If you're reading this, you likely got the same email I did. Louis C.K. absently mentioning that he put a new show on his website. I went to the site to find a 1-hr show available for $3 and I took the low stakes gamble. The master of absurdist clips could have put anything up and I can't imagine regretting the modest purchase; then "Holy sh@#, Steve Buscemi!" For something that I never saw advertised or promoted, I was shocked to see great actors pour in one-by-one. By now you know the cast; Edie Falco, Steven Wright, Alan Alda, Jessica Lange, and Rebecca Hall. These are not cameos. These are actors you love giving real performances in an unclassifiable program. As original as Louis is, you can see some semblance of source material in his other work. FX's Louie has beats of Woody Allen, even "Lucky Louie" was a callback to "The Honeymooners." This is an experience that shirks labels by never settling on a single genre or arc. This may sound like incoherence, but it is simply ambiguous entertainment. High drama, unforced comedy, and compelling dialogue drive this first episode into an ellipses rather than a finish line. You know there is more to come. Horace and Pete has a cherish-able setting, a century-old bar that is a dwindling legacy for its proprietary namesakes. More than just a place to tell their story, it is a breeding ground for a great variety of characters. As diverse as they are, there is a comradery of hopelessness and gallows humor that makes for a very intimate relatability. As much as I would love to get everyone on board loving this show, I feel a selfish tinge, wanting this little known thing to myself. It's all part of the experience.
3 Reviews
all the hilarity and hearbreak of life
framptonhollis9 May 2018
While Louis C.K. has become a wildly controversial figure in the past few months or so, I still love most of his work to death. I have yet to finish this series, but, based on the first episode alone, I can tell it has an understanding unmatched by most other entertainment/art that has been released over the past few decades. The dialogue is witty, but oft extremely realistic, some moments are just so accurate and real and I respect C.K.'s talent as a real writer so very much. The cast is brilliant, and everyone plays their parts to the best of their ability and beyond. Alan Alda is particularly great as one of the show's most compelling and funny characters, a misanthropic old soul who is so clearly a product of another time that he makes everyone around him as uncomfortable as can be, and also has a way w/words that is hilariously filthy. My sympathy for this character is constantly fluctuating, as it does in real life. Some of the pain and heartbreak here is so real and true and honest that I really did feel it, and I really do feel a deep connection w/this powerful hour of brilliant and beautiful comedy and drama.
Disappointing
repete521 February 2021
See also
Awards | FAQ | User Ratings | External Reviews | Metacritic Reviews
