tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post6931636127453639829..comments2024-03-05T21:05:36.848-05:00Comments on CommentaramaFilms: Film Friday: Ted (2012)AndrewPricehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.comBlogger53125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-91881697126590048512014-06-24T22:24:46.046-04:002014-06-24T22:24:46.046-04:00PikeBishop, That was my experience exactly. This ...PikeBishop, That was my experience exactly. This film just stunk and kept getting worse and worse. The one or two good ideas were basically tossed away in favor of sheer stupidity.AndrewPricehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-79010832878655074522014-06-23T12:03:44.869-04:002014-06-23T12:03:44.869-04:00Just saw this on an insomniac Sunday morning, last...Just saw this on an insomniac Sunday morning, last day of a three day free HBO weekend. Tuned it in, remembering this review and was absolutely transfixed at how horrible it was. Watched over half of it, before mercifully falling asleep. This movie SUCKED, BIT, BLEW, INHALED and ninteen other oral sex metaphors I am too tired to reach for. Amazingly stupid, poorly written, not funny, incoherant. I did like the idea that briefly Ted's incredible story was big news and he became a minor celebrity, but they really went nowhere with that. Ted's being a living toy ceased being relevant to the plot. We could have been watching Damon and Afleck running around Southey. Even the prologue and Patrick Stewart's narration falls completely flat. It sounded as if it was written by an 8th grader. "And then they grew up....heh heh....and things became shitty.....heh heh. It makes me feel sad for the future of humanity that people who are able to operate motor vehicles and vote, think this film is funny.PikeBishophttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05761380937971970762noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-48294761618368345352013-07-21T14:33:24.308-04:002013-07-21T14:33:24.308-04:00Patriot, Same here. The older I get, the more I a...Patriot, Same here. The older I get, the more I appreciate difficult/skilful humor and the less I laugh at the low-hanging fruit. Whedon is a good example of that because you really have to process what his characters are saying to get it.<br /><br />And I agree, Whedon's stuff is memorable -- the skilful stuff usually is... the low-hanging fruit stuff rarely is.<br /><br />As for why <i>Ted</i> made money, the film had a great idea and brilliant marketing. It just wasn't very good and I doubt it will have legs.AndrewPricehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-63494368356140363192013-07-21T09:27:27.821-04:002013-07-21T09:27:27.821-04:00Andrew....I meant McFarlane, not Rogen of course i...Andrew....I meant McFarlane, not Rogen of course in my earlier comments.<br /><br />As I get older (and wiser?) I find my appreciation for humor has become much more subtle. For example, I like the subtle humor(?) of Joss Whedon, much more than the overt attempts by the slapstick purveyors. His humor come through in his characters comments about other characters traits and habits. It fits in with the character as written, not totally off base. I don't think he tries to attack conserves, libs, etc. From what I've seen, apolitical humor in his movies.<br /><br />Good example:<br />Kaylee Frye: Goin' on a year now I ain't had nothin' twixt my nethers weren't run on batteries!<br />Capt. Malcolm Reynolds: Oh, God! I can't *know* that!<br />Jayne Cobb: I could stand to hear a little more.<br /><br />Whedon's "humor" / writing, has memorable lines, both humorous and not. I can't think of one McFarlane line that I recall like I do Whedon's numerous ones.<br /><br />Anyway, I guess there is an audience that thinks McFarlane's humor rocks. Witness how much money "TED" made. It would be interesting to see which director, Whedon or McFarlane has made more money (definition of movie success?) over the last 10 years.Patriothttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01533169053860540075noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-60603154899642840072013-07-21T01:12:46.339-04:002013-07-21T01:12:46.339-04:00I came back in to relook at some comments and wham...I came back in to relook at some comments and wham I posted again. I don't know what happened. I think some of Cohan s staged and others weren't but he does a decent job mixing that it is hard to tell. That was all I had. Good night. Koshcathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00552108950848576633noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-65654405407518764102013-07-21T01:04:47.960-04:002013-07-21T01:04:47.960-04:00Rustbelt, I think there is definitely something to...Rustbelt, I think there is definitely something to that -- McFarlane is a very angry man and his comedy is just him venting at people he doesn't like. What's interesting though is how cowardly his comedy is as well. Notice that he only picks targets who can't fight back -- Hollywood has-beens/never-was's, generic strawmen people and long-dead controversies, and even then his humor is more often than not passive-aggressive... "I'm not calling you fat."