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Can comedy on the big screen survive the super hero era?

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Can comedy on the big screen survive the super hero era?

Old 07-17-17, 09:36 AM
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Re: Can comedy on the big screen survive the super hero era?

Originally Posted by Michael Corvin
Yep, once Hollywood decides to get over Sandler, Kevin James and Will Ferrell, then we might get the genre back on track.
I really blame Adam Sandler for a lot of the stupid humor we see today in Comedies (I still feel he is the most overrated SNL cast member ever). Billy Madison, Happy Gilmore, and Big Daddy really ushered in an era that started to lose me because they were more worried about shocking the audience. Shock humor NEVER holds up years later, simply because you aren't shocked once you have seen it. Jason Biggs fucking a pie just isn't as funny as it was in 1999, and that's the problem with shock humor.

I think even the Farrelly Brothers bear some of the blame for the downward spiral of Comedies. I love Dumb & Dumber and There's Something About Mary and even enjoyed Kingpin. But they crossing the line of gross out humor, and still did it in a funny way. Everyone started to copycat it and it went to stupid, gross out humor like many comedies today.
Old 07-17-17, 10:04 AM
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Re: Can comedy on the big screen survive the super hero era?

The House, Rough Night, and Baywatch all screamed "wait for HBO/Netflix" to me. The House looks like something I've seen before... like pieces of Neighbors, Sisters, and Old School thrown in a blender.
Rough Night... yet another entry in the 'things get wildly out of control' comedy subgenre and about the 20th film like this since The Hangover. Baywatch seemed like an attempt to '21 Jump Street' a different franchise.

I can't honestly think of the last big mainstream comedy that really felt surprising or fresh. I've been entertained and laughed at many of them, sure, but not in a way that felt like I'm seeing something new. I think much of this has to do with a de-emphasis on telling a real story. People want to criticize comic movies, but comedies have become the most formulaic genre out there these days. Create an amusing logline concept and attach stars, build up a bunch of big 'punchline' scenes that will play well in trailers, then weave in some basic semblance of a plot to connect it all together.
Old 07-17-17, 10:26 AM
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Re: Can comedy on the big screen survive the super hero era?

Originally Posted by DRG
I think much of this has to do with a de-emphasis on telling a real story. People want to criticize comic movies, but comedies have become the most formulaic genre out there these days. Create an amusing logline concept and attach stars, build up a bunch of big 'punchline' scenes that will play well in trailers, then weave in some basic semblance of a plot to connect it all together.
I agree as you look at Comedies from the 80's like Fletch, Midnight Run, even a light hearted movie like Splash. All of these told an interesting story AND yet they also could play as a comedy too. They also had memorable realistic characters that weren't over the top (Even Darryl Hannah played a damn mermaid that was believable!). Compare Vacation 1983 with the updated Vacation movie with Christina Applegate that came out a few years ago, and there is just a vast difference in the tone of each movie.
Old 07-17-17, 11:42 AM
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Re: Can comedy on the big screen survive the super hero era?

yes
Old 07-17-17, 12:09 PM
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Re: Can comedy on the big screen survive the super hero era?

Thinking about this some more I was trying to think what was the last true comedy I saw in the theater...I think it was 22 Jump Street 3 years ago. They are not just something that screams see me in the theater and I do typically wait for home video.
Old 07-17-17, 12:37 PM
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Re: Can comedy on the big screen survive the super hero era?

I think animated movies have also taken away many viewers of mainstream comedies, maybe more than superheroes.
Old 07-17-17, 01:00 PM
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Re: Can comedy on the big screen survive the super hero era?

There will always be room for ALL films...PARTICULARLY GOOD FILMS because they will shine.
Old 07-17-17, 01:42 PM
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Re: Can comedy on the big screen survive the super hero era?

As if there's a chance comedy will go away
Old 07-17-17, 01:48 PM
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Re: Can comedy on the big screen survive the super hero era?

^Exactly. What's all this shit and hand wringing about the death of comedies? I heard another guy on radio talking about the death of Dramas thanks to Comic Films about 6mo ago. Get out of here...
Old 07-17-17, 04:07 PM
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Re: Can comedy on the big screen survive the super hero era?

Originally Posted by Mabuse
Precisely. Also, comedies are really hard to get right. They require a very precise alchemy. I'm not trying to diminish other genres, but melancholy biopic or tear jerking family drama, I'm not saying they're easy to make, but they're a lot easier than comedy. That's why there's 10 best picture nominees but there may only be one great comedy every 3-5 years.
You mean taking one of the same three or four dopey millennials over and over again, sticking them in a cheesy 70's remake, and making it really vulgar isn't a sure fire recipe for success?

