Conan O'Brien Can't Stop
Conan O'Brien Can't Stop
R | 24 June 2011 (USA)
Conan O'Brien Can't Stop Trailers

A documentary that follows the former Tonight Show host. Filmed during Conan’s ”Legally Prohibited From Being Funny on Television” comedy tour, after his departure from the Tonight Show, taking viewers on an intimate journey of O’Brien’s life.

Reviews
bnilduman

I liked the movie, it has an honest feeling, and it's just what it is, it just shows you what you want to see, what happened after he lost his job on CNBC and how they putted on a show, I enjoyed to watch it. it's also nice to see Conan in his normal life. I think every Conan fan should watch this. it might be boring if you don't watch Conan but if you like Conan and interested the inside of comedy like how does it work, the atmosphere...etc. you will love it

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Bruce722

This was decent and shows some really cool insight in who Conan O'Brien is as a person. However, I would've liked much more on stage footage, especially some of the stand-up, and less singing and behind the scenes content. Sure, the behind the scene stuff is what gives some of the insight but a lot of it got rather repetitive and boring. I was hoping for a raw, stand-up special with some behind the scenes content, instead what we get is a documentary on Conan's tour with a few brief flashes of comedy thrown in. If you're a fan of Conan's show and his style of humor then sure, check it out. If you're more a fan of stand-up than this isn't really what you're looking for.

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Malcolm Taylor

I found this film useful viewing for one reason only: it captures the energy necessary to perform and the momentum that's required to sustain that energy. Had Conan not mounted a stage show, perhaps his need to perform may have itself atrophied. Watching this energy propel Conan is in itself contagious and inspiring.Beyond this achievement, however, there is a lack of any greater investigation into the nature of performance or putting it into a greater context. It exists more or less as a loving video postcard, whose brief tension has been sapped out by the fact that Conan now has his own show back on TBS.This film suffers from a lack of a strong antagonist. It also suffers from not providing any detracting views or opinions on Conan himself. We never get the sense that there will be any real failure here: a high level, well-oiled, show business machine, with a large staff, sells out some 40 odd huge A-level theatres in major markets in a matter of days and then proceeds to play them by flying to and fro in a private Leer jet plane. Not exactly the same tension created by an artist battling for public acclaim in his salad days. Riding a gravy train is not as exciting as walking along the edge of a cliff.As a loving video postcard, it is at times frustrating in it's selection of events. The film chooses to show a lengthy clip of Eddie Veder covering "The Who", yet deprives us of Jim Carrey's impromptu performance with Conan. As a fan of comedy, I would much rather have seen the Jim Carry act than watch Eddie Veder, as awesome as he is, who seems to have nothing to do with Conan. And yet musically, I would have liked to see more of Jack White, since Conan was instrumental in launching his career and genuinely loves his music.There is also not much here on tracing Conan's history. He's not put under the microscope as much as I was led to expect from the promotional campaign. He's basically just doing his thing, being charming and entertaining. As a documentary subject he lacks having a darker side and/or strong opposition.The tour was cathartic for Conan. But the film for the audience lacks surprise and tension. There is no great question explored here, such as "Did Conan hit the road to fill some great void within himself?" Please, that is some serious marketing BS. He's simply a hard workingman who loves his job, his staff, his family and kids and wants to keep working, because he knows not working leads to the death of the performance muscle.An endurance runner wouldn't take six months off if someone told them they couldn't run a prestigious race. They'd keep running in the back woods if they were passionate about running. Mystery solved. Conan is passionate about performing. He needs to keep entertaining audiences if he's going to stay in peak shape. Can't go on TV, well hey then, lets do theatre! The problem with this film is it provides neither tragedy nor comedy. As funny as Conan is, he's not hilarious. He's simply a very sweet funny guy that everyone wishes was his best friend. After all, he's the straight man to every one of his guests, so that they can shine and be funny. So herein lies a film about an entertaining straight man, an MC if you will. Which is fine. It's just irksome that it's pretending to be more than what it really is. You don't go to the show to see the MC, you go to see the featured acts. Conan becomes his own featured act by filling time with his music performances. Something no one would pay money to see under normal circumstances. Now that those "abnormal" circumstances have passed, the exercise of documenting it seems pointless except as a record for those involved, which is exactly what this film is.

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Jacob McLaughlin

Ever since middle school, I have been a huge fan of Conan O'Brien. I would only watch his show on Fridays or over school breaks because if I got caught being up so late, I'd get in trouble. But when he started on The Tonight Show, I stayed up late and watched it anyways no matter the day. So I was watching every night as the battle for The Tonight Show unfolded and, like many, I gave all of my support to him. So after leaving the Tonight Show, he planned a 32-city live tour, which is what the film focuses on.The tour moments are fun, especially the backstage bits. During the Radio City Music Hall show, we see Conan, Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert backstage preparing their skit a mere 9 minutes before they go on stage and perform it. We really see the creativity that went into this tour and they pulled it off nicely. There are moments after the shows where he complains about not wanting to meet fans, but he does it anyways. He definitely shows much appreciation for them and all of their support.We get to see a darker side of Conan in the film. At one point, he teases Jack McBrayer, calling him a hick and even making up a song on the spot that's very dark, yet I found myself laughing. Who wouldn't be able to go into a darker place after losing one of the biggest television shows of all time? Honestly the film made me love Conan even more. Even though he does act somewhat mean at times, his amazing team still sticks with him. He has such a wonderful group of people supporting him. There are some really nice moments of him with long time friend and sidekick, Andy Richter. You can really tell that they will always be there for each other. Also I have to give credit to Sona Movsesian, Conan's assistant, who handles him well at some pretty rough times.I think documentaries about entertainers are always great to see. You get to see much more of them than you do on TV or on stage. This is one of the best I've ever seen and I'm not just saying this because I'm a Conan fanatic, but this film is very well made. We get to see moments of Conan that we normally don't get to and it's fascinating to watch. The film gets dark at times, but for the most part, it's hilarious. The film is a must see for Conan fans and it's the year's absolute best film. I don't think there will be a more honest, funny and entertaining film this year. Go Team Coco.

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