Sarah Silverman: Jesus is Magic

It’s clear almost immediately that director Liam Lynch and star Sarah Silverman aren’t looking to convert non-fans with Sarah Silverman: Jesus is Magic, as the film pulls absolutely no punches in presenting Silverman’s unique brand of comedy. As a result, it’s fairly obvious that unless one is already a follower of Silverman’s work, Sarah Silverman: Jesus is Magic isn’t going to come off as anything other than a very long 72 minutes. The film combines Silverman’s stage show with a series of skits and musical numbers, to mostly underwhelming effect; the skits are generally tedious and silly, while Silverman’s act consists almost entirely of jokes that aren’t terribly funny (which is the bottom line, really). Silverman’s often seems more interested in provoking the audience than making them laugh, a choice that becomes tiresome almost immediately. And while Sarah Silverman: Jesus is Magic doesn’t become flat-out dull until about halfway through, there’s no doubt that it would’ve been far more effective as a 22-minute Comedy Central special.

*1/2 out of ****