Religulous

Overheal

A new documentary-film hosted by Bill Maher:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XdkyLrDpaUg

Interviewed by Jon Stewart on the film: http://www.thedailyshow.com/video/index.jhtml?videoId=186755&title=bill-maher-pt.-1

pt2: http://www.thedailyshow.com/video/index.jhtml?videoId=186756&title=bill-maher-pt.-2

Promises to be a hoot.

aidan24326

Looks like it could be a bit of fun alright.

Galvasean

You forgot the L

http://boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055308907

Dave!

Yeah been looking forward to this for ages. Cheers for the links, I love both Bill Maher and Jon Stewart

Overheal

The dialy show site launched its own forum (dont get excited, its not very polished) and the interview with maher is getting destroyed by some religious viewers. I had fun replying to them

this guy especially, is just asking to be humiliated imo: http://forum.thedailyshow.com/tds/board/message?board.id=13123&message.id=367#M367

The Irish are weak Catholics. They ought be stronger, but they have the Kennedys who keep pushing their heads under water, especially up there in the NE. But this is Texas, the buckle of the Bible Belt, we don't cart the enemy around in wheelbarrows so that everyone can hear their message and try to decide for themselves. With all the criticism of American education you ought to know that 95% of Americans don't think, they just follow. They are content to let others do the thinking for them, especially when it's funny.

Múinteoir

The full movie is already on youtube. Put up on Christmas day, interestingly enough!

Valmont

This looks pretty funny. I like the way he bashes all religions and not just Christianity, a bit of variety is always good. I'm just thankful he's not a smug bastard:pac:

barfizz

I really have to check this out, Bill Maher is intelligent and funny

bnt

Watched this a few days ago: there was quite a bit that I hadn't heard of before, such as why he went to Megiddo for the opening and closing segments. The funniest bits IMHO came from the Vatican, which left me wondering just what's in that smoke they use to signal the election of a new Pope. The ending is pretty powerful stuff. I thought it could be longer, and I read that they have lots more material for the DVD or online.

I think the complaints people have about the film have a lot to do with misunderstanding about where Maher is coming from, even though he tries to clear that up at the start. He's a stand-up comedian, not an anthropologist, and humour is central to how he sees religion. Even his closing statement is funny, despite its seriousness, and the general feeling that there's plenty going on that's worth getting angry about.

Dave!

I quite enjoyed his interaction with the truckers at the chapel. It was pleasant

"Hey where's my wallet?!"

Calibos

A big fan of Bill mahers political commentary. I watched his Real Time show via youtube....eh.....Religilously Wacthing him rippping the piss out of Sarah palin week in week out for 2 months was brilliant

He's a perfect example of compartmentalisation though where a person can be rational about one thing but have wacko views on another. He believes modern medicine is a fraud and all disease is caused by a bad diet!!!

Watched this the other night after 'some of my peers' sent it to me over the internet.

Very funny especially when he would make his "I can't quite believe what I am hearing face". The face on that senator when Bill pointed out a contradiction in something the senator said regarding the bible or religion. Something so obvious to any of us and and you could see it in the senators eyes, "Duh, never thought about it that way" He then smuggly says, "Hey there aint no IQ test to be a senator har har." The look on Bills face, "he said it, not me!! "

It was really quite sad though. The guy leading the human Genome project. I always thought that he must beleive because of his work on the complexity of genes leading him down the intelligent design path or that he was just a deist rather than a theist because of some heavy duty philosophical reasoning about 'first cause' of the quantom fluctuactions before the big bang blah blah. Something we might stilll scoff at but with some deeper thought involved than the reasoning of the average joes in the rest of the film. Not so, he believed for the same nonsensical reasons as the truck drivers!!

Its just really really sad why the average joes believe as they do. Again although I can just about understand how some more intellectual debators could be deists due to some philosopical reasoning about the creation of the universe and think they are making a massive leap from , "something must have created the universe" to believing in the proclamations of bronze age goat herders from an arid land on the east coast of the mediterranian circa 2000 years ago. Ie I can understand how you reasoned yourself into becoming a deist but how did you become a theist. But listening to some of the average joes reasoning, its just so patently....I am sorry...stupid, i just really feel for them.

You have intellectuals using faulty logic as reasons to believe, you have average joes not using what few braincells they have. Some of these people looked like they didn't even know what the word contradiction meant for crying out loud. Then you have the masses in between. People that just beleive because of societal pressure and are afraid to give it much thought in case they reason themselves out of their security blanket. Lazy people. Its too much work to examine all the evidence or lack thereof, they've got more important things to do than ponder some philosophical questions in their head. "Hmm, I could sit down this one night and ponder the nature of the universe ........or I could go for a beer......MMMNNN Beeeeer". A lot of these people couldn't care less whether there was or wasn't a god, "Whatever Dude!" not bothered thinking about it so just accept the default position and whats the default position in most societies? Belief in God!