<br />AndrewPricehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-14269574338021618352013-07-21T00:42:43.461-04:002013-07-21T00:42:43.461-04:00Andrew, I have no expectations for anything with S...Andrew, I have no expectations for anything with Seth McFarlane's name on it. Honestly, this thing looked juvenile from the trailers. Oh, wow...drug jokes. Hey, 47 swears in a row! How inventive! Men acting like children. Hey, that's...okay, I'll stop there with the sarcasm. <br /><br />Before now, the nastiest review I'd found was at Red Letter Media, where they focused mainly on the movie's mean-spiritedness and the inappropriate pop culture references. Really, is that all McFarlane has? Well, that and jokes that take eons to play out? (The infamous Peter scraping his knee) <br /><br />But instead of rehashing everyone else's points, I'm just going to point out something about McFarlane. He must be one of the angriest men of all time. All of his 'jokes' seem to be little more than him venting steam. It's one of the reasons I stopped watching 'Family Guy' what, a decade ago? <br />Okay, Seth, I get it, you don't like conservatives. I get it, you don't any U.S. region that isn't as liberal as the northeast. I get it, you're rebelling against your parents' religion. I get it, you have a perverse love from p****** people off and watching their anger and hurt feelings.<br />McFarlane's comedy isn't so much comedy as it's his own psychotherapy sessions. we get to see how angry this person is. Personally, I think this style of filmmaking should be reserved for the horror genre. When comedy is designed so that the comedian is doing all of the laughing- at the displeasure of the audience- is ceases to become comedy and is just another good excuse to change the channel. Rustbelthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12190297078043033514noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-20900561091803544982013-07-20T14:17:55.750-04:002013-07-20T14:17:55.750-04:00PikeBishop, The celebrity stuff I'm sure was s...PikeBishop, The celebrity stuff I'm sure was staged. But even the rest of it struck me as having to be staged, at least to a degree.AndrewPricehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-49980742413011776442013-07-20T14:15:36.707-04:002013-07-20T14:15:36.707-04:00PikeBishop, I remember that, there was always a po...PikeBishop, I remember that, there was always a point right after the news where you knew you could turn off the show.<br /><br />I agree completely about them not beating their successes into the ground. That's one of the biggest problems with the current show -- if they get something people like, you are going to see it and see it and see it.<br />AndrewPricehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-42313040591377101572013-07-20T13:47:08.826-04:002013-07-20T13:47:08.826-04:00Andrew: I firmly believe that all of Cohen's ...Andrew: I firmly believe that all of Cohen's stuff is staged. Case in point, look at Borat, where he literally assaults Pamela Anderson in a scene that goes on for about 40s seconds! Come on, in real life that celebrity would have a security detail that would be on him in about two seconds. PikeBishophttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05761380937971970762noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-64347530604655987372013-07-20T13:38:15.930-04:002013-07-20T13:38:15.930-04:00Andrew:
1) On SNL, people do look back on the &qu...Andrew:<br /><br />1) On SNL, people do look back on the "Golden Age" of that show with misty eyes, but in point of fact, it always was hit or miss in terms of quality. I always said you could safely turn off SNL at 12:10 EST. You saw the three funny sketches, the musical guest played their hit and the newscast. That was it. Some of the mind numbing idiocy that went on the air from 12:15 - 1Am was just as disjointed, undecipherable or wretched as anything that show has put on in the last few years.<br /><br />Walther Matheau, in an interview about 78-79 (the zenith of the original cast) said it thus: "90% of what they do DOESN'T WORK, but the ten percent that does is pure genius." I agree with that.<br /><br />2. Notice also that fondly remembered sketches (Coneheads, Czech Brothers, Samurai ____) were not driven into the ground with repetition. There were only about airings of those characters total. By the late 90s it was like "My God, the God Damned cheerleaders AGAIN!"<br /><br />3. Your comment on political correctness killing creativity is so accurate. (Try and get Blazing Saddles green lit today) I also think its part of the reason that so much left leaning media is just boring and bad. Quick, thanks to political correctness, what are the only two things liberals haven't taken off of their hit list.