2. Comedy
Comedy is one of the broadest genres in film; ranging from coming of age films
following a young character(s) transition into adult hood, often marketed to such
individuals (Juno 2007, Perks Of Being A Wallflower 2011), wild slapstick comedies
where the film is focused around the mishaps of the plot and characters (Ace Ventura:
Pet Detective 1994, Spaceballs 1987) and Dark/Black comedies, off key films often
featuring or focused around taboo subjects, often characters are either immoral or
morally ambiguous (Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the
Bomb 1964, Trainspotting 1996). There are other less common sub-genres such as satires
which uses elements of irony and exaggeration in ridicule of a certain topic,
contemporary politics, certain individuals to society itself can be the topic of a satire
(The Great Dictator 1940, Monty Python’s Life Of Brian 1979). An extremely common
and generally successful genre is romantic comedy, a comedy film focused around the
often awkward relationship between two (often vastly different) characters, following
the adversity and love they experience within their relationship through comedic means
(As Good as It Gets 1997 , Love Actually 2003).
Therefore due to it being such a broad genre and generally quite easy viewing for
audiences, comedies are generally cheaper to produce and due to the variety of themes
and genre hybridisation featured in comedy films the often create decent revenue in
contrast to their budget, The Hangover (2009) for example had a budget of $35,000,000,
‘The Hangover’ almost multiplied its budget by 14 times when its revenue was calculated
($467, 483, 912). In comparison to The Hunger Games (2012) a mainstream dystopian
action-adventure film that despite incredibly successful and creating more revenue it
only multiplied its budget by around 8 times.
3. Dark/Black - Comedy
My chosen comedy genre however is black/dark humour ; it is a subgenre of comedy
that often uses indirect, blunt or deadpan styles of humour generally in conjunction
with dark themes and confronting them with an irreverent attitude, death and crime
being common, such as the Coen brother’s Fargo (1996) and Edgar Wright’s Shaun of the
Dead, films that take a light-hearted take on death. Crime, sexual themes and illicit
substances are frequently featured in dark humoured films, such as Martin Scorsese’s
Wolf of Wall Street which features large amounts of each combined with Leonardo
Dicaprio’s portrayal of the hedonistic, morally reprehensible Wall Street heavy weight
Jordan Belfort following him through his life as one of the worlds largest con artists.
Wolf of Wall Street was Martin Scorsese’s highest grossing film at $392,000,694 and was
nominated for five academy awards plus multiple accounts of positive critical reception
so it is clear that despite the dark subject matter, characters and narrative it was still an
incredibly popular film by audiences and critics alike and the subject matter did not
dissuade large mainstream actors such as Jonah Hill, Leonardo Dicaprio.
4. In the Loop
In the Loop is a 2009 satirical black comedy directed by Armando Lannucci that satirizes
British and American politics and the conflict in the middle east, particularly the invasion of
Iraq.
The sequence features the title of the film and credits of production companies and
distributors much like any other film of any genre as it should, plus credits for the crew and
cast on board for the film. However this is done during the actual introduction of the narrative
and the dialogue in a silent subtle way, as the opening sequence is slightly high pressure and
relatively fast past similar to other comedies and not unlike the world of politics. We are
immediately greeted with our cynical and short tempered yet intelligent protagonist Malcolm
Tucker (Peter Capaldi) (Tucker’s name and status are credited in the opening sequence), not
unlike other black comedies Tucker is an anti hero and his dialogue is extremely explicit and
cynical linking well with his persona. However this dialogue opens the plot to the audience
and does the dual feature of presenting his character and introducing the narrative to the
audience in one sequence, essentially setting up the film. Cinematography is hand held
tracking shots and is chaotic and fast paced in nature, correlating well with the film, mise-en-scene
is not overtly manipulated however it is very close to real life in use of lighting and
colour in concern, generally to fit with the topics of the film and locations to make the film
believable, as the realism plays a part in In the Loop as the comedy is focused around dialogue
content and the various persona’s present, placing the outrageous dialogue of Malcolm Tucker
and the fast pace in such an underwhelming environment creates a believable scenario and a
slight juxtaposition that adds to the comedy as the previously mentioned comedic elements
stand out defining it as a comedy.
