Fishing with John, Vol. 1-3 [VHS]
November 8, 2010 by admin
Filed under Fun-movies-comedies
Fishing with John, Vol. 1-3 [VHS]
John Lurie knows absolutely nothing about fishing, but that doesn’t stop him from traveling with his guests to the most exotic and dangerous places on earth. Originally produced for the Independent Film Channel, John Lurie’s idiosyncratic take on the classical fishing program places the genre in entirely alien terrain–and that doesn’t just refer to the strange and exotic locations. Best known to filmgoers for roles in Stranger Than Paradise and The Last Temptation of Christ, Lurie is also a composer, a saxophonist, the leader of the jazz group the Lounge Lizards, and a painter. Fisherman, however, is nowhere to be seen on his résumé, so this city-bred hipster’s foray into rod and reel country is obviously another kettle of fish. Reeling in buddies Tom Waits, Matt Dillon, Willem Dafoe, Dennis Hopper, and director Jim Jarmusch to join him on his fishing trips to such faraway locales as Jamaica, Costa Rica, and Thailand, Lurie takes his show completely out of the “how to” realm: imagine a talk show defined by its contemplative silences. Fishing with John teaches nothing about fishing. Instead, John simply enjoys the company of his buddies as they venture out into unfamiliar territory and drop a line in the water, tossing in a current of absurdist commentary (dryly intoned by Roy Webb) and surreal speculation for good measure. This is the ultimate fishing show for people who could not care less about fishing. –Sean Axmaker
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(out of 10 reviews)
List Price: $ 29.95
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Review by for Fishing with John, Vol. 1-3 [VHS]
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Fishing with John Is amazing. I’m the only person I know who has seen this show, but just because it is very obscure, doesn’t mean it isn’t still the most entertaining show I’ve ever seen. As quoted in the television ad for this program, “John Lurie knows absolutely nothing about fishing; but his friends don’t know that.” This sums up the entire show, really. And that is what makes this show so damn funny.
Review by for Fishing with John, Vol. 1-3 [VHS]
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Quite possibly the last thing I wanted to do on a Saturday night was watch a fishing video. I pouted and sulked, but from the moment the video was started, I was “hooked” (oh, horrible pun). This series, while indeed about fishing, is more of comedy at its finest. John Lurie is simply deadpan as his friends (ranging from Dennis Hopper to Matt Dillon) are taken to the most random places to fish. My personal favorite is the “Shark” fishing episode, or perhaps the one that focuses on, cough, gaining your sea legs. At any rate, as a 26 year old woman who has never even gone fishing, I would recommend this series to anyone who would just like to laugh and have a good time.
Review by J. Christmas for Fishing with John, Vol. 1-3 [VHS]
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Give two grown up thirteen year olds a camera crew and a boundless budget to take exotic fishing trips . . .the result is Fishing With John. Hard to describe, but particularly great are the narrator (who earnestly makes PBSque comments like “The shark . . . man’s deadliest predator), and the music by John Lurie. This includes faux-ethnic music to acompany his trip to Thailand, and the famous Fisherman Dance chorale from the brazillian rainforest (“Ah the power and the wisdom!”)
Review by for Fishing with John, Vol. 1-3 [VHS]
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Most of the other reviews echo what I would say in descibing the nature of these short films. The DVD quality is OUTSTANDING, I’m not a huge fan of John’s music but it works here very well.This is a completely original effort and a cult classic. Fisherman won’t mind it either, the beautiful scenery, and the exotic fish and settings are 100% dead on in most fishermans dream vacation files.Take a chance on these films, they are sometimes pretty art-school, but mostly pretty damn cool.
Review by Haley Anne for Fishing with John, Vol. 1-3 [VHS]
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I love the opening song written by John Lurie himself. Hooked me from the start. A must see for fish lover and haters alike.