“Every life form is made of cells, like a prison, which is probably why existence is so depressing,” Philomena Cunk says, looking up from a microscope. “It’s a life sentence. Just like the sentences I say in this program about life.”
Following up her tenure as a historian in “Cunk On Earth” and “Cunk On Britain,” a new movie, “Cunk On Life,” streaming on Netflix, has documentarian Philomena Cunk take a deep dive into philosophy, the meaning of life and the nature of reality. During the documentary special, she stumps Nobel laureates, uncovers the history behind modern philosophy and makes a fool out of all of us. The catch? It’s a mockumentary, and an amazingly funny one at that.
Not only does “Cunk On Life” present an entertaining and well-produced mockumentary, but it also provides viewers with a deeper understanding of life, in concept and in reality.
The mockumentary’s protagonist, Philomena Cunk, played by Diane Morgan, is a complex character to say the least. In one moment she can make a witty joke calling out the horrible reality of the entertainment industry, and in the next she can ask why people “face the electric chair” if they’ve got their backs to it. Ms. Cunk is delightfully dense, and her tendency to take things as literally as she can results in amazing wordplay throughout the documentary.
What’s really impressive about Philomena Cunk is Ms. Morgan’s stellar delivery throughout. Despite the utter ridiculousness of asking a religious author whether god’s brother Simon secretly created the universe, telling a professor of surgery that only 40% of people have bones and telling a physicist to make “quantum bacon,” Ms. Morgan maintains an amazingly deadpan delivery. There isn’t a single scene in which she feels more like an actor reading a script than a Philomena Cunk who genuinely believes every word she’s saying.
While much of the special’s comedy comes from its satirical narration, its personality shines brightest when real experts have to deal with being interviewed not just by a comedian, but by a comedian in character. Seeing the experts’ bewilderment and exasperation as they first realize they aren’t in a regular interview, and how they scramble to teach the viewer in spite of Ms. Cunk’s child-like questioning adds an entirely new layer of comedy.
Amid the scrambling professors, deadpan satire and fourth-wall breaks, “Cunk On life” presents a deep criticism of the state of modern life. Alongside an exploration of modern life and modern misery, the mockumentary features numerous references to the iPhone as Adam and Eve’s forbidden fruit, a serial killer who is reduced to a Netflix documentary and a TikTok, and most importantly a sponsored segment with the suspiciously Netflix-like service of “Streamberry.” With show categories like “People living better lives than you,” “Despondent yearning,” and “Standing on a ledge right now,” Streamberry brings attention to the hopelessness many of us feel, and to companies like Netflix that are willing to further that dread to increase profit margins. “Cunk On Life” delivers a poignant and impactful message about the ways that technology and the companies behind those technologies control our lives, but it does so in a subtle way.
The viewer ultimately walks away from “Cunk On Life” happier and more aware. They’ve laughed, they’ve learned about religion, philosophy and science, and they’ve also had to think about the people who manipulate their world.
“Cunk On Life” is an entertaining and surprisingly informative mockumentary with amazing acting and crisp comedy.
