Robin Williams once said, “You’re only given a little spark of madness. You mustn’t lose it.” And in the film All Joking Aside, gruff and legendary stand-up comedian Bob (Brian Markinson) shows novice Charlene aka Charlie (Raylene Harewood) how to exploit that spark, but warns “You gotta be funny every 14 seconds to make it.” All of which underscores the fact that being consistently funny on stage is serious business and not for the faint of heart.
Few films capture the work, disappointments, and pain it takes to stand out doing stand-up. But All Joking Aside does a pretty good job, delivering great punchlines about life, success, and family issues.
When Charlie tries her hand at an open-mike bar, she’s mercilessly heckled by Bob and runs off stage. Charlie eventually befriends Bob and asks him to mentor her. Being twice her age, Bob is more interested in helping her succeed, so thankfully, no May-September romance issues come into play. Instead, Bob teaches her the brutal facts of doing stand-up. Everything from putting down hecklers and great openings to structuring an act, and how to end with a laugh but leave them wanting more. He advises her to find her unique voice, to make her act personal but relatable. “You’re a skinny chick, don’t do fat jokes,” he points out.
As the story moves along, we get a glimpse into Charlie’s personal baggage—angst over possible skin cancer as well as some relationship issues with her mother. We also learn that Bob suffered a deeply personal tragedy that caused him to lose control on stage and throw his mike at a guy in the audience. While these background elements dovetail nicely with the story, they remain just that—background.
As Charlie learns the ropes, we’re there with her through every misstep and victory–putting down hecklers, building a comedic set that’s relatable and personal, and delivering laugh-out-loud punchlines. All Joking Aside peels back layers of what it takes to succeed, revealing the sacrifices one must make—surviving on a roller-coaster income and disconnecting from any semblance of a normal life.
The Charlie-Bob relationship is entertaining with some harsh conflicts and funny, heartwarming moments. But as a wise man once said, there is no gain without conflict.
Written by James Pickering, Shannon Kohli adroitly directs this little gem and Harewood takes everything she’s learned and runs with it. She even did an actual stand-up at a local open-mike club to prepare for the role, which she notes “…was the scariest thing I ever did.” Markinson is also very impressive here as the burnt-out sage that still has the gift and grit of a stand-up lifer.
All Joking Aside is fun to watch and educational for anyone considering doing stand-up for a living or pure entertainment.
Alex A. Kecskes is a published author of "Healer a Novel" and "The Search for Dr. Noble"—both now available on Amazon. He has written hundreds of film reviews and celebrity interviews for a wide variety of online and print outlets. He has covered red carpet premieres and Comic-Con events for major films and independent releases.
