Back in the '80's Eddie Murphy was really one of the most popular comedy actors. He however early in his career did not only do movies but also did a couple of legendary stand-up shows, such as this one.
You can tell by the crowds reaction how popular Murphy was at the time. This movie is basically one of the evenings that he performed in New York, shot on film, with only a small sketch added to the beginning of it and some very short backstage stuff. So not much else to this movie really but a very raw, filmed, stand-up show.
It's not hard to see why Murphy was so good and popular for this sort of stuff. It's all about his performance and the energy that he puts into it. He rapidly bombards the audience with fun jokes and impersonations. Basically what Murphy does a lot is insulting basically every group of people but the way he does it makes it all very fun to watch. The actual stuff that he come up with wasn't even that original but like I said, it's all about the performance here. Of course some of the stuff is somewhat outdated now days, since like basically all stand-up comedians, they focus on what's hot and now at the present time. This show was from 1987, so some jokes and references might not come across as powerful or striking as they did back in those days.
One thing Murphy stands out in are his impersonations. He can do some amazing stuff with his voice and can even really sound like some other well known celebrities.
Being an Afro-American, Murphy of course also makes fun of the black community, like black comedians often do so well. Especially Afro-Americans themselves will probably get a blast out of it. But he basically makes fun of every group of people, like Italians and just plain men and women in general.
It's a real fun and good watch and great to see an energetic Eddie Murphy in his prime and at his peak.
8/10
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