the subject to the intense awkwardness felt while filming his promotional commercial for the VMAs with Britney Spears. He then reads all his death threats and hate mail in response to his performance at the VMAs. The messages vary from objections to his endorsement to vote for now-President Barack Obama to his comments about the Jonas Brothers’ chastity rings. He almost takes up a good 20 minutes with this, but it’s well worth it, because every comment is increasingly more hilarious and more disturbing.
Finally, he ends on a topic about sex and existentialism, and finishes off by tying it into the practice of “seagulling” in England. Even though the ending is a little bit weak, the overall quality of the show makes up for its anticlimactic finish. Regardless of whether you love him, hate him or just don’t know him, “Russell Brand in New York City” is a sidesplitting show you have to see premiering this Sunday.
