The Comedy of Brackets
Norbizness has completed his comedy film bracket, and I think it's a pretty solid one all around. He's seeking input in his comments for the individual representative from certain "conferences"/categories before finalizing things and playing it out. Go give it a look and cast your vote. Tell him Hankblog sent you (he delisted me off the blogroll rightfully when I disappeared for a couple of months). My two cents that I'll offer up in his comments later (the titles in bold are his preferred picks):
I've still not seen Life of Brian beginning to end sadly enough, so I'm inclined to go with Holy Grail. My Preston Sturgis knowledge is nil, so can't offer anything there. Animal House is a no brainer (no pun intended). Some Like It Hot from the Wilder collection for me. Heathers is a sentimental fave. Much as I love Blazing Saddles, I think Young Frankenstein gets my nod from the Brooks grouping. And I need to see more Keaton before I can comment.
BRACKET 1:
#1 Monty Python Movie (Life of Brian, Holy Grail, Meaning of Life)
#8 Wild Card 1 (completely open)
#4 Preston Sturgis (Sullivan's Travels, The Palm Beach Story, The Lady Eve, Miracle of Morgan's Creek)
#5 1978-1982 Seed 1 (Pick one: The Jerk, Strange Brew, Stripes, Animal House, Vacation)
#2 Billy Wilder (Some Like It Hot; One, Two, Three; The Apartment)
#7 Black 80's comedy (Heathers, Used Cars, Repo Man, or other)
#3 Mel Brooks comedy (The Producers, Young Frankenstein, Blazing Saddles)
#6 Buster Keaton (The General) or other hidden silent-era gem
BRACKET 2:Modern Times is a priceless classic. Strangelove is absolutely brilliant. Trading Places is damn funny and has Jamie Lee Curtis' breasts. Easy choice there. Not familiar at all with the Ealing Studio features. Pass. The #7 seed is ridiculously tough for me to choose. For sentimental reasons, I'm going Princess Bride, but anything in this slot could brew an upset. On the Chris Guest front, I'm going with the Tap (but then wouldn't this seed go all the way to 11?). And from the Altman grouping, I'll take M*A*S*H.
#1 Charlie Chaplin (City Lights, The Great Dictator, Modern Times)
#8 Wild Card #2 (completely open)
#4 Black 1960s comedy (Dr. Strangelove, The Loved One, Billy Liar, The Ruling Class, Bedazzled)
#5 Early Eddie Murphy (Trading Places, 48 Hours, Beverly Hills Cop)
#2 Ealing Studio comedy (Kind Hearts and Coronets, The Lavender Hill Mob, The Ladykillers)
#7 Miscellaneous 80s At Large (Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, Ferris Bueller's Day Off, Pee Wee's Big Adventure, The Princess Bride, A Christmas Story, Lost in America, or any another)
#3 Christopher Guest mockumentary (Waiting for Guffman, Best in Show, Spinal Tap)
#6 Robert Altman comedy (M*A*S*H, Brewster McCloud, California Split)
BRACKET 3:Duck Soup is a solid pick for the Marx Brothers. From Wes Anderson, I love Tennenbaums, but I think Rushmore had more laugh out loud moments for me. Rushmore gets the nod. In the #5 seed, it comes down to Caddyshack, Blues Brothers, or Stripes. In a tough battle, I give the edge to Blues Brothers. If Carrie Fisher with a rocket launcher can't stop them, no one can. From the Zuckers, gotta go with Airplane! and start sniffing glue again. For Cluoseau, got to go with the original A Shot in the Dark actually. I like Office Space well enough, but I don't get the fixation most people have with it. Gimme Election, which made me laugh despite being slightly uncomfortable with the characters. Cary Grant should be seeded higher than a 6. Tough choice all around here, but I'll go with Philadelphia Story in a squaker over Arsenic. Philly is more a team effort.
#1 Marx Brothers (Duck Soup, A Night at the Opera, etc.)
#8 Wild Card 3 (completely open)
#4 Wes Anderson movie (Rushmore, The Life Aquatic, Bottle Rocket, The Royal Tenenbaums)
#5 1978-1982 Seed 2 (Pick one: Cheech and Chong's Nice Dreams, Fast Times at Ridgemont High, Caddyshack, Blues Brothers, Stripes)
#2 Zucker Brothers movie (Airplane!, Naked Gun, Top Secret!)
#7 Any movie starring Inspector Closeau (I pick the one where the Chinese guy comes out of the fridge to attack him)
#3 Smart 90's comedy (Office Space, Election, Dazed and Confused)
#6 Something with Cary Grant (Arsenic and Old Lace, Bringing up Baby, Philadelphia Story, His Girl Friday)
BRACKET 4:Annie Hall gets my early Woody nod, but I must include a note of consideration for Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Sex. On the #4 seed, I'm gonna have to pass. On the Axis of Wayans, I have to go with Hollywood Shuffle for the Black Acting School. WC Fields conference gets my vote for Little Chickadee. South Park gets my vote too (blame Canada). Coen Brothers has to go with Raising Arizona ("Unless you think round is funny" ranks among the greatest comedy lines ever written). And from the animated features, Incredibles stands head and shoulders above the rest.
#1 Pre-1980 Woody Allen (Sleeper, Annie Hall, Bananas, Love and Death)
#8 Wild Card 4 (completely open)
#4 Harold Lloyd (Safety Last) or Laurel/Hardy (Way out West) film
#5 Axis of Wayans / Robert Townsend: (I'm Gonna Git You Sucka!, Hollywood Shuffle, etc.)
#3 W.C. Fields (My Little Chickadee, Never Give a Sucker an Even Break, The Bank Dick)
#6 Broad 90's comedy (South Park Movie; There's Something about Mary [or other Farrelly Brothers film], other);
#2 Coen Brothers (Raising Arizona, The Big Lebowski)
#7 Recent animated feature (Toy Story, Toy Story II, The Incredibles, Shrek, Monsters, Inc.)
Offer up your own thoughts as your see fit.
posted by Hankblog @ 4/14/2005 11:43:00 AM
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