LoganSnake

http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm...ndid=171184815

I mean, WOW! I actually cringed. Okay, the first Scary Movie was awesome. It's still one of my favorite comedies. Second one was iffy. Third sucked. Fourth sucked a bit less. Then there were Date Movie, Epic Movie and Superhero Movie. None of which I saw out of self respect. This one seems to top them all in pure retardation. Have we really sunk that low on the humor meter and are so easily amused that movies like these are profitable and are eaten up by the masses?

What happened to Men in Tights, Blazing Saddles, Naked Gun, Don't Be a Menace, Police Academy?

I feel dirty.

__________________
Maturity is knowing you were an idiot in the past. Wisdom is knowing that you'll be an idiot in the future. Common sense is knowing that you should try not to be an idiot now. - J. Jacques

RetroGunslinger

It costs no money to make and comes in the top 5 at the box office without any doubt and almost definitely make #2, if not #1. That's how it gets approved and that's why I don't trust humanity.

__________________
It's a rare pleasure in this world to get your mind fucked. Usually it's just foreplay.

M.B. Keene

Willravel

Yeah that's pretty much it. As long as there are idiots, there will be movies marketed to them. Same thing with white people:

Seanland

OMG A GREAT NEW MOVIE!

im so excited!

KellyC

I like that they make fun of movies that didn't even come out yet, and the very recent ones, too.

Still not watching it.

__________________
Him: Ok, I have to ask, what do you believe?
Me: Shit happens.

Fotzlid

Who? I've heard of Carmen Electra but who are these other 3?

Hain

I am just going to have to say that I hated the first two Scary Movies and thought the third was funny. Only later did I find out that David Zucker directed, and I also find his movie Airplane! funnier than hell no matter how many times I watch it.

Otherwise, I agree with your assessment- those other movies suck and I've yet to see them. This one will suck. I might still see it if I happen to visit the theater my friend works at.

__________________

////\\// IRONSKY.NET \\//\\\\

spindles

yep - definitely another one to add to the "don't ever watch" list.

__________________
who hid my keyboard's PANIC button?

Lasereth

Usually I can see how some movies like Epic Movie would be funny to people who have a low IQ (literally) but this movie pushes way past that into so unfunny that even stupid people wouldn't like it status.

EDIT: Wow, already proven wrong. Just check out the comments below the movie, some people are already saying how funny it looks.

Cynthetiq

These movies are just social commentary towards the rest of the entertainment industry.

You have very successful shows The Simpsons, Futurama, The Family Guy, and American Dad all doing about the same thing.

As an aside, many comedy shows pull similar type things, Planes, Trains and Automobiles was spoofed in Tommy Boy.

__________________
I don't care if you are black, white, purple, green, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, hippie, cop, bum, admin, user, English, Irish, French, Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, Buddhist, Muslim, indian, cowboy, tall, short, fat, skinny, emo, punk, mod, rocker, straight, gay, lesbian, jock, nerd, geek, Democrat, Republican, Libertarian, Independent, driver, pedestrian, or bicyclist, either you're an asshole or you're not.

Punk.of.Ages

I hate spoofs....

They're never funny. Ever.

__________________
"The fact is that censorship always defeats its own purpose, for it creates, in the end, the kind of society that is incapable of exercising real discretion..." - Henry Steel Commager

"Punk rock music is great music played by really bad, drunk musicians." -Fat Mike

Willravel

Young Frankenstein
Blazing Saddles
Spaceballs
This is Spinal Tap
Airplane
Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery

Baraka_Guru

Many of these films are aimed at teenagers. What do you expect?

__________________
Knowing that death is certain and that the time of death is uncertain, what's the most important thing?
—Bhikkhuni Pema Chödrön

Humankind cannot bear very much reality.
—From "Burnt Norton," Four Quartets (1936), T. S. Eliot

Manic_Skafe

Uh, what? I don't know what your post is supposed to mean. But I thought The Darjeeling Limited was rather good.

