Speaking as someone who has a great fondness for Top Secret, I'm glad someone's speaking up on what passes for a "zany spoof" movie these days. Posts: 6689 | Registered: Jan 2005
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I saw the movie. I was glad it was barely an hour long. Seemed much longer...
Not that it wasn't funny in spots, but most of the pop culture references seemed obligatory rather than witty. DON'T wait through the credits. There are cut scenes in the credits but they were cut because they were very very un-funny.
I did like the gay jokes. But then, I love (non-hurtful) gay jokes.
They should have taught those men how to skip because they did it very poorly.
Posts: 7085 | Registered: Apr 2001
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quote: Friedberg and Seltzer do not practice the same craft as P.T. Anderson, David Cronenberg, Michael Bay, Kevin Costner, the Zucker Brothers, the Wayans Brothers, Uwe Boll, any dad who takes shaky home movies on a camping trip, or a bear who turns on a video camera by accident while trying to eat it. They are not filmmakers. They are evildoers, charlatans, symbols of Western civilization's decline under the weight of too many pop culture references.
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The best parody movies took aim at the genre, and clearly loved it well it enough to spoof it well. Relying on pop culture references to get cheap laughs makes the movie dated before it hits the screens, and the reliance on endless unimaginative gay jokes and bathroom humor ensured that I will never, ever see this movie.
Fortunately it will disappear from our collective consciousness soon. Decades later I'm still quoting "Airplane!" Next year, will anyone remember a single line from this movie?
Posts: 7790 | Registered: Aug 2000
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On the other hand, movies like this help my students to understand what an allusion is. So they're not entirely worthless.
Of course, I'm entirely capable of teaching allusion with other texts if it would help to wipe these cruddy parodies from the face of the earth.
Posts: 834 | Registered: Jun 2005
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If they remember it, it's from earlier uses of it. "Scarface," "The Mask," and so forth.
Haven't seen "Date Movie," despite my affection for Alyson Hannigan. Haven't seen "Epic Movie" or any "Scary Movie" past the first one. I enjoy parody too much to enjoy - or, really, tolerate - trashy attempts like this.
Posts: 7790 | Registered: Aug 2000
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A crappy zany spoof (and yes, all the zany spoofs these days are incredibly crappy) are still better than Cringe-Comedy. I go to comedy movies to laugh, not to wince and hurt and chuckle nervously.
Posts: 7085 | Registered: Apr 2001
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I agree Pixiest. I was under the impression that Superbad was going to be a zany comedy, but instead I spent most of the movie feeling bad for the characters and wanting them to stop being DBs.
I'd rather watch the lame, but mostly somewhat funny Date Movie, than suffer through Superbad (although, Date Movie had some cringe moments too).
Posts: 3950 | Registered: Mar 2006
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My hubby tried to make me watch superbad. He actually bought the DVD. He loves that stuff. I don't get it.
Posts: 7085 | Registered: Apr 2001
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quote:Originally posted by The Pixiest: A crappy zany spoof (and yes, all the zany spoofs these days are incredibly crappy) are still better than Cringe-Comedy. I go to comedy movies to laugh, not to wince and hurt and chuckle nervously.
See this is what I keep trying to say but can never find the words for it. For me I feel vicarious embarrassment for people on the screen. Meet The Parents made me want to flee the theater. It's why I don't think I'd enjoy The Office.
Posts: 14316 | Registered: Jul 2005
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quote: Friedberg and Seltzer do not practice the same craft as P.T. Anderson, David Cronenberg, Michael Bay, Kevin Costner, the Zucker Brothers, the Wayans Brothers, Uwe Boll, any dad who takes shaky home movies on a camping trip, or a bear who turns on a video camera by accident while trying to eat it. They are not filmmakers. They are evildoers, charlatans, symbols of Western civilization's decline under the weight of too many pop culture references.
*Commences slow, dramatic clapping*
To say one is worse than Uwe Boll... Dear God, that's brutal!
Although how many times do you see Michael Bay, Kevin Costner, Uwe Boll and the Zucker brothers in the same sentence, eh?
Posts: 3486 | Registered: Sep 2002
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quote:In Meet the Spartans, the mere act of referring to Transformers, Happy Feet, Spider-Man 3, Ghost Rider, Rocky Balboa, Stomp the Yard, Shrek, Lindsay Lohan, Kevin Federline, or Deal or No Deal is presumed to be hilarious. (If you'll indulge me for a second, I will pause to crack up Friedberg and Seltzer: "Paris Hilton.")
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Count me in with the people who *hate* cringe comedy. I swear I haven't enjoyed a Ben Stiller movie since Zoolander.
Posts: 1594 | Registered: Apr 2006
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Did you read the article, Rabbit? Apparently they have fudged the running time. (One tiny scene is tacked on after 20 minutes of credits!) Posts: 6689 | Registered: Jan 2005
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