George Carlin: Life Is Worth Losing (2005 TV Special) User Reviews

Carlin's most bitter and scorching stand up yet

[MovieAddict2016 · 8/10 · 17 August 2006]

Many people on both this site and Amazon have claimed that "Life is Worth Losing" is George Carlin's worst comedy performance. One reviewer claims he has simply turned into a bitter misanthrope - but I don't think that's very fair. I thought "Life is Worth Losing" was indeed one of Carlin's harshest acts, but it was also very funny.

His opening, "Modern Man," is a four-minute mind-bending string of words (similar to the opening of "Complaints and Grievances") which is hilarious and almost unbelievable - whoever hears this and thinks Carlin is "losing it" must be kidding! After this he begins dissecting American life and basically thrashing about the people of our nation with his words - labeling Americans as fat, mall-loving idiots. And some might be offended by this, but that's why he's George Carlin.

Carlin may be getting older but I really fail to see how he's "falling apart" as a comedian here - I thought it was a great show and although it's his most bitter act I've heard, a lot of it is also totally true.

in the realm of Carlin's career, it's not one of his very best...it's a change of pace

[Quinoa1984 · 8/10 · 5 November 2005]

I don't know what it was, maybe it was going through some of his own trials and tribulations (addiction and rehab), but George Carlin seems to be, well, different this time around. In a way I should've expected this- I remember reading a couple of years back when he was planning the special that it would be more based around language (if nothing else he is the single greatest linguist in the history of post-modern stand-up), and on that level the special isn't a disappointment. There are three things, however, that make the film not necessarily bad or over-wrought, but just, well, different, like a musician or band we all know through and through trying a little something new. This time, with Life is Worth Losing, there is a lot more philosophy in some ways, and also a little bit of loss in some of the timing for a few good laughs.

The first thing is that his delivery is a little different; usually it'll seem like he'll go for his three topics (the little things in life 'Seinfeld' style, words and expressions, and the "big" world), but much of the special this time is with a delivery that doesn't (at least some of the time, maybe not for the most part maybe so) have that much of the same strange skepticism. The second thing is that he changes the structure around one base topic, suicide, and one wonders if this will be for the entire length or if there will be a switch to another topic or not. There's variations on the theme, sometimes it spreads out into the gripes of America, and it's always fascinating, but maybe not as hilarious as one might expect (sometimes it's more like ironic musings than full-our jokes). The third thing is that at times he is so into giving a lyrical, sometimes even poetic kind of rhythm to his bits and terms in his linguist way (the first five minutes of the special a great warm-up, is a keeper) that might throw people off. In a way he is even angrier than he was in what I think is one of his very best specials, You Are All Diseased, because this time his anger is loaded at present day subjects which are, quite frankly, infuriating.

As some might come to think, I might be saying all this to shadow over thinking that the special just wasn't as funny as his best stuff. It's not necessarily that. At times I was in the same practically non-stop laughs at a few minutes a clip. As a Carlin fan all these rants that end up not leading to the same kinds of routines and such is in a way refreshing even as it is a little odd. At times I almost wondered if he was returning to a little of the spirit of his act back in the 70's mixed with his now usual brand of old-man brilliant wit and observance of all things in the world. He even seems to be going past just plain old cynicism. There is so much truth in the special at times it's kind of staggering. And to see that in such abundance and forming out into such tangents reminds me why I keep coming back to his best stuff. I'm just not sure after seeing this right off the bat that it's him at his total best, it's almost as if he's in a transition now into a totally new part of his career. Still, it's worth it to hear some of his classic takes of end of the world scenarios, the 'fat' situation in the US, and things involving suicide TV. And those last fifteen minutes are very poignant.

Everything he says is still Absolutely Correct

[Isaac5855 · 8/10 · 11 October 2006]

George Carlin remains the King of HBO comedy and refuses to relinquish his crown with GEORGE CARLIN: LIFE IS WORTH LOSING. Carlin continues to be the master observer of all that is good and evil and twisted in the world. He opened this set with an extremely long poem about himself, utilizing every pop-cliché that we have become accustomed to hearing these days and has a way of making most of these clichés sound banal and silly. Carlin also does something in this special that I liked that he rarely does: he referenced a joke from an earlier concert because he got mail from people who didn't understand it and chose to explain it here. You don't see that often. This show, like all of Carlin's shows, is scathingly accurate and roll-on-the-floor funny, but this one seems to have a darker theme floating over it than most of his shows. The majority of the material seems to be centered around subjects like death, dying, suicide, murder, and other cheery topics, yet, as always when watching George, I found myself laughing my ass off and agreeing with everything he says because after all these years of pushing the comedic envelope, one constant that has never changed with George is that everything he says is absolutely correct.

