morrison-dylan-fan In the early 2000's I would hear from a family friend about how good the Howard Stern book Private Parts was,and I was disappointed to find out that none of his infamous radio show could be heard or seen in the UK. Since finding recordings (and becoming a fan of) of Stern's show online,I took part in an ICM poll for the best movies of 1997,and was surprised to learn from fellow IMDber Red-Barracuda of a Stren bio- pic from the year,which led to me tuning into this special episode.The plot:After visiting the radio station his dad worked at,Howard Stern begins to dream of hosting his own radio show. Meeting his future wife Alison whilst working on college radio,Stern moves on to local radio. Closely following all the rules, Stern's shows hardly get any listeners. Trying to think of how to turn his luck around,Stern decides to push the boundaries of taste of radio, by being himself.View on the film:Going between hosting his radio show in the morning and shooting this movie the rest of the day, Howard Stern actually gives a very good performance as himself! Re-enacting some of his most taboo- breaking moments, Stern captures the ruckus energy of each broadcast pushing the lines of decency in mainstream radio. Whilst it is all about him, Stern surprisingly does not shy away from really bringing out the neurotic side of the "character", with Stern's inability to handle extremely emotional moments, leading to snappy exchanges between Stern (who was originally going to be played by Jeff Goldblum) and his wife Alison, (played by the charming Mary McCormack.) with Paul Giamatti also biting everyone's arm off as irritated radio manager Kenny (talk about this being a challenging role for Giamatti!)Bringing Stern's show from the airwaves to the screen, director Betty Thomas & cinematographer Walt Lloyd give each broadcast a flight of fantasy atmosphere,where each sex act is heightened to the most fantastical level. Adapting Stern's book and radio show, the screenplay by Lee Blum and Michael Kalesniko criss-cross raunchy sex comedy set-pieces with a playfully quirky wit,that is hilariously undressed in Stern never finding a station where he fits in,and the private parts get exposed.

atlasmb When Howard Stern, the self-acclaimed "King of All Media", was promoting this film before its release (and even during its production), he said it was going to be a great film. He has never failed to tout himself, professionally, as a powerful force. On the other hand, he has always been self-deprecating on a personal level, saying he is inadequate in terms of sexual equipment, etc. This strange dichotomy is central, I believe, to Stern's appeal, both to women and men.The film follows his personal and professional lives, including his stops at small radio stations on the way to dominating the New York market. And again Stern is unafraid of looking the fool. This is a comedy and much of the comedy revolves around his self-deprecation.At the same time, he lampoons (always with humor) those he met along the way who predicted his failure. And those who tried to rein in his brand of irreverent and titillating humor. Paul Giamatti is both amazing and hilarious as the producer who fails to recognize the unstoppable force that Stern becomes.Robin Quivers, playing herself, is the one-in-a-million on-air companion who can channel Stern's efforts and lend an unexpected air of respectability to the proceedings. Not everyone will appreciate this film, but it will pleasantly surprise some people. Though it is not strictly the truth, it is no more improbable than the reality of Howard Stern's life.

Salpocalypse Now A man so hated & loathed for being outspoken, raunchy, and possessing a juvenile sense of humor (whose ultimate goal was simply this: to illicit great laughs to be had by all & good ratings to keep him on-the-air) finds plenty of opposition as he departs from his formal university education & enters into the difficult journey of achieving a successful broadcast entertainment career!Howard Stern is by far one of the most under-appreciated, overlooked, unjustly blacklisted, guilty-until-proved-innocent humans on Earth! I have listened & watched the Stern Show since the early 90's when the show was finally coming into its own, and reaching global audiences, as opposed to the 80's, when Stern nation was just barely reaching East & West Coast listeners. I realize Howard Stern's reputation & outlook on life while being a "shock jock" is too much to handle for lots of uptight victims of a sheltered upbringing; the morality hypocrites in this country - where freedom of expression/speech is often tested, ridiculed, and ultimately determined to be just a farce. This country will never outgrow CENSORSHIP. But for many of us in this intelligent, open-minded, love- laugh-live army of dedicated fans... we wouldn't want it any other way!In Private Parts, Howard Stern gives us insight into the career-long battle with the FCC, and shows us his human side where he shares his experiences of becoming a father, a husband, and a great & loyal friend to all who are deserving. Thanks to his many lifelong critics (who are just embittered fans anyway!), there may be a lot to dislike about someone who is so often misunderstood and dismissed as "an overgrown man child"... whatever opinion you may have about Howard Stern and his empire, you simply cannot deny his genius & overall success!

davidee88 I decided I needed to watch this film again, a while after the last viewing, after constantly hearing the praise of the film from the rather biased source of the Howard Stern show.The film was as I remembered it. Pretty standard entertainment, slightly raised for those who are followers of the show.I wonder how differently this story would be told if it weren't based on material written by Howard Stern himself. Possibly as a result of this, the entire film comes across as self-promoting propaganda for Stern, which, naturally, feels a little immodest and most probably embellished.However, what surprised me was that all the praise that Stern lathers on himself for his performance in this film is well deserved. Howard slips into actor mode with the greatest of ease. Within ten minutes he has conquered the hardest hurdle of his transition: people know him too well when he's NOT acting.Why I consider this such a feat is because the audience expects a rather inorganic performance from him (or at least I did), due to the ability to compare it to his true relaxed state, every day, for five hours.Stern must be commended for the believability and immersion his performance allows the audience to enjoy. Although, one may argue that to play oneself is not that difficult to capture.Paul Giamatti also gives a stellar performance, with his red-hot outbursts being particularly memorable. ("YOU ARE THE MOTHERFUCKING ANTI-Christ!") All in all, a fun film for Stern fans. Perhaps still enjoyable for those that aren't, perhaps not.