Well, now I just don't know what to think.

Look, make a good comedy and people will go see it. People keep going to super hero movies because they deliver the goods (well, the MCU stuff does anyhow). It doesn't have to be G rated and doesn't have to be a hard R either. But it can be. It just has to be well written and funny.
Old 07-17-17, 04:20 PM
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Re: Can comedy on the big screen survive the super hero era?

Originally Posted by mcnabb
I think the biggest problem with comedy is the writing isn't nearly as funny as it was years ago (movies, tv, late night).

Where are the Harold Ramis, John Hughes, or even a Mel Brooks out there today for movies? Late Night is no better as the humor is just partisan jabs these days instead of original political skits. Go watch the SNL Presidential debates in 1988 &1992 compared to the past few election cycles. There are very few sitcoms that I watch either as the humor just feels forced in overrated comedies like Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt.

Comedy didn't die because of the Superhero Movie, comedy died in Hollywood because there are very few funny comedians and writers compared to 20-30 years ago.

That has been my impression for years. I can't remember the last comedy movie that made me laugh until I cried. Probably Rat Race. Yet in the 80's, movies like Vacation were hysterical and original. They didn't have to rely on an over the top personality like Kevin Hart to get a laugh.

It's really pathetic when you compare a classic like Blazing Saddles to the modern attempts at a comedy western.
Old 07-17-17, 08:33 PM
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Re: Can comedy on the big screen survive the super hero era?

i dunno, some have made money and surprised. Bad Moms comes to mind, Trainwreck, Bridesmaids,...
Maybe you can add Ted but that is a small list.

Hollywood does not make a lot of comedies period! Maybe if they made more the genre would be more popular.

They make maybe 5 or 6 a year and save them for the summer.

How many of the new DVD releases every Tues are comedies?

Maybe a direct to video title occasionally.
Old 07-25-17, 01:27 PM
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Re: Can comedy on the big screen survive the super hero era?

I wasn't quite sure where to put this or if it should be it's own thread, but thought if just posting it here since it seemed relevant. I saw James Gunn link to this article on GQ (I know, but still...) with various directors about the movie industry.

http://www.gq.com/story/directors-wh...social_twitter

In a series of conversations, I spoke with that group—Ava DuVernay, Cary Fukunaga, James Gunn, Jeff Nichols, Jordan Peele, Dee Rees, Taylor Sheridan, and Edgar Wright (all pictured), plus Bong Joon Ho (Snowpiercer, Okja) and Patty Jenkins (Wonder Woman)—about the industry’s changing dynamics and how they’ve learned to work inside and outside the system.
The portion on Superheroes -

On the enemy
GQ: Do we hate superheroes?
DuVernay: I don’t watch enough of them to hate or love them, really. I’m interested in seeing ones that look different—somebody not named Chris. No disrespect to the Chrises out there. I love those Chrises.
Fukunaga: I think there’s so much room to re-interpret some of these stories. Chris Nolan does a pretty good job of being able to be inventive within the tentpole-movie sphere.
DuVernay: I thought we were going to see a lot more of the Nolan-type stuff, that felt very big and superhero but you were looking at something extremely cinematic and artful. It just didn’t go that way. They took the “big” part and left the rest behind.
Wright: I was at the ArcLight theater recently, and they had this big wall of posters of all the summer movies. The only two original movies were Baby Driver and Dunkirk. And I guess Dunkirk is based on World War II.
Gunn: It’s a total ripoff of World War II.
Wright: That’s the biggest IP of all time!
Gunn: That’s the first thing that’s really hurt cinema. It’s hard to get a movie made that isn’t something that everybody already knows. I think the even bigger thing than that is that these tentpole movies are driven by the dates they’re supposed to be released on, which means scripts are secondary.
Old 07-25-17, 01:37 PM
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Re: Can comedy on the big screen survive the super hero era?

Originally Posted by fumanstan
Gunn: That’s the first thing that’s really hurt cinema. It’s hard to get a movie made that isn’t something that everybody already knows. I think the even bigger thing than that is that these tentpole movies are driven by the dates they’re supposed to be released on, which means scripts are secondary.0
Old 07-25-17, 05:15 PM
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Re: Can comedy on the big screen survive the super hero era?

The theatrical film format is about offering something you can't get at home. Comedy and drama are just as effective on a home screen as in the theater.
Tv comes along. Movies go widescreen.
TV networks go color. Movies abandon b&w
Premium channels come along. Movies go stereo.
TV goes stereo. Movies go surround sound.
Home video comes along. Studios move to the big effects blockbuster.
One thing a comedy could have and still draw people is a big star. We don't have big stars anymore. If Tom Hanks made a comedy it would have a chance at theatrical hit.