Brilliant and Extremely Timely

[zippyflynn2 · 10/10 · 8 October 2006]

Extremely few comedians are successful, even fewer for more than a year or two and the majority of those few that are still working the large venues, who prove themselves to be other than just some flash-in-the-pan dressed up in an ill-fitting suit of success by an aggressive publicity team and a gullible, entertainment starved audience; usually build their careers on one or two jokes that they've turned into their shtick: they have a quirky personality that is charming or, at least, familiar. Essentially they're one-trick-ponies with long legs. This isn't something I was really thinking about in much detail until I watched the exception to all these rules: George Carlin in Life Is Worth Losing. Here is a man who is nearing seventy years old (as of this writing), his fiftieth year in show business and he presents us with his finest, most polished work of all. He is one of those exceptionally rare breeds, in any given professional field, who not only improves with time, but substantially so to an extent that you clearly see all of his work until now has been the foundation for the masterpiece he offers us now. Not one to be particularly impressed by the vast majority of so-called "great" things, it took me a while after my first viewing of Life Is Worth Losing to absorb what I had seen and several repeated viewings shortly thereafter to understand I was witnessing a truly great comedian, a genius, THE master of his craft. In a world where the vast majority of "great entertainment" is hyped up bullsh*t and mediocrity, a passing fad at best that sours on your second taste if not turning bitterly toxic, George Carlin is a man who shows us what real, adult comedy should be: a mixture of cleverly constructed fun and intelligent material that makes you think about our comically tragic existence. This is George's best performance and material so far, his most thoughtful, thought out, thought provoking and heartfelt.

I really expected to see and hear universal applause and praise for this great work. Instead, I was surprised to hear and read so many negative reviews about this masterpiece. Surely these can't be the same George Carlin fans who loved his work before. Especially those who said this work was "bitter". If anything I found his latest offering to be a lot less angry than most of his previous work and more thoughtful. Then I realized what all the fuss was about: in this performance George is holding up the biggest mirror he's held up so far. He's forcing more Americans to look (and laugh if they have the courage) at themselves than he ever has before. He leaves very few stones unturned in his satirical offering. For a start he talks about a lot of Americans right off the bat when he discusses obesity, as a third of Americans are classified as medically obese and about half of those as morbidly obese, according to the latest American Medical Association studies. He also talks about mindless consumerism. Between these two subjects he's covered the vast majority of Americans. And since Americans are becoming more dimwitted and righteous, the bulk of them will not laugh at themselves, the purpose of intelligent humor but prefer the sadistic, mean spirited "humor" they see on television (which George satirizes in "The All-Suicide TV Channel") or read in those idiotic emails too many people forward to everyone in their address book with titles like "10 jokes about rag-heads" or "Stop complaining you homeless person". (Some of these atrocious emails that preach intolerance are erroneously attributed to George Carlin but in fact are written by other people, none of whom have the courage to take credit for these awful, embarrassingly written pieces. Sources: see www.snopes.com or www.georgecarlin.com)

If you watch "Life is WorthLosing" for just the opening and closing segments, you will see pure brilliance. The opening segment "A Modern Man" is a work of genius and you will be awestruck by George's mastery of the English language as well as his selection of timely material. The closing segment "Coast to Coast Emergency" is actually a very hopeful piece but I think too many people get confused by it because he's discussing the bitterness of the average person and is revealing that the solution to most people's unhappiness is to rid themselves of their own bitterness. Don't listen to the critics of this work, it's a fantastic piece. Typical of the vast majority of naysayers, they are really talking about themselves when they describe George as "bitter". It's why it is always a risk to tell the truth because most people want to kill the messenger that brings them bad news, especially when that "news" (intentional ignorance actually) is about themselves.

