Playlist: The Jerk

Never one to rest on my laurels (mine have thorns), I recently watched The Jerk to see if it deserved a claim to my 1979 crown. It doesn't.

That doesn't mean it wasn't funny, which it was and very much so at times. The beginning is Steve Martin at his best as we see his character's upbringing in Mississippi as a "poor black child" and his stint as a gas station attendant ("He hates these cans. Stay away from the cans.").

The film slows down once he falls in love and there's actual attention paid to some sort of narrative. (Also, I don't really get the title, other than it's funny. He's much more of a dimwitted fool than anything else.) But there are great moments throughout and, if nothing else, it provided us with this timeless advice:

"Lord loves a workin' man; don't trust whitey; see a doctor and get rid of it."