5. Trainspotting
Trainspotting is a 1996 dark comedy/drama directed by Danny Boyle that follows the lives of a
group of heroin addicts in Edinburgh told from the perspective of protagonist Mark Renton.
The introductory title sequence to Trainspotting is abrupt and straight into the action of the
film, with a fast moving tracking shot of protagonist Mark Renton (Ewan McGregor) and
secondary protagonist Daniel “Spud” Murphy fleeing from security guards after presumably
stealing from a convenience store. The cinematography consists of generally fast tracking
shots matched with fast paced editing speed combined with the non-diegetic contrapuntal
use of Iggy Pop’s Lust For Life. During this time protagonist Renton provides his cynical
commentary on the prospects of everyday life and in contrast his own life as a heroin addict
with scenes of him using heroin intercut with the opening sequence. Renton is a cynical and
apathetic character, he is as typical to black comedies an apathetic antihero who readily
indulges in illegal acts such as drug abuse with a cool conviction. The opening sequence
provides no credits of cast and crew, slightly uncommon in the world of film, it however does
provide credits for the protagonists of the film. Mise-en-scene like other comedies is again
very realistic, Renton, and Edinburgh are both presented in a realistic, raw and unforgiving
manner fitting in very well with the topics featured in the film. This presentation is energetic
and captivating bringing in plenty of drama, the way that the life of heroin addict is presented
through an unconcerned Renton, his dialogue and interaction with the world is important in
making it a black comedy , his indifferent dark humour is the main feature that makes it a
black comedy.
6. Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop
Worrying and Love the Bomb
Dr. Strangelove is a 1964 black comedy directed by Stanley Kubrick that satirizes Cold
War, particularly the nuclear scares suffered by the United States.
The sequence within this film is a much more traditional film sequence, there is a clear
title sequence with distributors Colombia Pictures and production company hawk films
being credited. The cast, crew and director have been credited and the films title has
been presented a much more traditional opening. We are presented with a United States
Air force bomber being refuelled in-flight by another aircraft, it is filmed through a
series of pans cut together with dissolves. This title sequence is more functional and
traditional with the images being related to the subject but not moving the plot forward,
this introductory sequence is much more orientated on introducing the film rather than
beginning the narrative, providing a structured title sequence. However we are provided
with rather easy listening instrumental music, a rather stark contrast to the topic of the
film and the moving images provided on screen, this is important to signify genre as
juxtaposition and irony are important in creating a comedic film.
7. Necessary Qualities
Through my research and analyses of several black comedy film title sequences there
are several common components that are consistent in these films that will help me
construct a black comedy sequence suitable to fit in that genre.
The sequence regardless of genre will be more successful and professional with a title sequence with crew, cast
production and distribution companies credited and possibly the films title.
Pace and timing is important, frequently comedies are set at a faster pace than other genre’s such as drama to
maintain interest. With a black comedy the pace helps provide the jovial nature of the film despite its dark
subject matter, however humorous dialogue and any other humorous situations (for example physical gags)
need to be timed well to ensure that the audience can understand the joke or create emphasis . Aside from
humour being conveyed through dialogue in black comedies , often blunt or deadpan delivery are used (often
met with an indifferent protagonist) due to the fact it is short so the humour doesn’t have to be maintained
(unless its a satire) which can be difficult and it can often get a reaction from the audience.
The types of characters are important in a comedy, a light-hearted ‘goofy’ friend would work well in a situation
comedy or a buddy comedy but frequently a black comedy deals with serious topics so an idiosyncratic character
that fits well with such topics than can provide a more true or real representation is effective particularly a
protagonist such as Trainspotting’s Renton, who is believable and can provide the correct humour in their
dialogue that is suitable to the topic which creates the humour necessary and allows the audience access into
the film and its darker topics and humour much more easily. This requires a dedicated actor with a good
relationship with the films director.
