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Review

Notorious CHO
Korean-American comedienne Margaret Cho funneled a lot of personal issues into her 1999 one-woman show/CD/film, I'm The One That I Want. And although guffaws were liberally sprinkled amongst cathartic confessions of drugs, drink, eating disorder and deathly depression, Cho felt it wasn't a "stand-up" production. Her new concert film, Notorious C.H.O., is, and returns Cho to the world of laugh-till-it-hurts comedy she does so well. Raunchy, raucous and – c'mon, this is Margaret Cho, after all – queer as all heck.

Director Lorene Machado captures the Cho's 37-city tour with her stop at Seattle's Paramount Theatre. There she shamelessly ruminates on visits to Los Angeles S&M clubs, colonic irrigation, looking for her elusive G spot, teen drag queen friends, lesbian turn-ons, what kind of woman turns her on ("a bull dyke who looks like John Goodman"), doing her part at Ground Zero (blowjobs for firemen and cops), and, of course, her beloved mother and the "Ass-Master" fan club. Speaking of Mom and Dad, they make an appearance in the film, caught at Margaret's San Francisco engagement and yes, Margaret does a dead-on imitation!

Lawrence Ferber

Revolution
In Revolution, Margaret Cho returns to the screen with the same unbridled, no holds-barred humor that infused her previous films. With her signature style, Margaret tackles the axis of evil, her travels through Thailand's red light district, the explosion of child birth, bartering sex for household chores, Revolutionizing one's self-esteem, the joy of bodily functions, her loser ex-boyfriend, and of course, her now world-famous mother.

Filmed live at the Wiltern Theater in Los Angeles, California in 2003, Revolution was written by and stars Margaret Cho and Bruce Daniels. The film was directed, produced and edited by Lorene Machado.

Cho said the following of her latest tour; "I named it Revolution because we really need one right now. Plus, I think that Prince's backup band before the New Power Generation gets routinely ignored."

I'm the One That I Want
Margaret Cho takes the stage in San Francisco where the audience is largely composed of Asian-Americans and gay/lesbian people. These are her people - they worship her - Margaret's totally gay oriented schtick is perfect here - and for our customers as well! Cho's jokes are funny and there appears to be plenty of improvisation for those of you who have seen this great comic before. For about half of the routine Margaret Cho explains how and why she is a faghag, for about 15 more minutes she mocks her mother (who was seeing her daughter's act for the first time) and she concludes with a revelatory session telling us of her short-lived career on network TV. Most humor comes from pain and Margaret Cho's is no exception. The tale of her canceled television series and her subsequent problems with drugs, alcohol and weight loss may bring a ring of recognition from many viewers.

Created by and starring Margaret Cho (TV's All-American Girl, Face/Off, It's My Party), this critically acclaimed and hysterically funny live performance presents the comedian at her stand-up best. This film is based on the show that was named one of Entertainment Weekly's "Great Performances of 1999" and won New York Magazine's "Performance of the Year Award".