WooPeeA

I just finished watching that movie and must say I had lots of fun. If you have free evening and want to watch good comendy, turn the "Religulous" on!

This will stuck in my mind for a while:

"Religion is dangerous because it allows human beings who don't have all the answers to think that they do."

Goduznt Xzst

watched it as well last week. Personally I thought it was a haberdashery of points and jibes. None of them felt thought out or particularly jarring. In particular, when he started going on about the myths behind the Jesus story and Horus, it just made him look like a hack.

Overall it's bemusing to listen to fanatics, fundamentalists and idiotic government officials, but he is doing nothing to add anything to the argument at large with this documentary.

WooPeeA

Well yeah, this film was made to show the irrationality of several popular religions, and to show how different they are from each other and later, how different people interpret same words into different meanings. And later, how they excuse wars, conflicts etc.

Of course it's well known fact and most of people won't learn too much form this movie, but Bill Mahers is a comedian and his just doing what he can do best, making fun of people.

I'd classify this film as a documentary-comedy, together with "911".

Sonderval

Overall it's bemusing to listen to fanatics, fundamentalists and idiotic government officials, but he is doing nothing to add anything to the argument at large with this documentary

I dont think that was his objective tbh. The argument has been made many, many times over by people more eloquent and capable then Maher.

mickeydevine

"Dude your hairs on fire":D:D:D:D:D:D:D

Goduznt Xzst

Sonderval wrote: »

I dont think that was his objective tbh. The argument has been made many, many times over by people more eloquent and capable then Maher.

Really? His final monologue in the documentary would seem to say otherwise.

robindch

Religulous is being shown as part of the Dublin International Film Festival on February 18th at 1800h in Cineworld on Parnell Street:

http://jdiff.ticketsolve.com/events/events_for_show/702423

Anybody on for it?

Flamed Diving

I saw it.





Not great...

Stercus Accidit

Goduznt Xzst wrote: »

watched it as well last week. Personally I thought it was a haberdashery of points and jibes. None of them felt thought out or particularly jarring. In particular, when he started going on about the myths behind the Jesus story and Horus, it just made him look like a hack.

Overall it's bemusing to listen to fanatics, fundamentalists and idiotic government officials, but he is doing nothing to add anything to the argument at large with this documentary.

I found myself feeling this too, but given the people he was speaking to, the usual logical arguments would have been wasted, I find reading this forum more informative overall.

It was more of a fly on the wall with some antagonism thrown in for good measure, as there were no real confrontation of ideas at a fundamental level, but entertaining none the less.

Flamed Diving

I would put it on the same level as Expelled, tbh.

fitz0

While it wasn't the most compelling documentary I found it to be quite good all the same. It gave me a few laugh out loud moments which was all I was hoping for from a film by a stand up comedian.

You have to admire the questions he asked though. If I was in a portable church with a load of huge religious truckers I definately wouldn't say the stuff he said. Although the priest they interviewed outside the Vatican was a cheap shot. The man seemed a bit mad to me.

robindch

Certainly not the greatest film ever made, but it does have a few laughs and does make a few good points.

fitz0 wrote: »

Although the priest they interviewed outside the Vatican was a cheap shot. The man seemed a bit mad to me.

If that's the guy I'm thinking of, his name is Reginald Foster and he's regarded in the Vatican as a loose cannon and no doubt, probably the only guy there who would agree to speak with Maher.

Foster's main interest in life is Latin and he's a passionate advocate and teacher of the language. Amongst other things he provides free classes and free tours around Rome for anybody who's interested in the language. He shows up on the BBC from time to time and can be very funny.

fitz0

Thats the guy. Just googled him and I must say I love the description on his wikipedia page-

"He has gained recognition as a voice of common sense in Bill Maher's 2008 documentary Religulous."

Overblood

Religulous was great fun. Was it released in the cinemas here?

The Mad Hatter

Haven't seen it, but might give it a look. tbh, though, his tactics in making it (specifically giving his potential interviewees the impression that he was making a film exploring the ideas of faith more kindly than was the fact) reminded me a little too strongly of Expelled...

pts

Overblood wrote: »

Religulous was great fun. Was it released in the cinemas here?

According to imdb it had a UK release earlier this month. Doesn't say anything about Ireland though. Maybe it suffered the same fate (faith) as "Life of Brian", banned for for blasphemy, then gets its release after 8 years.

I thought it was a very good film. It pokes fun at some of the absurdities of faith.

Mickeroo

Downloaded it a while back. As a doumentary its not the most balanced, but it sure is funny!!

Múinteoir

It's all on youtube.

Stercus Accidit

Lighthouse cinema show it.

Overblood

fitz0 wrote: »

Although the priest they interviewed outside the Vatican was a cheap shot. The man seemed a bit mad to me.

Ah I don't think that was a cheapshot. They were kicked out of one of the buildings so obviously weren't very welcome. As Bill said, he's been on their "shitlist" for quite some time. Father Reggie was probably the only priest they could get.