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| Monday, December 19, 2005 |
Producers doesn't produce
For more than a year, I've waited with baited breath and heightened anticipation for The Producers, a film about a musical based on a musical about a film about a musical. Since I never had the opportunity to catch the craze of Mel Brooks' Broadway production on the Great White Way, I was looking forward to the day when I could finally get a glimpse at what all the fuss was about.
Unfortunately the new film, already attracting the expected end-of-the-year award buzz, just didn't do it for me and here's why:
For starters, comedy musicals in 2005 have to be something special, something above the fray for them to work with a modern day audience. Broad slapstick style humor, Mel Brooks' stock and trade, works with the borscht belt generation but for the next generation it needs something more. On this level, the film doesn't deliver. To today's audiences, grand gestures, overacting, and scene eating seem passe when not done in an ironic fashion.
Secondly, what makes the film seem "outdated" is its overzealous use of gay humor. Had this been the original 1968 film, it would be funny. But viewed in the context of today's vast comedic landscape -- which encompasses the much funnier narcissistic humor of shows like Arrested Development, Curb Your Enthusiasm, and even (to a lesser extent) of NBC's breakout hits My Name is Earl and The Office -- the homosexual jokes fall flat. Gay humor is old hat (we've been enjoying Will & Grace and Queer Eye for the Straight Guy for years -- indeed Queer Eye's Jai "Culture Guy" Rodriguez makes a brief cameo in the film). And now even gay dramas (Brokeback Mountain) are garnering critical acclaim. So to use this brand of humor seems ignorant at best.
Thirdly, the film looks like a stage production. Unlike the 2002 film adaptation of the musical Chicago, which had inventive cinematography, strong edits, and lavish dance numbers, The Producers looks bland. It's no wonder, considering the film is directed by Susan Stroman whose experience is mostly of the Broadway stage variety. As A.O. Scott of The New York Times correctly points out, "no effort has been made to adjust the show to the scale of the movie screen."
Perhaps the film's one saving grace is Will Ferrell's hilarious portrayal of the neo-Nazi loving screenwriter Franz Liebkind. He deserves his recent Golden Globe nomination for the role. His Saturday Night Live breeding, best explored in film's like Old School and Anchorman, are much more relatable to today's audiences. It's a shame we can't say that for the rest of the film.
Read our profile of Mel Brooks here.
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| Tuesday, December 13, 2005 |
The Christening of Sarah Silverman
When I first saw the preview for Sarah Silverman's film Jesus is Magic, I was ecstatic. The dark-haired seemingly quiet comedienne had finally made her way to the big-screen. The short trailer was hilarious. It had everyone in the theater laughing with glee. Two months later, I took two friends with me to see the film, one male and one female, to gauge its hilarity. We sat in a mostly empty theater, eagerly waiting to be entertained.
The film opens with Silverman and two of her "Hollywood" friends discussing recent projects. While her friends congratulate each other on their successes, Silverman stares at them with a worried look. The friends stop the self-congratulatory backslapping and ask Silverman what she has done recently. She pauses, and then slowly the lie tumbles out, "I'm doing a show ... about the Holocaust ... and AIDs. And it's a musical. It opens tonight." Her friends are in awe.
This is where the film really starts, as Silverman begins to sing about how she has to create a show based on the Holocaust and AIDs. Oh yeah, and it's a musical. The scenes flow from Silverman doing stand-up to elaborate musical numbers done with green-screens and a four-piece band as she "improvises" this epic show. Silverman's stand-up is raunchy at times, as she discusses anal sex with her boyfriend, "That's where poo comes from, and that's it."
Her jokes are funny largely due to her delivery and the fact that this sexist racist humor comes from a sweet little Jewish girl. She rarely launches into the late Richard Pryor-like frenzies; instead she takes a low-key approach and then throws in a blunt punch line: "The best time to get pregnant is when you're a black teenager." This style of stand-up blindsides the audience, but often misses the mark. I found that for most of the film, a large part of the 20 people attending weren't laughing. One couple actually walked out, not offended, but bored.
The film is short, thankfully. After finishing her show, Silverman indulges herself backstage with a bong hit and then her two friends from the beginning of the show come to congratulate her. She listens to their praise, but shoos them out for some "me time," which is odd considering the last 70 minutes were already all about her.
Silverman's film may be amusing and off-color, but it could've been more effective as a feature film if she has concentrated on keeping the audience's attention rather than offending them.
Read our profile of Sarah Silverman here.
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