And as for Disaster movie, surely it looks terrible and I'd never spend money on it but that Zohan/Sex & The City/ Juno scene looks hilarious...these movies are marketed to teenagers and inebriated adults for a reason.

__________________
"Porn is a zoo of exotic animals that becomes boring upon ownership." -Nersesian

fresnelly

In one of Kevin Smith's Q&A DVDs an audience member asks him (rather brazenly) how he keeps getting to make movies after such bombs as Mallrats.

He points out the simple fact that if your movie produces at least +$1 of profit for the Studio and investors, you'll get to work again.

Why would anybody produce the tacky crap sold at flea markets? Same reason.

__________________
Building an artificial intelligence that appreciates Mozart is easy. Building an A.I. that appreciates a theme restaurant is the real challenge - Kit Roebuck - Nine Planets Without Intelligent Life

Willravel

I was sorta being sarcastic.

sapiens

There are a lot of factors other than American box office that likely influence whether or not a director continues to make films. There's the cost of making the films. There's profits on DVD sales. There's the international market. There's product placement. There's merchandising. There's narrowcasting (to a greater extent in television and radio). If a film is cheap, makes money on DVD, makes money internationally, sells advertising, sells merchandise, and hits a demographic of interest, the American box office dollars might not be as important.
I disagree with Kevin Smith. One dollar of profit is an outrageous waste of money on millions of dollars of investment. If his movies only made one dollar for the studio, he wouldn't be making movies.

EDIT: I should say: If his movies only made one dollar for the studio, he wouldn't be making movies for the studios.

Willravel

Kevin Smith got lucky with Clerks and that success managed to undo the horrible train wreck that was Mallrats so he could make Chasing Amy, one of his more popular films to date (and I think his best). After he did Chasing Amy he earned the leeway to make movies like Dogma. Had Mallrats been Kevin's first film, he'd be thin and possibly homeless.

sapiens

Regarding the OP: Yes, American and international moviegoers have interesting taste in comedy. Yes, those movies do make a lot of money:

Look at the scary movies:
Movie Nameomgomgomg US Grossomgomgomg Worldwide Grossomgomgomg Budgetomgomgomg
Scary Movie $157,019,771 $277,200,000 $19,000,000
Scary Movie 2 $71,277,420 $141,189,101 $45,000,000
Scary Movie 3 $110,000,082 $155,200,000 $45,000,000
Scary Movie 4 $90,710,620 $178,710,620 $40,000,000


If you look at the others you listed, they made a lot of money as well.

RetroGunslinger

Gee, thanks.

__________________
It's a rare pleasure in this world to get your mind fucked. Usually it's just foreplay.

M.B. Keene

Baraka_Guru

I meant that in a purely marketing sense....

__________________
Knowing that death is certain and that the time of death is uncertain, what's the most important thing?
—Bhikkhuni Pema Chödrön

Humankind cannot bear very much reality.
—From "Burnt Norton," Four Quartets (1936), T. S. Eliot

Bill O'Rights

Ok...so they can't all be Casablanca, or Gone With The Wind. These "spoof" movies are popular and succesfull in their own right. That's why they make 'em. I don't go see 'em. But, then again, I'm about 30 years removed from their target audience. Hell, I didn't even bother seeing Date Movie, starring that delectable morsel, Alyson Hannigan. I allowed her that bit of dignity.

Airplane is classic, though. It has stood the test of time. Will these? I don't think so. They're to reliant upon current pop culture. The references will be lost in just a couple of years. But...so what. They're being made to make lots of cash, not an artistic statement.

__________________
"I distrust those people who know so well what God wants them to do because I notice it always coincides with their own desires." - Susan B. Anthony

"Hedonism with rules isn't hedonism at all, it's the Republican party." - JumpinJesus

It is indisputable that true beauty lies within...but a nice rack sure doesn't hurt.

