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Why are 'dumb' comedies so hard to get right?
- Thread starter sn00zer
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Extra Sauce
Member
Because the writing has to be smart despite the characters and/or situations being "dumb". This is particularly true of Black Dynamite which you posted as an example. Brilliant movie that. I would call it silly and ridiculous before I call it "dumb" actually.
lunchtoast
Member
Haha, love clicking to the last page and it being completely different than topic. What the hell happened there?
On topic my favorites are Hot Rod and Step Brothers. Me and a co-worker quote them all the time.
Yeah, totally agree.
I agree completely, and imo these slapstick comedies require a lot of finesse and comedic timing from the actors, which a many can't pull off nowadays. Leslie Nielson and the hot shots series were the gods of this.
also, Sgt. Bilko still remains one of my fav comedies of that era
Zantetsuken
Member
I miss the era when we had over the top, stupid but smart comedies at the same time. What ever happened to making more films like these, Just to name a few...
Every last one of these are awesome.
Surprised it hasn't been mentioned (unless I missed it)"
yep
http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=122867569&postcount=103
Davey Cakes
Member
Grandma's Boy is okay for the first half and loses the funny in the second half.
Zen_Arcade
Banned
Because you have to be a pretty good comedy writer to toe the line between funny stupid and stupid stupid. Most of these movies don't have very good comedy writers.
TOP SHOTTA
Member
Tropic Thunder is what I thought of, for this thread.
Also, I feel they got it right. I loved it.
Also, I feel they got it right. I loved it.
This man gets it.
I miss the era when we had over the top, stupid but smart comedies at the same time. What ever happened to making more films like these, Just to name a few...
QuantumBro
Banned
How has Kung Pow not been posted yet?
Easily my most watched comedy. Every scene is amazing. "Must have caught herself by surprise!"
smoothj
Member
Need to watch some of these movies.
I caught the last half hour of McGruber and laughed my ass off.
Harold and Kumar II has the cock meat sandwich scene which was great. "Well you better get hungry real fast" haha.
Also another movie that hasn't really been mentioned, Balls of Fury, they show it on Comedy Central all the time. It's pretty funny yet super dumb.
Last and probably least, let's not forget the king of all dumb movies, Baseketball.
I caught the last half hour of McGruber and laughed my ass off.
Harold and Kumar II has the cock meat sandwich scene which was great. "Well you better get hungry real fast" haha.
Also another movie that hasn't really been mentioned, Balls of Fury, they show it on Comedy Central all the time. It's pretty funny yet super dumb.
Last and probably least, let's not forget the king of all dumb movies, Baseketball.
SuperSonic1305
Member
Hotrod is a solid 8/10
triple jackpot, mate. In short, good dumb comedies are very smart movies written by very smart people
and where is Top Secret???
Absolutely the GOAT of this type of movie.
Airplane! and the Police Squad/Naked Gun series are obviously phenomenal, but Top Secret is just a cut above, so many absolutely amazing absurd scenes.
I really miss the clever sight gags from this era of film.
"Nice Beaver"
Death Metalist
Member
Okay guys, let's see if someone knows.
A long time ago, I'm talking +15 years, my brother and I watched a movie that was based or around the Cannes festival, and it was just a bunch of gags, parodies to other movies (a tall guy with sunglasses knocks at the door of the character's hotel room and asks for Sarah Connor, they tell him it's in the next door, in the background he asks again and a silenced gunshot is heard) and there's a guy who pukes when he's happy.
I have been searching for that movie because I remember it being dumb and fun, but never found it's name.
A long time ago, I'm talking +15 years, my brother and I watched a movie that was based or around the Cannes festival, and it was just a bunch of gags, parodies to other movies (a tall guy with sunglasses knocks at the door of the character's hotel room and asks for Sarah Connor, they tell him it's in the next door, in the background he asks again and a silenced gunshot is heard) and there's a guy who pukes when he's happy.
I have been searching for that movie because I remember it being dumb and fun, but never found it's name.
Death Metalist
Member
Absolutely the GOAT of this type of movie.
Airplane! and the Police Squad/Naked Gun series are obviously phenomenal, but Top Secret is just a cut above, so many absolutely amazing absurd scenes.
