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Promotional art for On the Rocks
Cover image credit: via TMDB

On the Rocks

Brian Regan

Netflix · 2021 · 58 min

A clean, physical hour about gray hair, OCD, and bagpipes.

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Brian Regan steps on stage looking visibly older, immediately pointing out that months of pandemic isolation transformed his hair from dyed dark to a natural, shocking gray. It is a fitting kickoff to an hour where he turns a skeptical eye toward his own aging mind and body. While many of his peers spent 2020 raging at headlines or cancel culture, Regan chooses to look inward, discussing a late-in-life OCD diagnosis and how he uses it to escape dreary social obligations.

Filmed in October 2020 at the outdoor Tuacahn Center for the Arts in Utah, the special features a masked, socially distanced crowd. The unusual setup does nothing to dim Regan’s physical delivery. He matches his trademark goofy facial contortions with classic, clean observation. He mocks the existence of marching bands—wondering why we do not have marching taxidermists stuffing otters on the move—and questions the rushed design of the bagpipes. At this point in his career, Regan was also acting on Peter Farrelly’s series Loudermilk, but this hour proves his stand-up remains as reliable as ever without needing to touch on politics.

The set list

6 bits

  1. Gray hair and aging after quarantine

    Joking that COVID hit, he went into hibernation, and came out looking like a senior citizen, followed by unease in the hair-color aisle.

  2. Medical specialists for humans versus animals

    Contrasting humans having doctors for every single body part against veterinarians handling all animals, questioning the existence of wildebeest gastroenterologists and bighorn sheep knee doctors.

  3. Organizing a bookshelf with OCD

    Describing the obsessive internal spiral of organizing books based on when they were last read, fretting that reading a title to shelve it might reset the timeline.

  4. Orchestra pits and marching bands

    Ruminating over why musicians dress up to go down into a 'pit', practice with house doors open, or play large instruments like tubas.

  5. Social interactions at parties

    Acting out the dread of walking into conversations with strangers he strongly disagrees with, unable to dispute them without being ostracized.

  6. Sending rovers to Mars

    Sarcastic observational take on why humans feel the need to send rovers searching for rocks and signs of life.

How it plays

Tone
Absurd, goofy, self-deprecating, escapist, vulnerable, and family-friendly.
On stage
Animated, expressive, self-deprecating yet accessible and clean-cut, featuring goofy physicality, distinct facial expressions, and snarls.
Pace
Polished and energetic delivery, balancing measured and straight accounting of personal spirals with sudden goofy shifts and physical act-outs.
About
Aging and gray hair, Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) diagnosis and mental health, Doctor visits and medical specialists, Awkward social interactions and dinner parties, Animals vs. humans, Reiki healers and massages

What the critics said

Generally positive appraisal noting his timeless, evergreen observational skills, deft physical comedy, and newfound vulnerability around his OCD diagnosis, though some critics questioned whether the escapist avoidance of pandemic realities was completely successful.

In the room: An outdoor crowd of nearly 1,900 masked attendees packed together in an amphitheater surrounded by red rocks, responsive with laughter, claps, and whistles.

Summed up from reviews, articles and listings. Sources: imdb.com, rottentomatoes.com, decider.com, vulture.com, vaguevisages.com, vanyaland.com, en.wikipedia.org, upi.com.

Backstory

Filmed in October 2020 at an outdoor amphitheater during the COVID-19 pandemic with a masked audience after productions had shut down earlier in the year; Regan debuted newly gray hair and discussed his recent OCD diagnosis.

Details

Released
Taped
2020, Tuachan Center for the Arts, Irvin
Runtime
58 min
Where
Netflix
Director
Troy Miller
Topics
Before
Nunchucks and Flamethrowers (2017)

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