There's another reason. There's one simple rule about parody that most recent parodies miss completely, and I'd like you to learn the rule. Ready? Here is comes...
The more similar a parody is to its source material,
the funnier it is.
the funnier it is.
That's it. That's the secret. And that's the reason why so many parodies are just...not...funny. For example:
Do you think this movie...
...actually looks like this movie?
And do you think this movie...
...looks anything like this movie?
You can tell just from the posters that the filmmakers have absolutely no idea what they're doing. If you want to make a funny horror movie, then you have to make a movie that actually looks like a horror movie! Or a superhero movie! Or a disaster movie! Or a romance! Or a...whatever!
Check out this next bunch. Can you guess which is NOT the parody?
Exactly. In fact, I'm not so sure they all aren't parodies. One more time. Can you tell which of the following is the 21st century parody, and which are the 1970s originals?
You can barely tell. That's because the filmmakers understood the foundation of what they were making fun of; they weren't simply taking cheap shots at the most obvious aspects of their satiric target.
This is why I think This Is Spinal Tap is so successful. I think it looks, sounds, and feels like a real documentary. So, do you agree? Give some support to your response. Pick some moments from the film that either feel very real, or not real at all. Compare it to moments of American Movie in terms of realism and tone.
You can barely tell. That's because the filmmakers understood the foundation of what they were making fun of; they weren't simply taking cheap shots at the most obvious aspects of their satiric target.
This is why I think This Is Spinal Tap is so successful. I think it looks, sounds, and feels like a real documentary. So, do you agree? Give some support to your response. Pick some moments from the film that either feel very real, or not real at all. Compare it to moments of American Movie in terms of realism and tone.
Also, can you think of any other parodies that support my rule? In other words, can you think of any parodies that work because that look and feel like their source material, and can you think of any that fail because they don't? Hey, can you think of any that break my rule? That I'd be interested in hearing about!
SPOILER ALERT:
ReplyDeleteFirst off, the reason it seems so real is that several scenes have actually been lifted from the lives and legends of real metal bands. For instance, when they are backstage trying to find their way to the stage is rumored to be based on a mixture of Twisted Sister and a band from Britain called Saxon. And much of the touring equipment (the giant skull) is similar to any set design of Iron Maidens' tours from abour 1981 to 1984 (especially the Powerslave stage design).
Ironically, several fictional scenes in the movie creater a life imitating art effect. In the mid-80's after Black Sabbath's hey-day, the band were trying to incorporate a stonehenge set into their tour. However, due to a miswriting the prop was too big and couldn't fit on any stage. And a very obvious case is Metallica's Black Album, which is the same cover as one of Tap's "albums".
This movie is similar to American Movie in the way that Mark and Tap both don't see the stupidity in some of the things they say and do as well as the fact that they both don't see the quality of their work in the true light but believe so hard in what they are doing.
Several movies that follow Mr. Cowlin's rule include almost every Mel Books film, Kung-Pow: Enter the Fist (which uses a good amount of film from a mid-70's kung fu film).
One film that in my opinion that can be placed on the border of either a parody (which follows the rule)or just a plain movie is the movie Heathers. In the right light it can be seen as a dark take on all the John Hughes flms and mock those characters with their whining and petty drama. On the other hand it could just be a regular film that happens to be about high school students.
I 100% agree that the more the parody looks like the original the funnier it'll be. The way he sits down the band makes it seem like a totally legit interview. If the first time I had seen this movie no one had told me it was fake then I would of believed it. The characters act so real. They're goofy and wild just like rockstars are supposed to be. Also it's just made really professionally so you assume it's real. I also think American Movie and Spinal Tap are really similar. Considering that American Movie is real Spinal Tap holds up well to believability.
ReplyDeleteAnother parody that 100% supports the rule is Young Frankenstein. It's filmed in black and white and has an eery tone to it. It's made just like the old Frankenstein movie! with similar props and everything.
Yes, I completely agree that what makes Spinal Tap so great, is how close it relates to a real documentary. One cool thing that I have noticed so far that makes the movie seem very real is how they flip back to the "interviewer" who is asking the questions. It makes the movie seem like it is really a PBS Sunday special or some news station doing an interview. Another thing that makes Spinal Tap feel very real is how they ask questions to the whole band and not just one person at a time. When the questions are answered by the whole band, the actors make it seem very real. The band members begin to debate what the answer is and recall memories together. These antics the actors use make the interviews seem incredibly genuine. So from the limited part of the film we have watched so far, this is the thing that really makes me believe this is a real documentary.
ReplyDeleteI think that the greatest example in support of this rule is what Mr Cowlin pointed out in class and what many of us had probably noticed if we had seen the movie, Young Frankenstein. This movie uses almost the exact same set design and tone to the movie to make it almost impossible to pick which is which from looking at screenshots. Another fantastic example, also by Rob Reiner is the Princess Bride. SO many people thought this was a fantastic adventure tale, but yet it was actually aimed for laughs and was a parody of the usual adventure movie.
