Nina Conti - A Ventriloquist's Story: Her Masters Voice BBC4

scoobyood · 10-06-2012, 22:47

Watched this this evening on BBC4, it's due to repeated at 2:30am. Set your PVR/Check it out on iplayer, it was really wonderful.

Quote:

Internationally acclaimed ventriloquist Nina Conti, takes the bereaved puppets of her mentor and erstwhile lover Ken Campbell on a pilgrimage to Venthaven, the resting place for puppets of dead ventriloquists. She gets to know her latex and wooden travelling partners along the way, and with them deconstructs herself and her lost love in this ventriloquial docu-mocumentary requiem.

Ken Campbell was a hugely respected maverick of the British theatre, an eccentric genius who would snort out forgotten artforms. Nina was his prodigy in ventriloquism and has been said to have reinvented the artform. This film is truly unique in genre and style. No one has seen ventriloquism like this before.

Nina Conti's funny, highly original and poignant documentary, takes us on two journeys. A personal journey, and a professional one, through the strange, surprising and often hilarious world of ventriloquism. When Nina was just another twenty-something wannabe actress, Ken presented her with a teach-yourself ventriloquism kit. This set her on a path to becoming a sell-out act in Britain and abroad, with a clutch of major awards.

On the road, Nina brings all the puppets to life as struggles to meet the conflicting demands of her old acerbic partner Monkey, and the new characters she has been bequeathed. But one puppet remains silent. Ken's doll of himself sits mournful and judgemental in the hotel bedroom. Nina cannot find her master's voice and until she does, she will not be able to lay her old life to rest.

Never has watching someone talk to themselves been this interesting

I have vivid memories from childhood of seeing Ken in a tv show, but looking at his IMDB page, I don't know what it was. The documentary does have a dark edge towards the end and hearing Nina 'say' how monkey came to be is pretty honest of her and sad. But there's also great humour. Watch it!

Daisy · 11-06-2012, 09:07

Oh I forgot about this, thanks for the reminder. She was on Woman's Hour too (all watch/listen again links here)

Dear Mr Echo · 11-06-2012, 14:24

Someone recommended this to me a couple of days ago and I promptly forgot.

Just watched it though... remarkable little documentary. Quite moving and unsettling in places.

Alan George · 12-06-2012, 15:35

It's repeated at midnight tonight.

daboy3000 · 13-06-2012, 13:32

Very good show, very strange girl. Sometimes i wasn't sure if she was putting it on for the camera or whether she is like that all the time. She is obviously mad as a hatter, you would have to be to be that good and I would imagine that she continues to talk to herself or her puppets even at home.

The thing that mad me most uncomfortable was when she laughed at what the puppets said, it's either very good acting or she genuinely doesn't know what they are going to say until it comes out of her/their mouth.

Either way she is very talented/mad and very funny and I hope she can go on to become the new front runner for ventriloquists.

Roberto · 13-06-2012, 14:19

I hate to disagree but i think she's a terrible ventriloquist and very unfunny. Not sure why she's getting so much praise and recently she seems to be everywhere. I think i saw her first in QI and she went down like a lead balloon.

In this she came across as the kind of crazy type that you pick up after a bad date.

daboy3000 · 13-06-2012, 14:41

Watch out people we have someone with a ******* PhD in ventriloquism in here!

Roberto · 13-06-2012, 14:44

Seriously? You thought the crap voices she did for her dolls where any good? The poor lip-syncing and the fact she kept moving her lips? The **** poor dolls she had which she never seem to improve upon that looked like they were bought in a charity shop? Plus the fact she ******* boring for half the time and the other half acting like manic-depressive? Then i guess you're easily pleased

Get yourself some Terry Fator

or Jeff Dunham

Dear Mr Echo · 13-06-2012, 15:08

Quote:

Originally Posted by Roberto

I hate to disagree...