This is George Carlin at his polished, intellectual best. It is a masterpiece of comic genius that you will want to add to your library and watch again and again; especially after one of those too frequently increasing moments of realizing the dumbing-down of your fellow countrymen and women is an alarming reality.

An amazing barrage of verbal dexterity

[olsonjk · 10/10 · 5 November 2005]

Brilliant. Edgier than ever. I hope someone has taken down his opening monologue and posts it in the Memorable Quotes area. Truly one of the supreme comic geniuses of our time. I particularly enjoyed the hypothesizing about "Suicide TV," and the skewering of America's obsession with all things sensationalized. Nobody is ever safe from Carlin's wit and command of the English language, and he wouldn't have it any other way. Interesting to see how he has elaborated on elements of his live stage act from two years ago. I also appreciated how there was much, much less time devoted to non sequiturs and more ramblings that were all connected, often in a very twisted and disturbing way. Here's hoping for more Carlin specials to come.

Seriously What's Wrong With You People???

[vrplaya2002 · 10/10 · 15 April 2007]

I agree with one of the earlier posts that ppl must be getting offended 'cause he's officially made fun of everyone and if he hadn't yet, then this routine touched that last nerve on the so-called "hard-core" supporters that think that his best yrs are behind him.

My favorite is one guy who thought that after he started attacking religion that his routine went down hill and why? Because he's some full-of-himself, "moralistic", religious nut himself and got offended... Obviously he didn't take in the message George has been sending all along... to take a step back, realize what's going on around us, and most importantly, LAUGH!!!! This was a very ingeniously performed routine that took a shot at all the ills of pop-culture, the morbid curiosity of your average person, and ultimately the extreme human behavior(exclusive to us so-called "civilized" beings) that shows how primitive we really are...

And for those of you that don't think there's punchlines how 'bout when he talks 'bout "scarfing" and throws in the pun, "think of how many kids are trying to pull this one off" Also he touches on several current topics like obesity, stupidity, and consumerism that are just becoming too much of an issue to ignore, I mean the whole "pretty soon all you'll need to get into college is a pencil" is so true, I mean I know that i'm not as "enlightened" or "educated" as I should be and I know that if I had the same study habits/dedication towards school just 20yrs ago there's no way I'd be able to get a college degree but now i'm just a couple months away from graduating college, just going to show that they're definitely lowering the standards, I mean I'm no dummy either, but still, getting into and graduating college is becoming less of a big deal 'cause the best way to help "educate" the ppl is to lower the standards....

The obesity part... OMG... Being in Europe now, yes there are obese ppl, but nothing like the "interstate buses" you see in the US, especially in the Southeastern states...

And as for consumerism, while he's touched on the subject several times the "spending money we don't have on things we don't need" is just becoming more and more evident in society! I could go on and on, but the ultimate genius of this bit is how society is "going to the dogs" and he touches on this not only in the Suicide Reality TV bit, but also the Eliminating Electricity to bring us back to primitive times and finally the Nationwide Natural Disaster bit as well as just the whole routine shows us what's wrong with society and that it's only getting worse, so what should we do about it... SIT BACK AND ENJOY THE RIDE!!!!

Carlin speaks his mind

[ametaphysicalshark · 29 April 2007]

At this point, I don't think a Carlin stand-up show needs to be non-stop hilarity. I think after so, so many years of making us laugh, Carlin should be allowed to express his opinions in the context of a pretty funny comedy show. Carlin is one of the greatest speakers of our time, and even if he has lost a bit of his incomparable delivery power with age, the man's edgy, brilliant wit and mastery of the English language is inspiring and still a complete joy to listen to.

"Life is Worth Losing" is certainly funny. Only George Carlin could make topics like suicide, genocide, and cannibalism as funny as he does here. This is because although the humor here might just be way too much for some people to take, Carlin is a remarkable writer and speaker and his material is astonishing in its strength. For instance, the 'Extreme Human Behavior' bit, while it is mostly just a rant, not a joke, George is no average human ranting- he is a genius when it comes to the usage of the English language.

