For most people, thinking of National Lampoon brings to mind Animal House or the Vacation films. But before they dived into the world of cinema, National Lampoon was among the forefront of satirical content in the ’70s. It elevated many legendary comedic voices before fizzling out into oblivion. Nowadays, the name National Lampoon is seemingly only attached to sophmoric straight-to-video comedies, including one starring Paris Hilton.
But what happened? The new documentary Drunk Stoned Brilliant Dead: The Story of the National Lampoon looks to answer that question with interviews of those who were there. Director Douglas Tirola seems to have rounded up every big name in comedy that worked for the magazine or ever purchased one, featuring interviews with Chevy Chase, Bill Murray, Judd Apatow and many, many more.
Drunk Stoned Brilliant Dead: The Story of the National Lampoon opens in select theaters and VOD on September 25th, 2015.
The official synopsis for Drunk Stoned Brilliant Dead: The National Lampoon Story:
From the 1970s thru the 1990s, there was no hipper, no more outrageous comedy in print than The National Lampoon, the groundbreaking humor magazine that pushed the limits of taste and acceptability – and then pushed them even harder. Parodying everything from politics, religion, entertainment and the whole of American lifestyle, the Lampoon eventually went on to branch into successful radio shows, record albums, live stage revues and movies, including ANIMAL HOUSE and NATIONAL LAMPOON’S VACATION, launching dozens of huge careers on the way. Director Tirola tells the story of its rise and fall through fresh, candid interviews with its key staff, and illustrated with hundreds of outrageous images from the mag itself (along with never-seen interview footage from the magazine’s prime). The film gives fans of the Lampoon a unique inside look at a magazine that dared to think what no one was thinking, but wished they had.
