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More Feelings

Ramy Youssef

HBO Max · 2024 · 55 min

Low-key, conversational stand-up about global conflict and family shame.

Watch it free on YouTube (opens in a new tab)

Ramy Youssef works with a deliberate awkwardness, turning massive geopolitical friction and private family embarrassments into quiet, cringe-inducing intimacy. He treats heavy-gauge topics (like the Israel-Hamas war, the 2024 presidential election, or the sudden anxiety of seeing an Israeli flag in the bedroom of a girl he is trying to sleep with) not as political battlegrounds, but as moments of personal discomfort. Filmed at White Eagle Hall in Jersey City, New Jersey, the hour marks a smooth return to stand-up. By early 2024, Youssef was juggling a busy screen career, including a role in the Oscar-winning Poor Things and directing an Emmy-nominated episode of The Bear, but this performance shows none of the rust of a part-time comic. He is joined on the bill by his longtime collaborator and Ramy co-star Steve Way, who opens the show. Christopher Storer, who directed Youssef’s 2019 special Feelings, returns to direct here, maintaining a tight visual style that matches the monologue-heavy material. The set peaks with a long-form story about an Olive Garden waiter who accidentally becomes a therapist to Youssef’s immigrant father, followed by a memory of a childhood book report lie that spiraled into a permanent source of shame.

The set list

6 bits

  1. Receiving a phone call after October 7 asking for his stance on Hamas

    Expresses exhaustion at constantly having to prove his peacefulness before unexpectedly quipping that he is actually 'a Taliban guy.'

  2. The perils of charity fundraising and social media scrutiny

    Recounts being roasted by fellow Muslims asking why he neglected the Pakistan floods and criticized over whether his activism was on Instagram Stories versus Grid, dubbing himself 'the mayor of Muslim disaster.'

  3. Hooking up with a Jewish girl with an Israeli flag in her bedroom

    Jokes about being so horny that he convinced himself he could personally solve the Palestine conflict.

  4. His father opening up exclusively at Olive Garden

    Contrasts his father's inability to open up to him at home with his willingness to tell his entire life story to casual restaurant servers.

  5. Joe Biden and election campaign outreach

    Mocks Joe Biden as possessing 'crazy substitute teacher energy' and laments the pressure of being recruited to rally Arab-American voters in Michigan.

  6. A childhood book report on Gandhi

    Reflects on how the formative elementary school assignment still haunts his psychology, family ties, and modern therapy sessions.

How it plays

Tone
Thought-provoking, gently edgy, intimate, and sincere, balancing grave geopolitical themes with playful humor.
On stage
Laid-back, affable, candid, and quietly charismatic, blending authentic vulnerability with sharp, politically incorrect edge.
Pace
Carefully paced, conversational, and understated, delivered with quiet confidence under close-up, intimate camera framing.
About
Israel-Palestine conflict and the post-October 7 landscape, Muslim-American identity and navigating stereotypes, charitable giving and performative activism, presidential politics and the 2024 election, religious faith and prayer, family dynamics and romantic relationships

What the critics said

Critically acclaimed for its razor-sharp wit, casual conversational intimacy, and nuanced navigation of heavy geopolitical and cultural divides without losing warmth or humor.

In the room: Supportive and engaged, responding with enthusiastic applause, shared recognition, and loud cheers for opening guest Steve Way.

Summed up from reviews, articles and listings. Sources: a24films.com, press.wbd.com, variety.com, rottentomatoes.com, nytimes.com, vulture.com, decider.com, chicago.suntimes.com, en.wikipedia.org, vogue.com, time.com.

Backstory

Filmed in the aftermath of the October 7 attacks and the ensuing war in Gaza, amidst the 2024 presidential election cycle and shifting cultural pressures on prominent Muslim Americans.

Details

Released
Taped
White Eagle Hall, Jersey City
Runtime
55 min
Where
HBO Max
Director
Christopher Storer
Topics
Before
Done Saying Sorry (2024)
After
In Love (2026)

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