Danielle Solzman
Breaking a taboo, Poop Talk is easily the funniest documentary to ever be about shit and the film would never have been able to happen without executive producers Randy and Jason Sklar, better known as The Sklar Brothers.
Poop Talk is the brain child of director Aaron Feldman but without the Sklar Brothers, none of the comedians interviewed would have come on board to discuss their experience with taking a shit–whether they were comfortable or not. Sorry, but I just feel more comfortable by referring to bowel movements as shit as it rolls off the tongue better in that way–please don’t feel that you need to be eating shit as you watch a film on shit although it would be very ironic if one were to watch this documentary while sitting on a toilet and taking a shit. Though if there were ever a documentary to watch while doing so, it has to be this one! I’M SORRY!!!
A fun fact was learned in watching the film: according to a gastroenterologist, Dr. John Vainder, featured in the documentary, a person has 360 pounds of shit per year. He’s probably not the reason why someone would make the decision to watch this hysterical documentary–no, that belongs to the countless number of comedians interviewed for the documentary, including Oscar-nominated comedian Kumail Nanjiani, who shares about his experiences in not eating food if it meant not having to shit.
The funniest and most hysterical story told belongs to stand-up comedian Nicole Aimée Schreiber. Schreiber recalls an experience one year following the Jewish holiday of Passover. Like any Jewish person who celebrates the holiday and consumes a lot of matzoh, there’s a lot of build up that comes with it by way of constipation. To see how this story ends, you’ll need to watch the documentary but I promise you this–you’ll laugh and cry. A documentary such as this doesn’t necessarily have spoilers because everybody shits but some stories are better left off being told by the person who lived them. In this case, it belongs to Schreiber–for better or worse.
Kira Soltanovich shares her own story about shitting–one that happened at such a young age when her family was leaving Russia for a better opportunity. Her experience was such a Jewish one that involved her mother–again, you’ll have to watch the film because I dare won’t ruin the emotional experience.
Comedian Paul Scheer stresses the point that the only thing that connects the world is taking a shit. It’s true. There’s death, life, and taking a shit–it’s all connected in that regard.
Interview subjects include Steve Agee, Nicole Byer, Adam Carolla, Rob Corddry, Nikki Glaser, Ryan Goldsher, Pete Holmes, Allen Lawrence, Bobby Lee, Jamie Lee, Kumail Nanjiani, Jason Nash, Vijal Patel, Dr. Drew Pinsky, Paul Provenza, Jonah Ray, Simon Rex, Andrea Rosen, Jordan Rubin, Paul Scheer, Jason Sklar, Randy Sklar, Brendon Small, Kira Soltanovich, Taryn Southern, Eric Stonestreet, Nick Swardson, David Waltner-Toews, Lauren Weedman, Brent Weinbach, Brad Williams, Dr. John Vainder, and Brent Weinbach.
While you may end up shitting your parents, Poop Talk isn’t a documentary to be missed. Even though there may be more important documentaries to be released in 2018 (Let’s face it, there probably are going to be more important can’t miss films), none of them will discuss shit in such a way that’s both poignant and hysterical.
