Notorious C.H.O. (2002)

Some fans many find Margaret Cho's second concert film less consistently funny than its predecessor, I'm the One That I Want, but they are still likely to find plenty of good laughs here. The movie opens with an animated sequence featuring Cho's mother and an African-American friend in a Korean grocery. This is followed by relatively standard footage of Cho, her fans, and her parents (who seem rather nice); it was presumably included to provide some context for her performance, or perhaps to pad out the movie's running time. After this introduction, Notorious C.H.O. is a straightforward concert film shot on digital video with few frills (including fancy camerawork or cutaways to show audience reaction) to distract from (or enhance) the performance itself. For those unfamiliar with Cho's routines, they tend to feature candid and often raunchy remarks about human sexuality (straight, gay, and bi), as well as comments about other body issues, particularly weight, and an amusing impression of her mother (which admittedly seems a bit ungenerous at times). Cho advocates tolerance and positive self-image; indeed, she gets a bit preachy in this film with a few remarks that are commendable but not really funny, although some of her serious comments turn out to be set ups for jokes. She also has an unfortunate tendency to repeat some of material, overdo some of her impressions, and stretch out some of her routines longer than necessary. But her jokes are often hilarious, her timing is generally quite good, and she excels at using a frozen pose for comedic effect. If you think you could enjoy jokes about how men would behave if they menstruated, the differences between straight and gay personal ads, and the two drag queens who Cho refers to affectionately as her guardian angels, then there's a good chance that you'll enjoy this movie. ~ Todd Kristel, All Movie Guide