I really miss the clever sight gags from this era of film.
"Nice Beaver"
"Bingo!"
Also, The Police Squad series had the best end credit sequences to ever grace TV.
I miss Leslie Nelson too damn much, R.I.P
-MD-
Member
How has Kung Pow not been posted yet?
http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=122868991&postcount=104
Macgruber was a great mention, movie is hilarious.
AngmarsKing701
Member
Wouldn't American Pie fall into this? Also possibly Cannonball Run.
TheContact
Member
The jokes are so dumb but fucking hilarious. It's my favorite dumb comedy but even still they for some reason tried to actually tell some kind of formulaic story which didn't work for such a silly movie. Would have been funnier without the sentimental scene and the love story they tried to pull off, but still one of the funniest movies I've ever seen
"Nice Beaver"
I used to quote that line all the time at ages of 6 or 7. I didn't know what the actual joke was at that age (obviously), but it was still hilarious to me.
Paragon Pariah
Neo Member
How has Kung Pow not been posted yet?
Probably the dumbest movie ever made, but no movie has ever made me laugh harder. As someone else in the thread mentioned, only the scene with the cow doesn't work.
Fuck yes
Man, it took 3 pages for this to get posted. One of the best dark comedies i've seen in years
gets it right.
sans_pants
avec_pénis
Comedy is difficult. And even the best dumb comedies have people in here saying how shit they were
I feel bad for them
I feel bad for them
Absolutely the GOAT of this type of movie.
Airplane! and the Police Squad/Naked Gun series are obviously phenomenal, but Top Secret is just a cut above, so many absolutely amazing absurd scenes.
I really miss the clever sight gags from this era of film.
"Nice Beaver"
oh yeah, so true, the sight gags are what make movies like Top Secret kings of their genre. What about the whole train station scene? The guy jumping on the running tree slays me every damn time. And the hilarious songs?
Skeet Surfin'...
Skeet Surfin'...
If everybody had a 12 gauge
With a sufboard too.
You see em shootin and surfin'
From here to Malibu.
Because he's totally bitchin'
Ridin waves and blastin' pigeons.
And its a' neat shootin' skeet when youre ridin' on the heavies all day.
SatelliteOfLove
Member
My yardstick for it is good dumb comedies respect the watcher, bad ones don't.
Absolutely the GOAT of this type of movie.
Airplane! and the Police Squad/Naked Gun series are obviously phenomenal, but Top Secret is just a cut above, so many absolutely amazing absurd scenes.
I really miss the clever sight gags from this era of film.
"Nice Beaver"
fantastic
None of these fit the bill.
? and Also Hot Fuzz and The World's End.
The opening of the film is one of the greatest things ever but the rest of the movie is just ok.
The Cowboy
Member
I recon quite a few posted so far don't fit the bill, i can't believe Life of Brain and The Holy Grail (especially LoB) have been posted as "Dumb comedies".
tearsofash
Member
Exactly. It takes a modicum of intelligence to be the right kind of dumb.
Jeff Albertson
Member
I think the worst I've ever seen was either Spartans or Epic Movie
Epic in particular had 'parodies' of scenes that were in new films trailers played out nearly identical just with a cow falling on someone at the end or someone farting or something then random cameos from people Relevent to the times
'oh look there's amy winehouse isn't she ugly and English ha ha that's hilarious'
Epic in particular had 'parodies' of scenes that were in new films trailers played out nearly identical just with a cow falling on someone at the end or someone farting or something then random cameos from people Relevent to the times
'oh look there's amy winehouse isn't she ugly and English ha ha that's hilarious'
This is literally the worst movie ever made.
Vanillalite
Ask me about the GAF Notebook
In general this related crew has done great stuff ever since F&G.
I think Super Bad might be my fav of the bunch, but damn I really love 21 Jump Street too.
Calling Life Of Brian a dumb comedy is plain insulting.
Yeah, they barely qualify as parodies really. They don't have anything to say or attempt to deconstruct a genre, just reference things people know thinking that's funny in itself. It's painfully bad.
If a parody is dumb it's usually bad, because you have to be smarter than what you are parodying for it to work.
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