|
The current generation has been waiting for a new Comedy
Team to be revealed for awhile. Once Adam Sandler proved -through
the duration of the 1990's - that his schtick is limited to
funny voices and now the only legitimate work he holds is
the abstract attacks on his own career through the lens of
Paul Thomas Anderson and James L. Brooks. Chris Farley should
have become a gentler John Belushi had he shed the tired vehicles
that dragged him down before death. In the new decade, a group
of comedic actors have attempted to model themselves after
the last Golden Age of Yuks- the Lampoon/SNL days of
the late 1970's and early 1980's. Jack Black has become Belushi
2.0, sharper and more talented who even got the chance to
score the lead in Richard Linklater's School of Rock. The
Wilson brothers fill out both sides of the Chevy Chase persona,
with Owen filling out the good-looking smart ass of Caddyshack
and Luke acting as the befuddled middle-class smart ass
from Modern Problems and Vacation. Bob Oderkirk
has the manic insanity and strategic writing skills of Dan
Akroyd but seems battered down into indie films and Miller
Lite ads. And Vince Vaughan works best when he's the smarmy
and untrusting friend, a role normally filled by Eugene Levy
back in the days. The one spot in dispute is the Ring Leader.
Back then, it was Bill Murray in a walk. Murray was the guy
with the natural comedic charm that could disappear into a
supporting character and look as comfortable as he carrying
a film. The box office these days is showing a clear winner
in this race. Ben Stiller has appeared in several $100 million-plus
films this year alone. People love this guy. But I have to
admit he's starting to wear on me. Once a skilled and brilliant
sketch comedian, Stiller has now taken his film career and
boiled it down to two characters: The put-upon schlub lifted
from There's Something About Mary and Meet the Parents.
And the over-hyped macho guy developed in Zoolander
and Starsky & Hutch. There's nothing remotely
interesting about either one of these character types because
Stiller never does anything to explore them at any depth.
This is a deliberate choice on Stiller's part because he plays
every scene as though nothing came before it and nothing comes
after it. He can't develop a character because he's only looking
for a laugh. This is great for the duration of a sketch but
disastrous for a film. Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story
is the perfect example. A film with nothing to say and
hardly anything new to add to an already tired genre, this
Stiller-produced/starring vehicle felt content with making
a ninety-minute joke about a game of dodgeball and letting
Stillere make jokes about his own butt cheeks. And what do
you know, it made a ton of cash so perhaps my desire to leave
after the first jock strap joke is unfounded.
I only bring up Stiller and my dreadful experience watching
Dodgeball to counter the contention of King Ben in
the light of Will Ferrell. His homemade product Anchorman:
The Legend of Ron Burgundy. Ferrell is a little newer
to the box-office race; he was still early in his career at
SNL when Stiller was cleaning up with Mary. But
his filmography and his character's have already proven to
be just as lucrative and much more interesting. Ferrell became
a cinematic force with Todd Phillip's Old School. While
most quote Frank the Tank's line about beer bongs and KFC,
Ferrell dug deep and found some real trauma and angst beneath
this typical party animal. The most effective and hard-hitting
scene in that whole film occured when Frank attempted to reconcile
with his separated wife. He suggest they go back home and
listen to some nasty rap, she suggests a divorce. At that
moment, Ferrell's face flushes up shame and understanding:
He knew he didn't deserve this marriage because he can't grow
up. He's not sorry about it, but he seems sorry about the
pain it causes. It's a real moment of acting that got lost
in a film working below its own potential. Later in the year,
Ferrell came back in Jon Favreau's Elf and created
a conflicted man/boy who seems all too shielded from the reality
of the Real World. "Daddy says I get to wear my big kids
outfit today", Elf evoking the reaction many twenty-something
types must think every day. And now, Ferrell has developed
and honed this prize creature. Ron Burgundy represents everything
wrong about the 1970's in a time where pop culture wants to
find everything right about the decade. Burgundy has the overdone
hair, the perfectly manicured facial hair, and a suit collection
full of loud colors and even louder accessories. The lead
news anchor for the top-rated news broadcast in San Diego,
Burgundy uses the city as his own personal fan club and every
woman as a soft fanny to grab, pinch, or palm. In other words,
he's a real jackass. This "alpha male" is surrounded
by the super-slick Brian Fantana (Paul Rudd acting with every
inch of his facial hair), Champ Kind (David Koechner) as the
ultra-cowboy, and Brick Tamland (Steve Carrell) as the most
basic and almost retarded version of the reactionary male.