"Human beings will do anything, anything. I am convinced. That's why when all those beheadings started in Iraq it didn't bother me. A lot of people here were horrified, "Whaaaa, beheadings!" What, are you fu*king surprised? Just one more form of extreme human behavior. Besides, who cares about some mercenary civilian contractor from Oklahoma who gets his head cut off? F*ck 'em. Hey Jack, you don't want to get your head cut off? Stay the f*ck in Oklahoma. They ain't cuttin' off heads in Oklahoma, far as I know. But I do know this: you strap on a gun and go struttin' around some other mens country you better be ready for some action Jack. People are touchy about that sort of thing. And let me ask you this... this is a morale question, not rhetorical, I am looking for the answer: what is the morale difference between cuttin' of one guys head, or two, or three, of five or ten - and dropping a big bomb on a hospital and killing a whole bunch of sick kids? Has anybody in authority given you an explanation of the difference? Now, in case you're wondering why I have a certain interest, or fascination lets call it, with torture and beheadings and all of those things I have mentioned, is because each of these items reminds me in life over and over again what beasts we human beings really are. When you get right down to it human beings are nothing more than ordinary jungle beasts. Savages. No different from the Cro Magnon people who lived twenty five thousand years ago. No different. Our DNA hasn't changed substantially in a hundred thousand years. We're still operating out of the lower brain. The reptilian brain.Fight of flight. Kill or be killed. We like to think we've evolved and advanced because we can build a computer, fly an airplane, travel underwater, we can write a sonnet, paint a painting, compose an opera. But you know something? We're barely out of the jungle on this planet. Barely out of the fu*king jungle. What we are, is semi-civilized beasts, with baseball caps and automatic weapons.

It's not just about being funny at this point. Carlin has been there and done that. There is certainly place for a monologue like that in a stand-up show.

8/10

He Was Not The Norm -- and that Is Why He Was George Carlin

[nuke_houston · 10/10 · 4 December 2018]

I can't say i like all of his subject matter, but George Carlin, as a Comedian, is the Best, and a breath of fresh air.

On my first viewing, I stopped after he started talking about "pussy farts" (which i thought was very juvenile)... but afterward, I skipped past that and he was the old George Carlin we all know and love. I think there are many hidden metaphors in what he says that we can all relate to.

Straight to your face.

[deloudelouvain · 9/10 · 12 August 2018]

As a number one fan of George Carlin I might be a bit biased with my review as I absolutely love everything he does and says. It's one of those people I would have loved spending an evening with, talking about life, the world, and everything that goes wrong on this planet. When I hear him talking it's like he's reading my mind. I'm sure he was not a great optimist, and why would he when you see how society works? George Carlin has his unique way to bring you his vision on everything and this in a funny sarcastic way. George Carlin is the rebel in stand up comedy, a rebel tout court. If you think like him you will love his shows, if you don't think like him and think the whole world is just a nice little place then you probably won't get it, and you won't get the humor either. Life Is Worth Losing is sarcastic, dark and straight to your face. Rest in peace George, you were the best!

Reality check.

[rarepeperonis · 10/10 · 12 August 2020]

It's very funny and probably one of the best piece of entertainment of all time.

Also a big reality check. He tried to tell us we didn't listen the pandora's box is open and it's over we lost.

You won't wet yourself with laughter it's more of a hammer smashed right in your face.

This was just as good

[randman0515 · 7/10 · 27 February 2006]

This was no unlucky 13. It was just as good as the previous 12. Although the comedy wasn't as intense as in previous years, people have been going to not only see George the comedian, but also George the storyteller. Carlin has been around for a long time and has seen a lot of things. He likes to express his feelings and bring up things that most people take for granted. Essentially people listen to Carlin to laugh and also to learn something. So if you feel that this wasn't good because it wasn't as comedic, then i think you completely missed the purpose. George may not have been as quick as he used to be because his age and drug use has taken its toll. Overall I rate this a 7.

I just read your comments on the gasoline shortage, this is my solution.

[dornis · 10/10 · 21 April 2007]

We had a gasoline shortage in 2000 and in August of 2006 and now we have yet another gasoline problem. I predict that we will soon be paying $5 per gallon and everything will become prohibitively expensive.

People, if you own a bicycle, take care. Lock it in your garage with the front wheel removed. You may have to use it to go to work. If a couple owns a business, look for a bicycle built for two.

In the meantime, the solution is TRICYCLES, for those of us who never learned to ride a two-wheeler. Tricycles don't use gas. Four of them can fit into a parking space. The effort required to pedal it would cause people to lose weight and build muscle. Think how this would benefit marriages. Couples on the verge of divorce would reunite; they would see less of each other, thereby eliminating some of the reasons for arguments. It's hard to engage in adultery since a tricycle doesn't have a back seat.

