Review: Conan O’Brien Can’t Stop

January 2010 was a month that comedian Conan O’Brien will never forget.

After being a part of NBC for more than 20 years, working with Saturday Night Live, Late Night Show, and The Tonight Show, O’Brien decided to leave after a scheduling conflict with Jay Leno and NBC. During his final speech on The Tonight Show, his speech can get anyone inspired.

“I hate cynicism; for the record it’s my least favorite quality. It doesn’t lead anywhere. Nobody in life gets exactly what they thought they were going to get. But if you work really hard and you’re kind, amazing things will happen,” O’Brien said on the last episode of The Tonight Show.

The documentary Conan O’Brien Can’t Stop takes you inside of the mind of a funny man, and exposes almost every bit of the comedians life. On stage O’Brien is a fireball of energy and can make anyone laugh until their sides hurts. But off stage we get to see him calm, frustrated, happy, and even angry. We watch as he turns his frustration from his situation and turn it into something widely entertaining.

This movie shows a side of Conan O’Brien that no television screen or stage can capture. It shows O’Brien not only as a comedian but as a real person dealing with stress, anger, and anxiety. Although it’s hard for anyone to relate to his situation of losing a talk show and having a national tour, it’s easy to relate to the emotions that he is going through. The backstage scene let you inside the mind of O’Brien and the audience gets to see every bit about his life exposed during his time on tour, from March to April 2010.

“He’s allowing this out in the world at a time when he’s bounced back from the low, low point in his life that I captured, said director Rodman Flender. “You can clearly see he’s shell-shocked, hurt and pissed off in the movie and he’s not in that place anymore — but this movie seals that mood and time for posterity.”

The beginning of 2010 started off a little rough for comedian Conan O’Brien. Just after seven months of hosting The Tonight Show, as everyone knows, the late night funny man was asked by NBC to be moved at 12:05 and bump Jay Leno’s show to an earlier time slot, due to poor ratings.

Shortly after the “Tonight Show conflict” O’Brien decided to take his show on the road with the “Legally Prohibited From Being Funny on Television Tour” and travel top 32 cities to get back on the stage.

Filmmaker Rodman Flender’s captures every side of Conan that most people don’t get to see everyday. The film offers a quick glimpse of dress rehearsals, the writers room, all of the happening of backstage from the crazy fans to the mundane work, and with celebrity visits along the way including; Stephen Colbert, Jon Stewart, Jim Carrey, and Jack White.

The title of the movie, Conan O’Brien Can’t Stop, fits perfectly with the personality and life of the comic. Even the director could never find himself one step ahead of Conan.

“Just keeping up with Conan was a challenge, especially being a one-man crew most of the time,” Flender said in a statement. “Conan, as you can see in the movie, is a man in almost constant motion. So keeping up with him with all my gear was a physical challenge.”

The movie brings the audience along during the tour with Conan and his crew, who were play a vital role during the tour and are behind O’Brien’s back the entire national tour.

Enjoy the trailer for Conan O’Brien Can’t Stop, courtesy of YouTube.com!

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