Yeah, this is a really neat experiment. Conversations set (partly) to motion, without the severe constraints and trappings—desk, audience, promotional agenda, down-to-the-second time allotment, et cetera—of the typical talk show interview.
Being unrehearsed and unstructured, the dynamics are all over the place, and yeah, very much affected by chemistry, even with the heavy editing. Some of the shows are easy and natural, just two old old friends chatting (Larry David, Sarah Jessica Parker, Ali Wentworth), some are strongly colored by respect and deference on Seinfeld’s part (Carl Reiner, Mel Brooks, Don Rickles), some are about seasoned pros talking shop (Chris Rock, Jay Leno), some guests aren’t entirely certain what’s “supposed” to happen (Aziz Ansari, Tina Fey, a surprisingly flat Patton Oswalt) or are uncomfortable with the format (Ricky Gervais, who appears genuinely—and hilariously—unhappy about being a passenger in Jerry’s car). They aren’t equally successful, but I find that pretty interesting, too.
For a show about the show, the Paley Media Center hosted a lengthy interview with Seinfeld by David Letterman last year.
Alec Baldwin’s show was great. He’s not a professional comedian, but he’s a gifted and practiced raconteur, and he clearly came prepared. In one bit, you can tell that he basically said to Seinfeld “Hey, I’ve got a funny story about Kirk Douglas and Burt Lancaster: set me up.” Later, he contrives his own cue to tell a completely insane story about Rip Torn. And that improvised bit about being a kid, enviously looking over the fence into neighbor-kid-Seinfeld’s yard, just kills me. “Whoa, that fuckin’ Jerry got a fuckin’ Slip 'N Slide. That hard-on. Look at that Slip 'N Slide. Can you imagine? Jeez. Is anybody out here using it? Is anybody playing with it? He’s in the house. What’s he doing? Look through the window! He’s talking into a hairbrush in his bathroom.”
I’m crossing my fingers that Woody Allen is interested in doing it.