The children, taken care of by a stay-at-home mother, would have to learn all the games we played as children to keep ourselves amused. We played Tag, Ring A Leeveeo, Statues, Simon Says, Touch Football, Stick Ball, Jacks, etc., which prevented the childhood obesity which is so prevalent today.

Renee Sinrod, Clearwater, Florida

Mostly Quality humor from a great comedian

[kirk781 · 7/10 · 17 January 2024]

This was my first proper George Carlin special that I saw and considering that the man had a tremendous respect, I went with tons of expectations. I am not a proper stand up comedy person and have only watched few specials, majority of which I disliked. Coming to this, it started off slowly and on a tangent. However, Carlin soon got to the point as soon as he started talking about morbid topics. It was both humorous and the way he presented it, it was a way of lampooning the human society in general.

He moves next to specifically addressing USA's problems, harping much on the obesity crisis that has gripped the country and which remains relevant even today. Furthur blurring the line between comedy and social relevance is his attack on the corporations and rich folks that contain USA into it's backpocket. I personally found the first part superior to the second part where IMO, the quality of jokes goes quite average.

This isn't the funniest show where people will lie in splits after watching it. But the comedians who often do so often rely on sexual innuendo ( though even Carlin can't help himself from relying on it in the second half ), personal remarks on audiences and all that crass that comes with it. That kind of low brow humour is easier to create but what Carlin does is probably deliver more of a sermon from which the listeners pluck out laughters. He doesn't stoop to attacking his audience members but rather present a mirror to the human society. And I believe that while I may hear more upcoming folks on Youtube delivering, say more laughter per minute for the audience, Carlin's words will resonate with me far after those puny jokes from other comedians have come and gone. And I think, humour that stays long after the show has finished and which has longetivity and which is relevant even nearly two decades later, is much superior than other forms.

What Happened To Carlin?

[chagid · 1/10 · 11 November 2005]

All I have to say is that "Life Is Worth Losing", if you had to sit through George Carlin's new stand up. I am a huge fan of his past HBO stand up's but this one made me go to sleep. He has just lost his touch, it's a shame what rehab will do to you. The comedy was really just not there, the delivery was not sharp, stuttering over lines, reading of cues, just not Carlin humor. Yes the show had it's up's, but very few, and none of them where worth repeating the next day. I hope this new clean cut Carlin takes a drink and a couple pills, because this is not the guy that gave us such great stand up's as, "You are all Diseased", "Complaints and Grievances", "Jammin' In New York", "Doing It Again". George, please give us the old pi**ed off, grumpy Carlin that everybody loves.

Carlin Shows Why He's a Legend

[Michael_Elliott · 30 May 2016]

George Carlin: Life Is Worth Losing (2005)

*** 1/2 (out of 4)

George Carlin's thirteenth special for HBO ranks as one of his best but, then again, was he ever not great? This time out he tackles humans and how ugly and stupid they really are. This includes suicide, torture, sleeping with dead things and in one of the funniest bits he goes off on seeing obese people together.

It's funny watching this eleven years after it was released and seeing just how brilliant Carlin was. The legend would die three years after this was released so he didn't get to see the current human nature and there's a priceless joke here about PC liberals that is just so more truer today then when he said it. Not to mention the obesity rates in America.

Carlin comes out on fire with one of the fastest monologues that you're ever going to hear. It's amazing to see how rapid-fire Carlin is saying this stuff yet he is never off note or missing a step. The show itself is full of one great joke after another. I've always thought Carlin's humor worked so best because it was a thinking man's show. In other words, Carlin gets humor out of his deep thoughts on his subjects and he fully exploits that here.

I'm not going to ruin any of the jokes because you should go into the show not knowing them but there are many classics here.

