October 03, 2004
Review: "Last of the Nees"
Schema's Jason Lee reviews the Phil Nee show "Last of the Nees".
Phil Nee – No Smile, But Big Laughs
Schema Magazine reviews Phil Nee’s theatrical performance, “The Last of the Nees”
Review by Jason Lee
For the fourty-five minutes that he owned the stage, Phil Nee was a demigod.
I first saw Nee last year at “Diss-Oriented”, another Vancouver Asian Canadian Theatre production. Against the line-up of talented Asian North American comics that night, Phil was by far the brightest star. Not one to just toss-out cute one-liners or obvious punch-lines, Nee drew laughs from the crowd by telling narrative scenarios like a masterful orator. In his stand-up comedy performances, much of Phil’s comedy consists of his stories about growing up as the only Chinese family in a Black and Puerto Rican housing project in New York. Seeing him perform live a year later, I’m awestruck by the way he has sublimated the tale of his upbringing into a bitter-sweet one man autobiography.
It was a brilliant example of a comedian working out his acting chops, taking his act to another echelon of cultural performance. His show, entitled The Last of the Nees (Or Why I Don’t Smile), was a full-on multimedia experience. By using slides, lighting, props, and music, the audience enters Nee’s time warp back to the 70’s, and experiences life through his eyes to the present day. Nee’s act works in his old jokes in creative new forms, but this time around, he inflects them to be not only funny, but also poignant. Undeterred by the small, lukewarm crowd, Phil poured out his heart and soul. The Last of the Nees is a remarkable show; catch Phil Nee if you get the chance.
Phil Nee performs at the Roundhouse Community Centre Oct. 1 and Oct. 2. For more details: www.vact.ca
I disagree with the above review.
I too went to Diss-Oriented and was first introduced to Phil Nee's comedy then. I agree that he was, by far, the best comedian that night. But his most recent VACT show was weak, uninteresting, and failed to deliver and live up to his Diss-Oriented reputation.
Perhaps it may have been my own expectations of Phil Nee and/or the marketing of the show as a "hilarious comedy" (as described by VACT). But I was expecting more of what he delivered in Diss. What we got instead was a one-person monologue that was 35% funny and 65% dramatic. And, the dramatic part really added a rather sombre tone to the whole evening.
If people paid $15/$18 to see comedy, I think they would have felt ripped off.
The other comment that I have is - and I don't know why this happens - he recycled about two jokes, word-for-word, from the Diss show. Do comedians not realize that would-be fans want to hear fresh material, not recycled stuff? Who would pay money to see Seinfeld re-tell jokes from his NBC days?
I was truly disappointed with Phil Nee and would have a hard time justifying paying to see him again.
Posted by: Wendy at October 8, 2004 08:50 AM
Thanks for your comments, Wendy! I appreciate hearing another critic's opinion
I agree with you that it was a bit misleading the way the show was billed. I too was expecting stand-up comedy from Phil.
However, rather than being disappointed, I was quite enthralled they way that the comedian was able to turn a couple of yuk-yuk jokes into a colourful coming of age story. To me, it showed the depth he had as a performer.
It's too bad that out of 4 performances, he didn't do 2 traditional stand-up shows, and 2 performance pieces. I wish he had done the joke about the Korean corner store owner that he did at "Diss".
Posted by: Jason at October 8, 2004 03:08 PM
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