<br /><br />Duh, conservatives and Christians, That's it! The whole of liberal comedy, where we can't mock gays, blacks, Asians, what have you. Which is why I think Conservative media constantly clobbers the left, especially in talk radio. Without the filer of PC, Limbaugh and his brethren have so many targets to pick from, while the left is in a creative strait jacket.<br /><br />Back when Air America debuted I checked it out in a sense of fairness. It was awful. It came down to this "Bush Sucks........................uh yeah..............Bush, what a retard..............Bush is evil."<br /><br />And that was it. They literally shot their wad within the first week, sometimes in the first hour. "Coming up next is Al Franken talking about what a jerk Bush is. Tune it tomorrow to hear Jeneanne Garafollo say what a jerk Bush is."<br /><br />And as far as making fun of the competition, Limbaugh himself does a better job of self-mocking that any of those clowns, especially the idiot senator from Minnesota, ever could.PikeBishophttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05761380937971970762noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-64024926316461213012013-07-20T12:59:09.408-04:002013-07-20T12:59:09.408-04:00Koshcat, I think that Cohan does have talent and w...Koshcat, I think that Cohan does have talent and what he does he does well. I personally find it too uncomfortable to enjoy, but I can't deny the appeal. He's like Howard Stern to me -- I can see why people really like him, but I personally don't.<br /><br />On <i>Bruno</i>, I'm not so sure that the whole thing is real. I know a couple people threatened to sue him, but I still have my doubts that most people weren't in on it. If not, then yeah... how did he not get killed?AndrewPricehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-79085893261281669732013-07-20T12:56:34.783-04:002013-07-20T12:56:34.783-04:00Patriot, Thanks! Short moments like that are the ...Patriot, Thanks! Short moments like that are the heart of comedy, and good comedies are full of them -- but they always relate to the story in some way. The problem with a lot of McFarlane's jokes is that he's simply got an idea for a joke and he wedges it into whatever he's doing whether it fits or not. That's why the parody the "Do you remember when I..." line from <i>Family Guy</i>, because it's a way to do something completely unrelated and pretend that it's actually related.<br /><br />P.S. That is a great line from <i>Ghostbusters</i>!AndrewPricehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-19743714027965076542013-07-20T09:20:50.297-04:002013-07-20T09:20:50.297-04:00Thanks for saving me 2 hours of my life.
My wife...Thanks for saving me 2 hours of my life. <br /><br />My wife and watch Bruno and The Dictator. Definitely plenty of uncomfortable moments but at least Cohan gets into the rolls to make people feel uncomfortable instead of standing around telling lame "jokes". How he didn't get beaten up or shot while making Bruno is a mystery. That said Cohan was great in Les Mis so I think he has more talent than most comedians today. <br /><br />Koshcathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00552108950848576633noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-77141444189018179972013-07-20T08:17:13.786-04:002013-07-20T08:17:13.786-04:00Andrew......I still think some of the funniest ske...Andrew......I still think some of the funniest sketches are short and totally unexpected. <br /><br />Mel Brooks History of the World - <br />Moses: The Lord, the Lord Jehovah has given unto you these fifteen...[drops one of the tablets]<br />Moses: Oy! Ten! Ten commandments for all to obey!<br /><br />Or, nails a factual, boring reality:<br /><br />Dr. Ray Stantz: Personally, I liked the University; they gave us money and facilities, we didn't have to produce anything. You've never been out of college. You don't know what it's like out there. I've worked in the private sector--they expect results.<br /><br />Or visuals with nothing said:<br /><br />3 Magi walking out of the wrong manger after misidentifying the Baby Jesus, and then seeing the real manger bathed in holy light from a huge star right over the real Jesus's birth manger.<br /><br />Anyway, with that stated, Ted did nothing for me and your guy's takedown of it and Seth Rogen's (lack of) sense of humor are spot on. That's one of the reason's why I like coming to this site.Patriothttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01533169053860540075noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-4879341385606819682013-07-20T00:10:55.140-04:002013-07-20T00:10:55.140-04:00It certainly adds a blowhard factor to a know-it-a...It certainly adds a blowhard factor to a know-it-all character. I like the idea.AndrewPricehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-35189464380604556812013-07-19T20:32:24.819-04:002013-07-19T20:32:24.819-04:00Honestly, I believe one could make a successful co...Honestly, I believe one could make a successful comic bit out of that "something something" trail off. Obviously, it would have some pretty strict limits, but it could be pulled out occasionally as a running gag. I could see it coming from some pompous character who has so much disdain for the things he supposedly supports that he can't even think of things to say about them. <br /><br />"And now, a few words from our newest recipient of the Humanitarian of the Year award, Mr. Chaz Snottington..."