Xazy

I find that we have made over time fewer and fewer comedies that can stand the test of time. I am a huge fan of good classic comedies, I just find these movies are good for at most one viewing, if that. Sadly Doc (my wife) this is one of the points we disagree on... Hopefully I can teach our daughter the joys of some of the classics.

LoganSnake

Speaking of classics, are there any comedies that have come out in the past 5 years that would stand the test of time 20 years from now?

__________________
Maturity is knowing you were an idiot in the past. Wisdom is knowing that you'll be an idiot in the future. Common sense is knowing that you should try not to be an idiot now. - J. Jacques

Cynthetiq

oh god, why did you ask that, i fear someone is going to say Napoleon Dynamite....

__________________
I don't care if you are black, white, purple, green, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, hippie, cop, bum, admin, user, English, Irish, French, Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, Buddhist, Muslim, indian, cowboy, tall, short, fat, skinny, emo, punk, mod, rocker, straight, gay, lesbian, jock, nerd, geek, Democrat, Republican, Libertarian, Independent, driver, pedestrian, or bicyclist, either you're an asshole or you're not.

Willravel

To be honest, I suspect that Ratatouille will be a favorite for a long time. 40 Year Old Virgin will also likely be popular for years to come.

Lasereth

I am in the minority about "classic" comedies. Airplane is so overrated it's ridiculous. The comedy in Airplane is barely a step above the drivel that comes out today. Some of it is genuinely funny and entertaining but a huge portion of the movie is just stupidity, and not funny stupidity like 40 year old virgin.

I watched Spaceballs all the way through and didn't even fucking grin once and I'm as big of a sci-fi nerd as they come. A funny movie is Men in Black or 40 year old virgin. Just as many great comedies are coming out today as "back then."

Baraka_Guru

Um, hard to say. It was 6 years ago, but what about The Royal Tenenbaums? I might even stand behind Napoleon Dynamite.... sorry, Cyn.

__________________
Knowing that death is certain and that the time of death is uncertain, what's the most important thing?
—Bhikkhuni Pema Chödrön

Humankind cannot bear very much reality.
—From "Burnt Norton," Four Quartets (1936), T. S. Eliot

The_Jazz

Old School
O Brother, Where Art Thou?
Spinal Tap
A Fish Called Wanda
Bull Durham (and I HATE Costner, BTW)
Swingers
Mean Girls
Dumb and Dumber
Parenthood

Basically I chose movies that lack inside jokes that might be forgotten or rely on music or other ephemeral cultural references that might not make sense 20 years from now. That's why South Park isn't on the list, despite how funny I think it is.

__________________
"They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety." - B. Franklin
"There ought to be limits to freedom." - George W. Bush
"We have met the enemy and he is us." - Pogo

LoganSnake

I haven't seen either of those two. I simply refuse to watch Napoleon Dynamite because it just looks beyond stupid. Same with Superbad.

__________________
Maturity is knowing you were an idiot in the past. Wisdom is knowing that you'll be an idiot in the future. Common sense is knowing that you should try not to be an idiot now. - J. Jacques

Bill O'Rights

Yeeeaaahhh...but you're missing the point. The comedy in Airplane was sophmoric and assinine. However...it was the actors that delivered that drivel that made it over the top funny. These were some heavy hitting dramatic actors. We'd never seen them in comedic roles before, and it was completely out of synch with everything we knew. Steve Carell is a comedic actor. He's supposed to be funny. But Lloyd Bridges, Peter Graves and Robert Stack? No...not so much.

__________________
"I distrust those people who know so well what God wants them to do because I notice it always coincides with their own desires." - Susan B. Anthony

"Hedonism with rules isn't hedonism at all, it's the Republican party." - JumpinJesus

It is indisputable that true beauty lies within...but a nice rack sure doesn't hurt.

Cynthetiq

If you watch old Bugs Bunny cartoons you'll see lots of social commentary and jokes of the time. They were funny then, but make little to no sense today and aren't funny.

I'm not sure how Simpson, Futurama, Family Guy, American Dad, and South Park will hold the test of time.

