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REVIEW: Taika Waititi might cameo, but a new sketch series’ best moments are inspired by Sir Peter Jackson.
History of the World: Part II (now streaming on Disney+) is an eight-part follow-up to Mel Brooks’ 1981 episodic cinematic tour through humanity’s endeavours.
Now most definitely seen as sexist, scatologically obsessed and scattershotly, fitfully funny, most of the original’s running-time is focused on the Roman Empire, making it seem like a desperate attempt to cash in on the success and controversy generated by British comedy troupe Monty Python’s Life of Brian 18 months earlier. It has its moments, particularly if you’re a fan of Orson Welles (who narrates), jokes about comedians playing Caesar’s Palace, characters called Count de Monet, lines like “you can’t Torquemada him out of anything” and “don’t be saucy with me Bernaise” and décolletage a go-go.
As well as cameos from John Hurt, Spike Milligan and Hugh Heffner, Part I also trailered a potential sequel at its end, something it’s only taken four decades – and a change in medium – to achieve.
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Like the film, it is somewhat hit-and-miss – a run of American Civil War sketches drag and a Russian Revolution “series” is as uneven as its Meet the Kardashians-Fiddler on the Roof mash-up conceit suggests – but there are definitely laughs to be had.
Kumail Nanjiani shines trying to peddle “the Karma Soupra” (“a soup-to-nuts” combination of cookery book and sex-instruction manual his character is convinced will sell like hot cakes), the Jackass team reunite for an inspired Rasputin set-piece, Seth Rogen is a dog-obsessed Noah (“I’ve got three pugs, don’t tell God”) and Typhoid Mary offers up a YouTube cooking class.
But while our own Waititi gets his moment as Sigmund Freud in a commercial peddling his (477 – ranging from 30 seconds to three days) masterclasses (“featuring footage from sessions shared without my patients’ permission”), the highlight for me was a recurring reality series clearly inspired by fellow Kiwi Jackson’s Emmy-winning 2021 series The Beatles: Get Back.
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Jay Ellis plays The Apostles’ leader Jesus in the hilarious Last Supper Sessions sketches, which are a highlight of History of the World: Part II.
Spread across episodes six and seven, Jesus and the Apostles: The Last Supper Sessions is a fly-on-the-wall mockumentary inside the days before Jesus Christ’s (Jay Ellis) last sermon.
Tensions are high among the band, as concerns mount about the growing influence of Mary Magdalene (Zazie Beetz) on their leader. “He thinks he’s bigger than Jesus,” Judas (Nick Kroll) gripes, also upset that his desire to “play Rome” is being ignored. “I thought we were the fab 12, but I guess we’re the fab 13.”
Mary pointing out that she wrote the chorus to the hit Psalm Let it Baa doesn’t help the mood. By the time they debate whether their latest work should be called Give Back, Judas’ toxicity results in him walking out.
But, just when they think they might be missing “a whole dimension of sound” without him, he returns, naturally prompting Jesus to utter, “Hey, Jude”.
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Taika Waititi plays Sigmund Freud in History of the World: Part II.
As with an earlier extended sketch, which reimagines Judas’ betrayal as an episode of Curb Your Enthusiasm (complete with that series’ J.B. Smoove playing Luke), it’s the double parody of tone and content that really stands out – and truly entertains.
You might wish that a series boasting four directors and 15 writers had managed a little more consistency than it does, but at least there are moments when it is not only laugh-out-loud hilarious, but also inspired.
History of the World: Part II is now available to stream on Disney+.
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