This behind-the-scenes look at the stand-up comic profession follows two comedians at very different points in their careers–up-and-comer Orny Adams and Jerry Seinfeld–as they work on their material and travel the smoky night-club circuit in an effort to hone it to perfection. We watch them pore over every phrase, syllable, and gesture in their routines until their five minutes gradually expands into an hour-long act. Then, they go out on stage in front of crowds of drunks and try to make them laugh.

The reason for Seinfeld’s participation in the documentary is that, after retiring his trademark routine a few years back, he’s ready to return to the stage. This, of course, means fresh jokes, and what’s enjoyable about Comedian is watching this legendary performer toil over his new stuff. When he’s not sitting in the back rooms of comedy clubs yucking it up with A-list jokesters such as Chris Rock, Jay Leno, Robert Klein, and Ray Romano, Seinfeld is either reworking jokes or up on stage, braving possible failure for the opportunity to sharpen each punch line. During one performance, he forgets his line, and frantically searches for the right follow-up. The crowd seems to think that it’s part of the show, and laughs as Jerry fumbles around the stage. The audience, however, knows better, and the thrill is in seeing that, even for the best, nothing comes easy.

Director Christian Charles trailed Seinfeld for a year as he worked the country’s comedy houses, and captured some fantastic moments: the look of starstruck awe and admiration on Seinfeld’s face when Chris Rock tells him that he recently saw Bill Cosby do a two-and-a-half hour set without intermission twice in the same day is priceless.

Unfortunately, Charles’ decision to document, as a counterpoint, the smug, overbearingly irritating Orny Adams’ slow rise to success is a disastrous mistake–when Adams is forced to change a word in his opening joke minutes before his big break on The Late Show with David Letterman, I prayed for the unctuous jerk to bomb. Comedian would have been better off replacing Adams’ shtick with outtakes from Seinfeld and Collin Quinn’s dinner conversations.

nicholas schager

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A Buena Vista release. Directed by Christian Charles. Released to DVD on May 13, 2003.