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You
ever see a movie that you know in your gut is going to be
a lot of people’s FAVORITE film for a while, but you don’t
really see the big deal and can’t really get too excited about
it and feel like you need to see it again to not feel like
you are being overly judgmental and not a good enough sport?
That’s
how I feel about Old School.
I
laughed. It’s funny.
It’s got Ellen God-I-Need-A-Role-That-Lasts-Longer-Than-10-Minutes-Again
Pompeo. I like Luke. I like Vince Vaughn. I
have a buddy that swears that Will Ferrell will be
the next Jim Carrey. (Maybe
the next Rob Schneider.)
And I really like the premise.
So
what’s wrong? It’s
really simple. Todd
Phillips really isn’t much of a director.
I’m sure he’s a good guy and he seems to run a very
relaxed set, but the skills to shoot a comedy and to get the
most out if it are not easily mastered.
This doesn’t mean that the film won’t be a big hit.
But Phillips’ screenwriting and casting prowess supercede
his gifts behind the camera by a long distance.
Say what you will about John Landis, but he
knew how to do movies like this – not visually showy character
comedies – better than anyone in his day. Harold Ramis, as it turns out, can direct them, but doesn’t
always know when his screenplays are wanting.
What
is the trick? I’m
not 100% sure. But
there is something about layering a gag so that it builds
and builds and builds that is a delicate thing.
Will Ferrell getting naked and running down
the street with his very amusing ass hanging out in the wind
should have been the funniest sequence in any movie this year. But it’s not. It’s funny. But it’s funnier
in our heads than on the screen.
I
think a lot of it has to do with patience. Set the scene. Establish the space. The
set-up is every bit as important as the punchline and, in
film, the camera is a key part of that set-up.
Move the characters in.
Let them work. Let them build.
The
screenplay may have the joke and the set-up and some blurry
idea of where it’s going.
And Will Ferrell naked, jumping in the S.U.V.
with the wife who thinks he’s not drinking anymore and her
girlfriends will get a laugh. But if one of the girlfriends has a secret
crush on the guy and another is talking to the woman about
her sex life with the husband and the third one knew him in
high school… I don’t know… something… something other than
3 random women in a car and the driver’s husband streaking.
Good comedy, naked. Great comedy, naked, plus. That’s all I’m sayin’.
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