Theatrical hits need to offer an experience that can't be duplicated at home. Big screen amusement park special effects.

As people move more toward viewing movies on smaller portable devices, the gap between theater and home viewing will grow greater, increasing the demand for big effect movies. The desire to see it first in a theater will increase. The gap isn't there with comedy.
Old 07-25-17, 05:30 PM
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Re: Can comedy on the big screen survive the super hero era?

Originally Posted by rw2516
As people move more toward viewing movies on smaller portable devices, the gap between theater and home viewing will grow greater, increasing the demand for big effect movies. The desire to see it first in a theater will increase. The gap isn't there with comedy.
Technically I saw several movies on the plane. But let's face it, seeing Kong on a 9" screen on the back of a seat isn't exactly an immersive experience. Let alone trying to watch it on a phone which is worthless. You sacrifice a lot of quality for that convenience.
Old 07-25-17, 05:54 PM
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Re: Can comedy on the big screen survive the super hero era?

Girls Trip came out this weekend and had the biggest opening weekend for a R-rated comedy in years. It's 88% fresh at RT, and has an A+ Cinemascore. I'm seeing it tomorrow; it looks hilarious!
Old 07-25-17, 05:59 PM
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Re: Can comedy on the big screen survive the super hero era?

It is sad when Girls Trip will be the biggest comedy in 2017.
Old 07-25-17, 06:07 PM
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Re: Can comedy on the big screen survive the super hero era?

Originally Posted by JeffTheAlpaca
It is sad when Girls Trip will be the biggest comedy in 2017.
What? Hey, Adam Sandler can't have AAAALLL the comedy hits...
Old 07-26-17, 08:03 AM
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Re: Can comedy on the big screen survive the super hero era?

Originally Posted by GoldenJCJ
I didn't read the article but I rarely, if ever, watch comedies on the big screen. This started LONG before superhero movies were popular.

I'd say it has more to do with movie ticket prices and weighing the cost of seeing a movie on the big screen vs. waiting for home video over anything else. Comedies just don't scream "must be seen on the big screen" like "event" movies.

Many times quality barely plays a role in it. A crappy Transformers will make triple what the funniest comedy of the summer does every time.
You hit the nail on the head.Comedies may be taking the biggest hit,but basically every thing that isn't superhero or action/war movie many people wait for streaming/video. The theater for a lot of people now is the place for an "event" movie and to see special effects.
Old 07-26-17, 08:51 AM
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Re: Can comedy on the big screen survive the super hero era?

Originally Posted by JeffTheAlpaca
It is sad when Girls Trip will be the biggest comedy in 2017.
So, you've seen it?
Old 07-26-17, 11:20 AM
  #47  
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Re: Can comedy on the big screen survive the super hero era?

Originally Posted by JeffTheAlpaca
It is sad when Girls Trip will be the biggest comedy in 2017.
Why?

Do you belong in the Wonder Woman discussion???
Old 07-26-17, 11:43 AM
  #48  
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Re: Can comedy on the big screen survive the super hero era?

Originally Posted by rw2516
One thing a comedy could have and still draw people is a big star. We don't have big stars anymore. If Tom Hanks made a comedy it would have a chance at theatrical hit.
I think it's the opposite. The biggest comedies always seem to come out of nowhere and don't have A-listers. Think Superbad, Hangover, Ted, Bridesmaids, Knocked Up, 40 Year Old Virgin, Forgetting Sarah Marshall, American Pie, Napolean Dynamite, Harold & Kumar, Bad Santa, Horrible Bosses, Super Troopers, Saun of the Dead, etc.

Once you attach a big name to headline whatever script is laying around, it seems the comedy quality dips. Will Ferrell, Adam Sandler, Kevin James, Jim Carey, etc. The only exceptions that I can think of that seem to defy this is Bill Murray and Ben Stiller. Both have their duds, but are more consistent than most.
Old 07-26-17, 12:47 PM
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Re: Can comedy on the big screen survive the super hero era?

Just curious : what was the last straight-up (i.e. not Action-Comedy) non-animated comedy movie you guys went to see in a movie theater? For me, I think it was "Trainwreck". That was, what, 2 years ago?
Old 07-26-17, 12:49 PM
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Re: Can comedy on the big screen survive the super hero era?

Originally Posted by Decker
Just curious : what was the last straight-up (i.e. not Action-Comedy) non-animated comedy movie you guys went to see in a movie theater? For me, I think it was "Trainwreck". That was, what, 2 years ago?
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