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March 29, 2024, 12:03:25 PM

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Simon Amstell - Set Free (Netflix special)

Started by brat-sampson, August 24, 2019, 11:31:15 AM

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brat-sampson

This popped into my recommended list the other day and I was surprised there was no discussion of it here, so here is a discussion of it here.

We thought it was really good overall. Still very nihilistic and self-deprecating but it really felt like it was coming from a healthier place than some of his previous sets. It was clear he's been through a lot in terms of personal progression over the last few years and it's good to see it's been effective.

Plus some good jokes about pooping.

bomb_dog

That toad does need taking down a peg or too, you're right.

checkoutgirl

Not sure why but I really like Amstell. Thoughtful, intelligent, witty, sensitive, he seems to represent a loser overcoming his shortcomings. I'll have a look at this latest piece immediately.

UltimoLJ

I got a bit bored with it, oddly. Like the material was all fine, but when it got to the sex party stuff, it just felt all so frustratingly similar in cadence to a lot of his other material that it didn't really give me the urge to carry on to see if there was anything fresher?

up_the_hampipe

I'm glad Amstell has found peace, but he believes in some real nonsense (to me) and I'm bored of hearing about it. I miss the miserable bitchy Amstell, but if this makes him happy, so be it.

rue the polywhirl

Left very underwhelmed by this. Humour content was very mildish and much watered down by the cod self-therapy session. The special should have been called 'My boyfriend...' because that's how most every sentence began. There did seem to be an agenda to remind the audience every 2 minutes that he does indeed go out with men. And the glossiness of his short plasticky jet-black hair was a constant distraction as well - I kept thinking his head got caught in some kind of laminator. I gave up half way through and relied on Dave Chappelle Sticks and Stones to demonstrate how comedy was done. I'm a big fan of Grandmas House and Carnage was only a couple of years ago so this is a surprise wafting from grace.

thugler

It was a bit of a less focused, partial rerun of his previous couple of shows. Both of which were far better.

Blue Jam

Quote from: up_the_hampipe on August 29, 2019, 11:20:59 PM
I'm glad Amstell has found peace, but he believes in some real nonsense (to me) and I'm bored of hearing about it.

Does he talk about taking drugs in a yurt in a forest in South America? I mostly enjoyed his autobiography but those bits were interminable. People describing their drug-taking experiences is almost as boring as people talking about their dreams.

I saw his work-in-progress in Edinburgh a couple of years back and it was good, so I'll give this a go but if there's any mention of drug yurts I may have to bail out...

up_the_hampipe

It's all he talks about now really, so yeah there's a lot of it in the special. I feel like 2007 Amstell would think he's ridiculous.

Blue Jam

Ah balls... In Grandma's House all that stuff about finding himself- "thinking makes it so", talking about joining a Buddhist monastery etc- seemed like Amstell sending himself up as a pisstake of an angsty privileged celebrity being a pretentious arse, but since then it seems he's been slowly morphing into someone who believes in all that hippy crap for real.

I has been hoping Carnage would be somewhat self-deprecating, taking the piss out of omnivores and vegans alike, but I lasted about 20 minutes before the preachy tone made me switch it off.

I should probably give this a chance before being so harsh but I'm not getting my hopes up here...

(in any case, I'm glad he's happier now)

Twed

The only issue I have with the Noel Edmonds cosmic ordering stuff is that it takes me out of relating to Amstell, who is somebody I otherwise find extremely relatable.

I shouldn't expect him to conform to my exact designs though (even if I do ask the universe for it or see a white feather or whatever).

Do Nothing was really good. Grandma's House was wonderful. I don't think I need to see any more of Amstell's work.

rimbaud

"And the glossiness of his short plasticky jet-black hair was a constant distraction as well - I kept thinking his head got caught in some kind of laminator"

Immense sentence