<br /><br /><i>loud applause</i><br /><br />"Thank you. Thank you, so much." <i>applause quiets</i> "You know, it's always been my firmest belief that...something, something...a brighter future...something, something, the children. (<i>applause</i>) That's why I...something, something...and we...invest something...uh, free speech! (<i>applause</i>) In conclusion, the only way to...something, something...is to...something educate, something...er, the environment? and uh...something...something...justice! (<i>raucous applause</i>) Thank you. God bless America. Good night."tryanmaxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09881154741574720094noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-15803740089964766222013-07-19T19:35:42.195-04:002013-07-19T19:35:42.195-04:00tryanmax, True. I suspect he's pretty cynical...tryanmax, True. I suspect he's pretty cynical about what he's doing.<br /><br />As for your last line... have you considered becoming a Hollywood writer? You have the lingo down. ;PAndrewPricehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-40671895280116495912013-07-19T19:33:07.935-04:002013-07-19T19:33:07.935-04:00ScottDS, That would have been pretty funny.ScottDS, That would have been pretty funny.AndrewPricehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-79126332981318240912013-07-19T19:32:46.626-04:002013-07-19T19:32:46.626-04:00Scott, Sorry, you're wrong. Now please wait q...Scott, Sorry, you're wrong. Now please wait quietly by your computer, someone will come take you away in a few moments. :P<br /><br />I like that South Park take a lot.AndrewPricehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-843790266640699152013-07-19T19:15:34.319-04:002013-07-19T19:15:34.319-04:00I liked Ted, I laughed. It's far from a class...I liked Ted, I laughed. It's far from a classic and I doubt it will have a very high rewatch factor but I liked it.<br /><br />I used to love Family Guy, but it just got old. Doing the same old thing again and again, that South Park take on it was great.<br /><br />Scott.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-81876398713661090662013-07-19T17:26:38.995-04:002013-07-19T17:26:38.995-04:00Andrew -
It's a shame that, while Sam Jones a...Andrew -<br /><br />It's a shame that, while Sam Jones appeared, they couldn't get Brian Blessed for a cameo.<br /><br />"Ted's aliiiive!!" Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-64810564387831202632013-07-19T17:23:30.485-04:002013-07-19T17:23:30.485-04:00I would only counter that I'm not really sayin...I would only counter that I'm not really saying it's harder to do great comedy today. But it is harder to do mediocre comedy today. McFarlane doesn't strike me as even trying to make great comedy, so he's uneven at best. But who knows, in a different era he could've been a total crack-up. In fact, I get the sense that he might agree. His humor somewhat evokes a sense of nostalgia for the open bigotry of the past. But that's okay because something, something, retarded nephew, something, voted for Obama, something, something 9/11 victims.tryanmaxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09881154741574720094noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-17374032406661796832013-07-19T17:11:52.877-04:002013-07-19T17:11:52.877-04:00Eric, It's no crime to disagree... not until w...Eric, It's no crime to disagree... not until we pass the Blogger Word Is Law Act. :)<br /><br />I like Wahlberg a lot as well and he does his thing well enough. Sam Jones was awesome. LOL!<br /><br />I thought the <i>South Park</i> takedown of <i>Family Guy</i> summed up my view of the show surprisingly well: <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B-5OABcNfX0" rel="nofollow">LINK</a>.AndrewPricehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7059293386881623259.post-49900896748725774442013-07-19T16:50:33.350-04:002013-07-19T16:50:33.350-04:00Excellent points, AP, but I love Ted. I could stop...Excellent points, AP, but I love Ted. I could stop my agree-to-disagree counter-point there, but I'll at least say I don't care for Family Guy (South Park, thanks again for your manatee-assisted take-down of that show), so go figure why I own and re-watch Ted on a semi-regular basis. Must be I dig Mark Wahlberg in damn near anything ... and Sam Jones.<br /><br />Oh, the alleged Hispanic woman, Norah Jones, corrected Ted she's actually Indian, but that's just nitpicking, innit? ;-)EricPhttp://www.threedonia.comnoreply@blogger.com