Description

Although he’s been largely known as the co-creator of “Seinfeld”, former stand-up comic Larry David has sort of turned the George Constanza character (apparently based upon himself) into a show that David stars in. Born after a documentary/stand-up performance showcase on HBO, “Curb Your Enthusiasm” stars David as himself, a socially awkward, paranoid, hilariously self-obsessed person who manages to say the wrong thing at the wrong time, then sink ever deeper into his own mistake until the result is almost difficult to watch – yet still claiming himself to be the victim the entire time. A minor mistake, a little moment blown out of proportion, can suddenly snowball into something much more devastasting for David down the road. In the show, David is joined by a series of characters, including his wife (Cheryl Hines, excellent), manager (Jeff Garlin, very funny) and occasional stars playing themselves, including Wanda Sykes, Ted Danson, “My Big Fat Greek Wedding”‘s Nia Vardalos and David’s longtime friend, Richard Lewis.The show’s dialogue is largely ad-libbed, with the actors getting a general outline of the plot and scenes, then going from there. Combined with the often-handheld camerawork, the improvised dialogue feels even more realistic. Cheryl Hines also truly deserves her awards notice for playing David’s wife; not only do the two have great chemistry with each other, but she gives depth to a character that could have been one-note, “That’s another fine mess you’ve gotten yourself into, Larry.”

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