Monday, September 16, 2013

And the Emmy goes to...

Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series
Melissa Leo 
as 
Laurie
Louie 
Episode 
"Telling Jokes/Set Up"
FX"
"Telling Jokes" is essentially C.K.'s spin on the old saw that kids say the darndest things. But the idea that small children don't realize how funny they are takes on new life when shown through the eyes of a professional comedian. Jane's joke about the gorilla who couldn't go to the ballet would be strange and amusing enough on its own, but when we hear Louie analyzing it for a club audience, it goes to another level.

Beyond that, the opening scene with Louie and the girls at the kitchen table was a reminder that while Louie's kids can be frustrating at times (like any kids), sometimes it's an enormous amount of fun for them to just spend time together.

"Set Up," meanwhile, offered a terrific guest role for Melissa Leo as Louie's unwitting blind date Laurie. a tough broad who's as surprised as Louie to realize she's having a good time when their married friends leave. Leo's never been a particularly self-conscious actress — on "Homicide," she refused (over the objections of several executives) to wear makeup, since she didn't think her character would — so it's not that shocking to see a former Oscar winner cheerfully offering up oral sex in a pick-up truck, then violently demanding Louie return the favor when he declines, but it's still an explosively funny, ballsy sequence, and performance.

R




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