My wife and I recently enjoyed the original Harvey with Jimmy Stewart. As I watched it, I thought of other well-known, black-and-white comedies and how they are considered classics. I'm not sure if they won any awards or anything, but people definitely took them more, well, seriously. What happened between then and now?
Was it because movie goers were smarter back then, and the films only hinted what they flat out say in today's comedies? Or is comedy just not a respected form of art anymore? Everyone is a comedian these days, after all. Or at least everyone likes to think so.
I'll try to recall some recent award-winning (or nominated) comedies. I might miss a few, but I'm working from memory here, so please be gracious. That is if you remember and I don't. If you don't either, ha ha.
In the late '80s, Kevin Kline snagged an Oscar for best actor in A Fish Called Wanda. His role? The rude American in England who butchered philosophy by trying to read it and insisted that Vietnam was "a tie". This movie had its share of crude and mean-spirited humor, but the dumb thug trying to be an intellectual provided the most satisfying laughs.
Skipping a decade plus change, Johnny Depp won for his comedic performance as Captain Jack Sparrow. I don't quite get it either, but it was a lot funnier before the sequels came out. Those were happier times.
I'm not sure if anyone else is thinking of these two, but Life is Beautiful and American Beauty won awards and don't count as comedies in my book. They're not funny.
Just last year Juno got nominated but didn't win. I lost faith in the process after that.
Not that the Oscars means anything, but it reflects a perspective of the movie industry. Usually the winners of best picture are historical, depressing or both. There's a lack of respect for something that makes you laugh or feel good in any way. That's just a shame.
So what elements do movies like Harvey, Arsenic and Old Lace, Young Frankenstein and Juno have in common? Thought put into the wordplay and physical comedy alike. More than just cheap laughs.
Why does this matter? Because I appreciate good, satisfying laughter. These days in movies it's hard to find.
1 comment:
Harvey is one of the most spiritual movies of all time, to me, at least.
Not a perfect analogy by a long shot, but the interplay between a man and his "invisible" friend and how every one looks at him is very interesting.
Peace.
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