Where does humor go? Discussing the Comedy Crisis in a New Issue of The Watchman Podcast

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

Comedy is increasingly moving from the big screens to TV and YouTube. Understanding the reasons for these trends.

Comedy in cinema is going through hard years. The boom of youth comedy films at the beginning of the 2000s has come to naught, parodies have migrated to YouTube, and satire has become an especially rare guest on big screens.

Things are a little better with comedy on television: "The Big Bang Theory", "How I Met Your Mother", "The Office" - the viewer definitely has plenty to choose from.

The presenters of the "Watchman" Alexey Khromov and Mikhail Volnykh tried to find out where the funny went in big cinema, why jokes on acute social topics are not heard as often as everyone would like, and what awaits the genre in the near future.

By the way, if you still have not subscribed to the Watchman podcast on any platform you like, be sure to do so. Give us likes or stars. It is very helpful and motivating!

01:09 - is there a recipe for a universal comedy that would be funny for everyone.

02:03 - Mikhail admits that he only recently watched the cult TV series Friends, and shares his impressions.

03:12 - Alexey discovered the Ted Lasso series and tells why everyone should watch it, especially the fans of the Clinic.

04:03 - about the age categories of viewers. How to make both children and adults laugh, but at the same time not go to extremes?

06:17 - about silent comedies of the beginning of the last century.

08:22 - about the show "Freaks". How reckless Johnny Knoxville continues the Buster Keaton business in a more extreme format.

10:59 - where did the satire go when it is so needed.

13:23 - what tricks do the creators of "South Park" go to to make the humor relevant.

15:14 - about Sasha Baron Cohen and the success of his Borat and other characters.

17:49 - whether there will be a renaissance of satire in Russian cinema.

20:51 - about parodies of blockbusters: "Scary movie", "Very epic movie", "Meet the Spartans" and other representatives of the genre. Why are they not in demand now?

26:05 - serials that have not been touched by the comedy crisis.

32:02 - another phenomenon from the past - youth comedies. Are they needed today?

36:41 - about political correctness. Is it okay to joke about anything or are there taboo topics?

39:30 - about the crisis of Russian comedies and who is to blame for the demand for low-grade humor.

What to see on the topic? We've collected the films and TV shows that were mentioned in the podcast:

• Borat-2, directed by Jason Walliner, 2020.
• "Ted Lasso" by Bill Lawrence, 2020.
• Friends, creators - David Crane, Martha Kauffman, 1994-2004.
• I Love Lucy, director - Desi Arnaz, 1951-1957.
• Deadpool, directed by Tim Miller, 2016.
• The Simpsons, Created by Matt Groening, 1989-Present.
• South Park, Created by Trey Parker, Matt Stone, 1989-present.
• The Gold Rush, directed by Charles Chaplin, 1925.
• The Obnoxious Grandfather, directed by Jeff Treymain, 2013.
• The Short Game, directed by Adam McKay, 2015.
• Power, directed by Adam McKay, 2018.
• Jojo Rabbit, director - Taika Waititi, 2019.
• Scary Movie, directed by Keenen Ivory Wayans, 2000.
• Airplane, directed by Jim Abrahams, David Zucker, Jerry Zucker, 1980.
• Barry, Created by Alec Berg and Bill Hader, 2018-Present.
• Superbaddies, directed by Greg Mottola, 2007.
• "Excellent student of easy virtue", directed by Will Gluck, 2010.

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