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I'm Swiss

Bill Maher

HBO · 2005 · 1 h 39 min

A Bush-era political set focused on the frustrations of being an American.

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Bill Maher uses the 2005 political landscape as a punching bag, playing the role of the exasperated American who is tired of answering for his government. He leans heavily into the embarrassment of traveling abroad during the George W. Bush administration, explaining that he simply tells foreigners he is from the land of cuckoo clocks and neutral banks to avoid the conversation altogether. It is a set built on frustration, aimed directly at the culture wars and foreign policies of the mid-2000s.

Filmed at the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall in Portland, Oregon, the performance marked Maher’s seventh HBO special. The set arrived a couple of years into his tenure hosting Real Time, fully removed from the constraints of his previous network television gig. He tackles the era’s major talking points, criticizing the war in Iraq, advocating for legalized marijuana, and defending gay marriage. He also dedicates a segment to “Master P’s Theatre,” a recurring bit where he reads rap lyrics in formal, suburban English. The performance ultimately earned a pair of Emmy nominations.

The set list

4 bits

  1. Claiming Swiss nationality to avoid embarrassment over American foreign and domestic policy.

    Maher explains that when crazy political events unfold, he protects himself by claiming he is Swiss.

  2. Translating rap lyrics into formal, proper English.

    Performs recitations of rap verses spoken in clear, non-Ebonic phrasing ('Master P's Theater').

  3. American food, digestive issues, and corporate chemicals.

    Argues that digestive bloating and belching are not natural body acts but desperate cries for help against high-fructose corn syrup, aspartame, and toxic processed ingredients.

  4. Media coverage of Strom Thurmond fathering a child with a Black servant in 1925 Jim Crow South Carolina.

    Criticizes the media for gently labeling the relationship an 'affair' instead of recognizing the inherent lack of consent and calling it rape.

How it plays

Tone
Dark comedy, satirical, cynical, topical, and biting.
On stage
Cynical, outspoken political commentator delivering sharp, biting satire from an unvarnished libertarian and Jeffersonian perspective.
Pace
Rapid-fire stand-up performance built around zealous rants that steadily build momentum after the first ten to fifteen minutes.
About
The Bush administration and government policies, 9/11 and homeland security, Religion, morals, and values, The war on drugs and marijuana, Gay marriage, Diet, food additives, and health

What the critics said

Doug Brod of Entertainment Weekly characterized the special as 'less a stand-up routine than a libertarian rally peppered with zingers' that generated more applause than laughter, though viewers praised it as rapid-fire, highly topical, and among Maher's funniest and most coherent stand-up sets.

In the room: Strongly supportive Portland crowd that was largely on his side and applauding his viewpoints, despite an unnamed protester outside the venue.

Summed up from reviews, articles and listings. Sources: imdb.com, rottentomatoes.com, en.kinorium.com, link.livebrary.com, themoviedb.org, en.wikipedia.org, cnn.com, fandango.com.

Backstory

Recorded in March 2005 following the 2004 presidential election. Maher reflected on his embarrassment with contemporary American politics and the George W. Bush administration, joking that his discomfiture led him to claim he was Swiss.

Details

Released
Runtime
1 h 39 min
Where
HBO
Director
Michael Drumm
Honors
Nominated for 2 Primetime Emmy Awards (3 nominations total)
Topics
Before
Victory Begins at Home (2003)
After
The Decider (2007)

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