Are you sure?

scoobyood · 13-06-2012, 16:43

Quote:

Originally Posted by Roberto

Seriously? You thought the crap voices she did for her dolls where any good? The poor lip-syncing and the fact she kept moving her lips? The **** poor dolls she had which she never seem to improve upon that looked like they were bought in a charity shop? Plus the fact she ******* boring for half the time and the other half acting like manic-depressive? Then i guess you're easily pleased

Get yourself some Terry Fator

or Jeff Dunham

I just fell asleep watching 5 minutes of Dunham's waffle and racism. Total toss.

Nina might not be 'technically' perfect where her lips are welded shut, but she is funny and, as evidenced by the granny video above, she can really bring those puppets to life.

If she is 'nuts' and she does laugh because she doesn't know what the puppet is going to say... then she's much better than Dunham and a million times more interesting to me.

Roberto · 13-06-2012, 17:19

She's nothing compared to the likes of Dunham, if you only made it 5 mins then you haven't seen anything. Scroll to 45mins and see the character Peanut, which is a tour-de-force of ventriloquism and Conti wouldn't be able to pull off anything like that in a million years. I laughed more times in 5mins of Peanut then all of the Nina Conti I've seen so far put together. She can't even throw her voice properly!

Nina Conti seems to have forgotten that ventriloquism in todays age is first and foremost a comedy act, she seems to be using it as a form of therapy and really needs to see someone professional.

Captain_Howdy666 · 13-06-2012, 17:23

Quote:

Originally Posted by Roberto

Get yourself some Jeff Dunham

I knew you'd be the type of **** to like Jeff Dunham.

You wouldn't know funny if it came up and punched you in the face.

Roberto · 13-06-2012, 17:31

^ Leave the personal insults crap to GD, if you have an alternative opinon then express it or **** off

chillster76 · 13-06-2012, 21:20

Quote:

Originally Posted by Roberto

Scroll to 45mins and see the character Peanut, which is a tour-de-force of ventriloquism

I did that, and found it a little embarrassing to be honest. Reminds of the stuff you used to see on the Cannon and Ball show in the early 80s. And seriously, his lips were moving just as much as Nina Conti's, it's just more obvious more of the time in her doc, I guess because there are a lot of very close up shots.
I thought this was an interesting programme, and the brief snippet that we got to see of her act looked like it was pretty clever, certainly seemingly above the level of those vids linked above. The audience seemed to like it.

scoobyood · 13-06-2012, 21:54

Quote:

Originally Posted by chillster76

I thought this was an interesting programme, and the brief snippet that we got to see of her act looked like it was pretty clever, certainly seemingly above the level of those vids linked above. The audience seemed to like it.

Yes they did didn't they. I believe they were all ventriloquists... but what do they know

Joca · 13-06-2012, 22:08

Well, I like her. Saw her first on QI and liked a bit. Then searched and liked more. Then saw her somewhere else and liked even more.
And she is lovely as well....

Captain_Howdy666 · 13-06-2012, 22:28

Quote:

Originally Posted by Roberto

^ Leave the personal insults crap to GD, if you have an alternative opinon then express it or **** off

Thanks for telling me where I can and cannot insult you.

My opinion? I saw a clip of Nina Conti on YouTube a week or so ago and thought she was decent enough. Dunham is just a cock.

Alright?

mnementh · 13-06-2012, 22:49

Just watched the doc and whilst I thought it was really good, I'm puzzled as to if she actually did donate the Granny puppet as she has continued using it since.

The bit where Monk came into being was really sad

cliff homewood · 13-06-2012, 23:30

Obviously one persons ventriloquist is another persons talking to puppets. ive always liked Nina Conti, she can be funny, and I thought her deconstruction act was sublime from what we saw of it.

I also like Jeff Dunham but that concert didnt do much for me, entertaining but not that funny, more wry smile with the odd good line. And my fave puppet was missing, Achmed the terrorist.

His act did make me think whats the best comedian reaction to audience member gonig to the toilet, for me I think its this one, which starts in the same way Dunham reacted:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HCOMPtl-ZYE

Mr M0by · 15-06-2012, 07:05

Thanks to the OP for the heads up, we really enjoyed watching this on iPlayer.