Many will cringe at the promise of this episode of the Belgian reality show Taboo: humorist Philippe Geubels spends time with four dying people and then hosts an entire audience full of terminally ill people for his stand-up comedy show – about their situation. It’s surprisingly empathetic and touching.
OK, so if ever there was a Rorschach test of a television show, it’s Taboo. Each week, Geubels meets a series of folks with conditions and disabilities that put them outside the mainstream – amputees, the obese, little people, ethnic minorities, etc. Then he invites them to constitute the live audience of a comedy show in which he tells jokes about them. They love it.
Geubels is clearly running right through the taboo of making fun of the disabled and minorities. But is he laughing with them or at them? Is he showing them more empathy than those who are too uncomfortable to ever acknowledge their conditions? Is Geubels almost alone in making us look at these folks for who they are? Does it matter that Geubels’ humor is delivered face-to-face to his subjects?
Uneasy about how to discuss the disabled in this day and age? Consult the National Center on Disability and Journalism’s Disability Language Style Guide.
I’m sure that some, perhaps many, audience members will be offended by Taboo. The politically correct will be offended without even watching the show. Others will embrace Geubels for his wit and intended empathy. For sure, there will be plenty of LOLs at the screening.
This Belgian TV show is mostly in the English language. Cinequest hosts the North American premiere of Taboo in the television section of the fest.