I have looked into some comedy scenes and sketches that I find stand out for me - one of the most important things for me to consider when writing comedy is that I find it funny. As I found through researching Armando Iannucci, "a comedy writer can only be a good comedy writer if they write what makes them laugh, not what makes other people laugh", and so looking at my favourite comedy scenes will be important in establishing how I can write and direct comedy. I realise that nothing kills a joke more than explaining it in arduous detail but working out why I appreciate these scenes will help me to establish how i can make my own film funny.
Harry and Paul: Question Time
This sketch is a spoof of BBC's Question Time and the thing that sticks out for me is how accurate it is to the actual Question Time format. The sketch is completely on-the-nose, but succeeds due to how a Question Time viewer would recognise these sorts of cliche lines from an actual Question Time panel and audience. The dead-pan delivery also adds to this, making the sketch believable despite the uninteresting and cliche comments from the audience, which is an accurate parody of the real Question Time. This is supported by the mis en scene which very closely matches with the real format.
That Mitchell and Webb Look: "Are we the baddies?"
This is a classic scene from That Mitchell and Webb Look and the humour shines through from the contradiction of what we would expect of two Nazi officers. The manner of which David Mitchell's character so innocently asks "are we the baddies?" when we would expect a member of the SS to completely unsympathetic works very well. The joke depends on the subversion of our expectations to what he would say. I feel a large part of this is down to David Mitchell's performance as the dichotomy of what we would expect of a SS officer.
Brooklyn Nine-Nine: "I want it that way"
This scene from Brooklyn Nine-Nine stands out for me because of the absurdity of the situation. Like with the previous sketch, the humour is drawn out through the subversion of our expectations - the pacing of the scene also works perfectly up to the punchline.
Big Train: Workplace W*nking
The defining success of this scene is absolutely down to the performances of the cast and their perfect dead-pan tone. If we replaced the word 'w*nking' with 'smoking', this would come across as a typical office conversation, but the simplicity of placing something vulgar into such a mundane setting with no attention being drawn to it, the scene works perfectly.
The Thick of It: "You bought a bank?!"
Comedy does not have to come through specific jokes or one-liners but the build up of a scene and an whole situation can draw humour. The Thick of It does this very well with the help of its stellar ensemble cast who deliver their lines so graciously and realistically. The humour here comes from their chemistry and natural delivery which surpasses the need for laugh-out-loud jokes. The closest we get to this is the line "you bought a bank out of social embarrassment? I sometimes buy the Big Issue out of social embarrassment, I don't buy a fucking bank!". The sarcasm comes through so well with such a harsh yet amusing metaphor makes the whole scene flow together very naturally with a strong sense of humour.
It is important to consider tone in comedy. Not every line needs to be a joke, as D.B. Gilles (screenwriting lecturer at New York University) argues that "a strong story without a lot of laughs is preferable to a weak story with three jokes per page". The Thick of It tends to follow this rule, the comedy is instead build up layer by layer through the abilities of the cast and the quality of the script. If I over-saturate my script with too many jokes, it will get tiring very quickly, and so I would prefer to write more 'slow burning' jokes in my script so the film still flows well as a film as well as a comedy film.
Overall, when it comes to writing and directing VET-MAN, I must consider tone as the central foundation for the success of the writing. The believability of the film will be vital for the juxtaposing the real with the surreal. Subverting the audiences expectations is another key to comedy - I feel I have a start by writing for a vet that kills animals, but there is a way to go to realise how else I can do this through the narrative. The casting process will be vital to ensure that I can work with my actors to translate the script into something confidently funny and competent.
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