Movie Name/Year: Ken
Jeong: You Complete Me, Ho (2019)
Tagline: None
Genre: Comedy
Length: 62
minutes
Rating: TV-MA
Production Companies:
Den of Thieves, Netflix
Producer: Brett
Carducci, Ken Jeong
Director: Jon M.
Chu
Writer: Ken Jeong
Actors: Ken Jeong
Blurb from Netflix:
In his first-ever stand-up special, Ken Jeong pays tribute to his wife and
shares stories about Hollywood and how “The Hangover” saved his life.
Selina’s Point of View:
Ok. I’m going to be straight up and then I’ll try to
explain. I enjoyed this stand-up special.
Now, the explanation part is a little more complicated. I’m
not sure how to accurately describe how I feel.
As an actor/comedian, I think Ken Jeong (Crazy Rich Asians, Bob’s Burgers, Dr. Ken)
is fun to watch. I especially love when he works with Wired for the Doc Support
videos. It’s a series where he answers medical questions from Twitter. I highly
recommend it. That said, this is his first comedy special – so I didn’t know
what to expect from it.
I love stand-up comedy. You give me a Christopher Titus (Bad Parents, Big Shots, Scar), Gabriel
Iglesias (The Star, Coco, Magic Mike),
Lewis Black (The Last Laugh, Inside Out,
Accepted) or George Carlin (Dogma,
Jersey Girl, Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventures) special and I’ll put my
phone down and zone right in. There are plenty others that would command my
attention, too – those are just the first to come to mind. The point is, they
all have this aura about them. They draw attention. I see them on stage and
immediately get ready to settle in for some laughter. The COMMAND attention.
Ken Jeong doesn’t. Not really. It’s less like he’s up there monologuing
and more like he’s having a discussion with the audience. He doesn’t feel like
a comedian in this special. He feels like your happy-drunk friend that’s have a
damn good night.
Cat’s Point of View:
I’ve got to say, this Ken Jeong (The Duff, Community, Wonder Park) comedy special was not at
all what I anticipated. Honestly, I’m not exactly sure what I expected, aside
from something over-the-top like Mr. Chow from The Hangover (2009) asking audience members “but did you DIE?”
This particular special was a bit of a departure from what I’ve
come to expect from a Netflix comedy show. I got the feeling that it was done
quite intentionally, however, as Jeong mentions specifically his choice to film
for a ‘small’ comedy club crowd rather than a giant arena. The choice seemed to
work in his favor, since he has less of a gimmick and didn’t have a thematic
set of bits. Jeong was able to draw more from audience interaction than he
would have in a larger venue.
While I didn’t find myself laughing until I couldn’t
breathe, the show was overall entertaining. It felt almost like a hybridization
of a comedy-themed TEDTalks (2006-)
and a comedy show. Moviephiles will likely get a good deal more out of this
special than anyone looking for a pure stand-up show. Jeong relates funny
memories, and even some touching moments from ‘behind the scenes’ of various
films, he’s participated in, actors he’s worked with, and even moments from his
personal life.
I have always found Jeong to be a fascinating individual.
Anyone else that feels the same will likely enjoy his show quite a bit. For
those that aren’t fans? I don’t know if this special would be a conversion
experience for you, but it’d definitely give you a peek at the person behind
the persona.
Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score – 17%
Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score – 40%
Metascore – None
Metacritic User Score – None
IMDB Score – 5.7/10
Trust the Dice: Selina’s Rating – 3.5/5
Trust the Dice: Cat’s Rating
– 3.5/5
P.S. Stick around
for the credits, there are some funny moments in them.
Movie Trailer: