Monday, December 3, 2007

A Mighty Wind



I have to say that when the characters weren't singing, the laughs were scarce. When the plot finally reaches the concert, all is forgiven.

I think that A Mighty Wind takes a stab at sentimentality (with the Mitch and Mickey storyline) that didn't take. I think Guest works best when there is little reverence for the oddities that are his subjects.

Check out the deleted scenes and concert footage on the DVD to get a better taste of the funny.

***

For Your Consideration



I enjoyed this lampoon of the Hollywood buzz machine more than Best in Show and perhaps A Mighty Wind (minus the deleted scenes and full concert DVD extras). I laughed more consistently and really got a big kick out of John Michael Higgins and thought he stole the show from the also hilarious Fred Willard.

Hollywood poking fun of itself can wear thin, but I thought the characters were comedically interesting (more so than both Best in Show and A Mighty Wind) to keep me involved and laughing riotously at times.

Like other Guest films, the laughs can really be hit or miss, but I felt struck more often than not. But seriously, someone should tell Christopher Guest that Jennifer Coolidge's non sequitur witticisms are not funny and she should cease and desist immediately. She knows how to kill a scene.

***1/2

Superbad



I laughed my ass off in the theater more so than any other movie for the longest time (probably since Little Miss Sunshine). I couldn't defend its morality in a church, but it certainly is an interesting bit of pop culture in that it reflects what media thinks 18 year old high schoolers are like. I wonder how far along the feedback loop Superbad is...

I thought that all the B-story scenes with McLovin and the two cops were comedic gold and served to keep me involved and chuckling through any lulls in the main narrative.

I think it's interesting that I could be nostalgic for a high school life unlike anything I've experience personally. I was able to look at the characters from a distance and while grinning say, "Those crazy kids. What will they think of next?"

It's also the best display of male/platonic love in a long time. At the end of Stand By Me, Richard Dreyfus writes on his ancient computer, "I never had any friends later on like the ones I had when I was twelve. Jesus, does anyone?" I think the same can be said for high school friends. I never really thought about it, but my friends during these strange social growth periods (elementary school, high school, college) in part define those periods.

****