I think this movie is most similar to American Movie because of how the characters all seem so enthusiastic about their work.
I agree that the original looking parodies are funnier then ones not as orginal. If your going to see a parody, you probably know something about the orignal version and that is what helps make them so funny. I hate parodys like Disastor Movie becuase their almost like parodies of other parodies like Scary Movie. By then the comedy is so watered down it doesnt make sense anymore. An then theres the trainwreck like Meet The Spartens which doesnt even take its own title serously. Parodies that dont take themselves serously by now are so abundant that they become completely forgotten about. But real parodies like Tap or Young Frankstein will never be forgotten.
ReplyDeleteMy personal favorite is Blazin Saddles. It pokes fun at thousands of westerns that came before it and does it while taking itself serously. It looks like a real western
Not a clue as for other parodies. BUT I do know this much: When watching Spinal Tap, I tried to put myself in the shoes of any PBS viewer. I know as a kid, all I saw after Barney and the Teletubies were documentaries on EVERYTHING!! Especially people like Mozart! That being said, when watching Spinal Tap, I surely felt like it was as legitimate as those documentaries (presuming those aren't a set-up!). Hands-down I would have been one of those viewers who believed it, because it was exactly that: believable!
ReplyDeleteMoments that felt more real than anything were when the movie director at the beginning came on and started talking about Spinal Tap. As well as this, I thought any and all of the stage footage of Spinal Tap was believable, too. For me I just don't see American Movie being as belivable as something like that was actually broadcast on television, despite it being LEGITIMATE. It's all a big crazy mess.
Owen Moynihan
ReplyDeleteI would agree that Spinal Tap is really funny because they have moments where it could be a completely real documentary and other times they say the most ridiculous things, like the armadillo in the pants moment. Once something like that is said it brings you back to the fact that this is a comedy. The tone of this movie is much more ridiculous than American Movie. IN American Movie it was more of a dark comedy, where this is, so far, a much more fun and happy than American Movie. As far as the parody rule goes Monty Python's Life of Brian and Quest for the Holy Grail are both great examples of parodies that look like what they are parodying.
Brandon Stark
ReplyDeleteI agree, the more realistic it is from the original it is the more funnier it is. I like how movies like these act so seriuos make it more serious. I agree entirely with what Zach said. I actually saw those facts about Iron Maiden (Up the Irons!), Twisted Sister And Black Sabbath on a metal documentary. I like the sceen when they get screwed over when the record company tells them they can't release their record because everyone acts very serious about and theres a few jokes in there too. Also there's a few scenes coming up which i think are amazing but i won't spoil them for people who haven't seen the movie.
I think Monty Python and The holy grail would be a good movie that follows the parody rule. All the scary movies, date movie, epic movie and what not break the rules. They just kill the ideas of parodies. I use to like those movies when i was younger but their not that good anymore.
I also have to agree that the more real the parody looks the funnier it is. The Princess Bride was intended as a parody of the romance and adventure film genre but a funny thing happened- it turned out to be good enough to a point that nobody thought of it as a parody. Monty Python is a good one too. Superhero movie for example isn't that funny because it seems so fake- you no that no one is like that in real life and it just ruins it (no one pees from the ceiling- and if you really were a superhero, I think you could hold it).
ReplyDeleteIn this movie, the concerts feels real because it seems like something you might see then. Compared to American Movie, this film (first of all) doesn't have as much harsh language. This is easier to watch. American movie was a lot to take in because it had tragic aspects. But have people with big dreams. Both don't look perfect and it all makes it more realistic.
I would have to agree that this movie is a perfect parody. It has the director who was inspired by a band, the band, crazy things that happen, and etc. The band is just so perfectly parodied, because they seem like the type of people that you would find in a band. The normality of the people makes this parody the perfect one.
ReplyDeleteMr. Cowlin I know you will agree on this parody. Young Frankenstein. It is just the most perfect parody ever. It covers every single aspect of the Frankenstein's that it has. From the set to the color the film looks almost exactly like the Frankenstein's. And "I'm not a Frankenstein. I'm a Fonkenstein."
I completely agree with the statement that modern parodies are nothing like their designated targets. The bunch of people in that Scary Movie poster look literally nothing like the severed arm for Saw. You can tell right away that Scary Movie is a parody that fails because it tries too hard to be like its horror counterpart. The poster for Scary Movie does not look scary at all. At least with Basket Case you can tell its a believable horror comedy, at least horror film. It looks ominous. I think this film is a lot easier to watch than American Movie because of the setting. (Trailers depress me) I can actually think of a very good parody. (2 actually, both with Will Ferrell) Talladega Nights and Semi-Pro (I hope no-one else has those!) They actually look like racing and basketball movies, with with Will you know it will be funny!
