Though they've been around since the 1970s, "shock jocks" really hit their peak in the '90s. Radio DJs with a penchant for crude, potentially offensive humor were huge during the decade, and the biggest among them was Howard Stern. Stern was all over the place during the first half of the '90s, with his syndicated radio show and television shows getting high ratings, and his two autobiographies were on the New York Times bestseller list for several months. And to reinforce his self-given nickname, "The King of All Media," Stern starred in a hit movie based on his first autobiography, Private Parts. Because who better to play you in a movie about your life than you yourself?
The general plot of the movie sees Howard narrating his life story as he sees it. After touching briefly upon his awkward childhood, it really starts focusing on his awkward adulthood. He takes us through his days as a Boston University DJ and meeting his future — and as of this writing, former — wife Alison (Mary McCormack), to working at stations in Hartford, Detroit, and Washington, DC. We see the origins of his friendships and working relationships with long-time collaborators Fred Norris and Robin Quivers (who both play themselves).
The movie's final act takes us to Howard's tenure on WNBC-AM in New York City. His outrageous nature causes him to frequently clash with the station's hot-headed program director, Kenny Rushton (Paul Giamatti), whom Howard promptly nicknames "Pig Vomit" (because, in Howard's words, "he looks like a pig and he makes you want to vomit"). But despite Pig Vomit's attempts to tone down Howard's routine, his popularity and ratings soar nonetheless.
Okay, so Private Parts isn't a great movie. I don't know if I could even call it a good movie. But it's certainly an intriguing one. It's a vanity project on a grand scale, basing itself on Howard Stern's first book, starring Stern and his friends, and featuring a song performed by Stern on the soundtrack. The whole thing is all about him. And though I've never listened to Stern on either terrestrial or satellite radio, the way he's depicted in Private Parts makes him way more interesting than he probably is for real. But I guess that's how it is when you get to make a movie about your own life story.
I'm not sure if I can truly critique Private Parts, since it's less a movie and more a promotional vehicle for Stern's on-air persona, but I guess I can try. In the director's chair is Betty Thomas, whose only really notable credits before Private Parts were The Brady Bunch Movie and a few episodes of Doogie Howser, MD. Her direction isn't really anything tremendous, but considering the movie is a comedy about a radio DJ, you can overlook that. Thomas does, though, manage to bring a silly energy to the movie, giving Private Parts the "we're going nuts, so don't take us too seriously" vibe that Stern himself has in the movie.
Continuing onward, let's hit the script, credited to Len Blum and Michael Kaleshniko. I don't know how much was pulled from Stern's book or contributed by Stern himself during production, but overall, the script is... okay, I guess. It's adequate. The thing is tat there's not really any story being old. It's simply a series of vignettes, and then it ends. It just kinda tapers off towards the end with no real climax or anything like that. Considering that there's no real narrative or really satisfying ending, I think the script was lucky to even be mediocre.
Its saving grace is the comedy. The jokes in the movie aren't for everybody, just like Stern's show. Not all of the jokes and gags work, either. But he ones that do work are actually pretty funny. I'm not going to call Private Parts a laugh riot, but the humor will at least put a smile on your face if you share the movie's sensibilities. It may be crass, but it's a charming kind of crass.
Last on my list is the movie's cast, and it's obvious that many of the major players aren't professional actors. But the fact that they're all trying their hardest goes a long way. Stern is obviously the movie's focus, and since he's playing himself, his performance is about as natural as you can get. Stern's really funny, entertaining, and does a great job carrying he movie. Granted, the guy has a face for radio and a voice for silent film, but Stern knocks it right out of the park.
The rest of the cast is fine, but only two of them stand out. One is Mary McCormack as Alison Stern. While I do wonder how the movie would have turned out if the real Alison had played herself, I can say that I thought McCormack was sweet and charming. Her performance actually makes me sympathize with the real Alison (and by extent, Howard's current wife Beth), since they're the ones who've had to put up with his crazy shenanigans.
The other standout performance was Paul Giamatti as Pig Vomit, a composite of two WNBC executives that dealt with Stern during his time there. Giamatti is loud, over-the-top, and totally hammy, never once taking a breather. I'm surprised you couldn't see the veins popping out of his forehead during his tirades. Every second Giamatti is onscreen, you can't wait to see how he reacts to Stern's attempts to humiliate him, something that makes his performance so important to the movie. He plays a great foil for Stern, at the very least.
Though Stern's mainstream recognition has cooled rather significantly in the fourteen years since the movie's release, he still has a presence on radio. And even if he didn't, Private Parts would still be around to tell us what an oddball he is. The movie is actually quite a lot like Stern himself: either you're a fan and you get the joke, or you aren't and you don't. Frankly, I'm not sure how to feel about the whole thing. But as of now, I'm leaning towards two and a half stars for Howard Stern's Private Parts. There's a joke in that last sentence somewhere, but I won't be the one who makes it.
Final Rating: **½
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