Classic comedy that is timeless? Is that Three Stooges? Marx brothers?

Airplane's running joke with the "White Zone is for loading and unload of passengers. No Parking." Doesn't get announced anymore at LAX. So how can anyone think it's funny that they play on it?

don't forget Kareem Abdul Jabbar and Leslie Neilsen... that was his pivotal move to slapstick comedy. Prior to that he was a serious actor with many serious roles.

__________________
I don't care if you are black, white, purple, green, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, hippie, cop, bum, admin, user, English, Irish, French, Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, Buddhist, Muslim, indian, cowboy, tall, short, fat, skinny, emo, punk, mod, rocker, straight, gay, lesbian, jock, nerd, geek, Democrat, Republican, Libertarian, Independent, driver, pedestrian, or bicyclist, either you're an asshole or you're not.

The_Jazz

Airplane is full of referrences that didn't stand the test of time - no one speaks "jive" anymore, including the people who spoke it, there aren't a bunch of movies out featuring airplanes being landed by nonqualified personnel (it's a riff on the Airport series, after all), and Kareem Abdul Jaabar isn't an instantly recognizable athlete to anyone under 25.

Then again, "Roger, roger", "Over, Under" and "Clearance, Clarence" along with "I picked a hell of a week to stop sniffing glue" are pure comic genius.

There's lots of other timeless comedies - Animal House, most of the Monty Python movies, Caddyshack, American Pie (should have been on my list), the Princess Bride, The Pink Panther - none of them focus primarily on the news of the day. They tell a story that's interesting about people we can relate to and the comedy comes from the hijinx that follow.

__________________
"They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety." - B. Franklin
"There ought to be limits to freedom." - George W. Bush
"We have met the enemy and he is us." - Pogo

LoganSnake

I'd put Office Space on the list of timeless classics.

__________________
Maturity is knowing you were an idiot in the past. Wisdom is knowing that you'll be an idiot in the future. Common sense is knowing that you should try not to be an idiot now. - J. Jacques

Willravel

You know wha' they say; see a broad to get that bodiac lay'er down an' smack 'em yack 'em.

The_Jazz

I thought about that one and thought that it was just a little too culturally relavent to translate to another generation. Playing Minesweeper and Solitaire at a work desk may not be possible then. But it was a tough call and completely subjective. I do acknowledge your point.

You never can find a good picture of Barbara Billingsley when you need one.

__________________
"They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety." - B. Franklin
"There ought to be limits to freedom." - George W. Bush
"We have met the enemy and he is us." - Pogo

Willravel

I run into that problem daily.

djtestudo

I'll say this as a defense for the bad spoof movies. Most of them have enough laughs in them to be worth watching once, or maybe twice. Like was already mentioned, they aren't Casablanca or Gone With The Wind, and no one goes into them expecting these movies to be that.

If you go into them with that knowledge, you can waste an hour and a half and get a couple nice laughs. I recommend DVD, though, so you don't have to pay

I will admit that they are just getting worse. Scary Movie was pretty good, Not Another Teen Movie was funny as hell, Date Movie and Epic Movie had some good moments, and even Meet the Spartans in all of it's awfulness was funny. Definitely not seeing Disaster Movie until DVD, though.

__________________
"Final thought: I just rented Michael Moore's Bowling for Columbine. Frankly, it was the worst sports movie I've ever seen."
--Peter Schmuck, The (Baltimore) Sun

Charlatan

Parody films are essential to the rejuvenation of the genres they spoof. Genre films go in cycles. Once a genre can be parodies, it is ripe for renewal.

As such, parodies are a product of their time and are not meant to stand the "test of time". They are necessarily topical and timely. If they weren't they wouldn't be doing their job.

__________________
"My hands are on fire. Hands are on fire. Ain't got no more time for all you charlatans and liars."
- Old Man Luedecke

Willravel

Without Austin Powers would there have been a Casino Royale?