ReplyDeletemost covers of a parody movie today look fake and not even funny. the designers of the film posters are trying to hard to be original. i think they need to stick with the basic stuff. i mean in cartoons we laughed at little things like bugs bunny getting chased by that gun man. film makers now need to get back with the basics and stick to stuff we know about. that is why Spinal Tap looks like a documentary. also in this movie there are scenes where spinal tap is getting mad reviews. which would happen in a documentary. mostly in a real movie the bad scenes would be of someone dying or something bad happening to. That is why spinal tap is so good. they fool us as an audience to make us believe that this actually happened
ReplyDeleteSeveral of you brought up Mel Brooks films. Well, I agree and disagree in terms of how well he follows the rule. His early films were brilliant. High Anxiety - a parody of Hitchcock, looked and sounded like a Hitchock film. The same goes for Blazing Saddles (western), Young Frankenstein (classic Universal horror), and Silent Movie (silent movies). But his later efforts? Not so good. I.e. Robin Hood: Men in Tights, Dracula: Dead and Loving It, etc. In my opinion, Brooks "jumped the shark" with Space Balls. Still moderately funny, but filmed nothing like an actual science fiction movie. He began to move on to that idea of "Hey, remember this scene from that one movie? I'm reffering to it now, so that's funny, right?"
ReplyDeleteI'm still not sure what to do with History of the World, Part I. Like it, love it, or hate it...
Owen - Life of Brian and Holy Grail...Yes! Bingo!
ReplyDeleteTrivia answers: Black Dynamite is a parody, Basket Case is not. And neither was Basket Case II or even Basket Case III.
ReplyDeleteExcept maybe they were. It's so hard to tell, because it was the 80s, and there was so much "it's so bad it's good" in the 80s that it was at times dificult to determine if the filmmakers MEANT to be funny or not.
American Werewolf in London? Parody. Sort of...
ReplyDeleteI completly agree that spoinal tap closley relates to a real documentry. Also it is true that the more real a parody looks th funnier it is. I agree with what Matt said "u probably know something about the orignal version and that is what helps make them so funny". when you watch a movie like scary movie and you actually watched the real version it gives a greater appreciation and makes it even funnier.
ReplyDeleteI think this movie does a really good job in tt]rying to be a parody like you stated above. Almost vey part of the movie looks and feels like a real documentary about a rock music band. Scenes like when the director is interviewing the band and asking them questions about their past with other bansd and how the band started seemed like any other documentary because documentaries always have this type of situation. Also the scenes where the stage and everything is being constructed for the performance seem so real and seem like any other rock music documentary. The Parody that seems a little unreal is their unrealistic actions and the music lyrics. I felt that some parts, although they were funny, were a bit unrealistic like when they overeacted to the food behind stage and their song about butts. These things seemed far from a parody and kind of overexagerated how a rock star truly acts.
ReplyDeleteI think that this movie does such a good job in imatating a real documentry that if you didnt know this film was a comedy you might think it was real because all of this stuff could have happened in real life. a parody TV show is Reno 911 it's a parody of the show cops and its super simalair to Cops wich makes funny.
ReplyDeleteI think that Spinal Tap is a completely realistic parody. Compared to American Movie, you can't even tell the difference because both films show characters that express clear emotions that we either laugh at, or connect with. The only difference is that Spinal Tap has professional actors that skillfully cause the movie to be an illusion. If I did not know, beforehand, that this movie was a parody then I would have completely believed in the documentary and went along with it. The shots where the director interviews the band mates one on one really make the documentary believable. Almost every typical documentary has shots of two people having an intamite conversation, like two real humans. Since Spinal Tap incorporates this in the film it eliminates any suspicion that the documentary is "fake" and "too cheesy" to appear realistic. While it may not be cheesy, it definitly is hilarious.
ReplyDeleteI also agree that Young Frankenstein was a great parody because the props used weren't complete cheap rip-offs. They made the film more believable and realistic.
I think this movie seems like a real documentary because at times when new characters see the camera they directly talk to the camera/camera man, unlike in an typical movie where the actors would just ignore the camera. But this doesn't seem like a real documentary at times because the things that happen are ridiculous and unrealistic, but I guess that's what makes it really funny. But American Movie was funny in that how the subjects talked were kind of awkward, and imperfect like real life, so we could relate, and that's why it was funny.
ReplyDeleteI think The Office (even though it isn't a movie) goes along with Mr. Cowlin's rule for parodies. It's funny because it is a lot like reality, the characters are awkward, how they speak doesn't seem flowery and scripted. But still it is ridiculous enough to feel a little bit unrealistic, but it is still hilarious.
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