I watched for 60 minutes and could take no more

[joannmarie-1 · 1/10 · 25 February 2007]

My husband and I are long time fans of George Carlin. This was a George Carlin that I had never seen in stand-up and I hope I never see again. His non-funny diatribe about human depravity and his crude discussion of human fragility was unsettling and I found it difficult to believe anyone in the audience was laughing. George is certainly one of the brightest comedians around and most of what he discussed resides in truth. But the old George could take that truth and make it funny. We did not find any of this act funny - only dark and depressing. George offered a view of the future without hope and although his view may be correct, I would prefer to hold out for a tab bit of hope. Either George goes back to pot before his next stand-up or I shall have to take it up to tolerate his new very dark attempts at humor. For god sake, lighten up George!

Can't afford to lose yourself

[chaos-rampant · 16 April 2016]

Two things here.

You can tell that you're in the presence of a master here; master of the spoken word, master of the whole art of presenting self, master of how to glare, when, how to pause, how to circle and grip and snarl and move back from a prey you've left bleeding but only really teased. When you watch him here, what you're really going to see is a shape- shifting shaman; changing from incredulous doofus, to wily old pervert, to Diogenes the Cynic barking aphorisms at the Athenians, to hunched Svengali seducing our inner Trilby.

But to take so much knowledge of stagecraft and apply it to mere cynicism? To know how to take from wasteful surplus but not how to put back where it's needing? To be able to have been a teacher of the blackest, most cantankerous dharma and only be black and cantankerous?

This is like sharing a crack pipe with a genius. You're going to get hammered but none the wiser.

Pathetic Attempt at Misanthropic Commentary

[michael_the_nermal · 2/10 · 16 July 2006]

As someone who's seen a couple of George Carlin shows and thought them hilarious, this stand-up special was utterly dismal. I admire George Carlin's attempts at misanthropic social commentary and humor, but this show was way too heavy on misanthropy and almost empty on humor. Carlin does not make any jokes or punchlines at all, nor does he attempt to make any humorous statement in what can only be called an ugly and hateful rant. His waxes rhapsodic about suicide rates and sexual perversions, but only describes them, with no attempt to make jokes about them or connect these morbid topics with the audience, much less himself. In order to be funny, he would have to connect his topics with a joke, or at least make some flippant remark that the audience could find ironic or cheeky. Good satire looks for irony in their topics, and Carlin just describes his topics without connecting them to the greater sphere of the human experience, with the irony serving to make the comment humorous. Carlin doesn't try at all to be funny; he just harangues and blathers on. Carlin's laziness is apparent and frankly insulting; misanthropy is a wonderful topic for a humorist to focus on, but in order to be entertaining, it must be FUNNY! That is why misanthropes like Jonathan Swift and Mark Twain are still read and beloved today. Carlin's rants have no point other than to vent his frustrations and shock his audience. It is pathetic and saddening, as Carlin now appears to be in the twilight of his career. This is an inauspicious end for one of the best humorists of the twentieth century. I hope Carlin will work harder to be funny the next time around.

Boring and Depressing

[Johnny_West · 1/10 · 28 October 2021]

George Carlin was a one trick pony. All he had were the famous obscene words that he put on an album back in the 1960s, and got taken to the Supreme Court for obscenity. So every show he spends 15 minutes rhyming dirty words, like that is funny?

The rest of his show is talking about how most people should commit suicide, because life sucks and the system will never be fixed. Really funny stuff.

Bitter Miserable Old Jerk

[Good_Guy77 · 1/10 · 2 October 2021]

George Carlin's claim to fame was the seven obscene words, and in every show he spends close to ten minutes doing words and rhymes and he thinks he is really hip. I thought it was boring as hell. 50 years of doing words and rhymes gets old, like Carlin.

From there he spent at least thirty minutes talking about how life sucks and all the reasons to commit suicide. I guess that is the best he can do for humor? Talk about washed up!

Terrible, George has really lost it.

[Margaret 9 · 1/10 · 4 December 2005]

I saw Ralphie May at a show in Houston and he said the same thing. I didn't believe him and forked out the $120 bux for 2 tix and went to see him. I took my wife. I have always lived and breathed Carlin and have been known to spit out a Carlin line or 2 from years past, often...I was soooo incredibly disappointed. Last night I watched this HBO special since his road material is usually different when he does the big show. It was a carbon copy of the horrible act I saw here. I hope he can make a turnaround, but sadly, I do not think its going to happen. I guess he's going to just talk about the all suicide channel for another 5 years. What ever happened to the first stage (hippy) and second (sports and disasters) phases of his career? We'll miss ya George...