This team cleans up in the ratings and then takes on the rest
of the city as their own personal playground. They attend
the big swinging parties. They shop for suits together. They
fight for their turf against competing news team - primarily
the Channel 9 teams led by Vaughan - in vicious street fashion.
And Burgundy plays the part well. He is never without a trusty
glass of scotch, he tries to bed every womain his path, and
he's never afraid to comment on his own good looks. The only
time he lets his guard down is behind closed doors with his
dog Baxter. Baxter represents Burgundy's one true confidant
and it's a little sad to see this arrogant man drop his facade
so quickly. But the act is quickly ruined by the appearance
of Veronica Corningware (Christina Applegate) on the scene.
Management brings Corningware in to "increase diversity"
in the reporting staff and the film wisely chooses to view
this change in the media climate not as a cultural event,
but as a matter of personal development for Burgundy. He finds
himself falling for this woman he initially viewed as a simple
conquest. Their lovemaking scene is filmed as a fantasy visit
to the animate world of "Pleasure Town" where rainbows
and unicorns abound. But when tragedy strikes (but it is a
funny kind of hilarious), everything turns for Burgundy. Corningware
begins to unwillingly push Burgundy out of the top anchor
position. Burgundy starts to think that emotion has got the
best of him, and the rest unravels.
There is something troubling about Burgundy that Ferrell
has taken great strides to understand and convey. This is
a character full of bluster and ego, but Ferrell is uninterested
in mining this strictly for laughs. In the quiet (or quieter)
moments of Anchorman, Burgundy is shown with a full
case of insecurity and unhappiness that could only be explained
as a case of overhyped celebrity. Ferrell - in his performance
and duty as screenwriter - has done his homework on the psyche
of newsmen. I consider myself somewhat of an expert on the
mentality of the mid-level anchor. I've never resided in a
town with over 200,000 people and I've lived in about three
different places. Yet each town had at least four or five
local television stations. The personalities act like they're
being beamed into every home in America. You'll see these
people at the mall or a movie theater and they revel in the
finger-pointing, stares, and loud whispers that greet them.
They enjoy the celebrity, no matter how irrelevant. These
people are on TV! That's a big deal! But there's a darker
edge to this. Any bar prowler in this town sees these people
at various watering holes. The anchor chugs down a few shots
after the 10:00 pm broadcast and hits on whatever young woman
is serving him drinks. In these drinking locales, they draw
attention to themselves and nobody really wants to say anything.
It's sad and pathetic, but relatively harmless. This only
boils into lurid behavior sporadically. A local Springfield,
MO news anchor was fired after police learned that he was
stalking a 17-year-old Arab girl. Another local Springfield
anchorwoman was caught trying to sneak beer out of a liquor
store. And in the Kansas City area, a a weatherman came "out
of the closet" on air and admitted he was the subject
of an extortion campaign. Pretty dark and Ferrell isn't afraid
to exploit every angle and every shadow of this type of character.
Burgundy drops off the scene and spends a good chunk of the
movie wallowing in severe depression as he jaunts from bar
to bar. He yells at former fans and questions his choice of
beverage in the 100 degree heat. "Milk was a bad choice",
he determines as the white liquid drips off his beard. Instead
of letting this inevitable comedy hit go soft around him to
lessen the blow of Burgundy for the sake of the audience,
Ferrel lets the film become as dark and violent as the world
this character would call home. When the story starts to fall
apart, Ferrell decides to go ape-shit and see how funny the
insanity becomes where any other film would have overloaded
the plot. The bet pays off huge. People die, Luke Wilson's
arm gets ripped off, and this film is not afraid to make jokes
about bears being attracted to a woman's period. This is a
daring,funny stuff. Plus, Ferrell isn't afraid to lose the
limelight by surrounding himself with a rocking cast. KU alumnus
Rudd plays his machismo on his sleeve, Applegate creates a
rival who isn't a bitch and isn't a pushover, and Carrell
throws jokes from out of nowhere to create the ultimate male
shadow player. Also, the cameos are well-worth the price of
admission.
Of the above-mentioned cameos, Stiller appears as the news
anchor for the local Spanish channel in a dual against Burgundy.
This scene plays to Stiller's strength; it only lasts a minute
and Stiller develops a lot out of the traditional stereotype
of Telemundo. It was really funny and this is exactly what
he does best. But this is the third act, and Ferrell has already
developed Burgundy into a truly complicated and interesting
character. Ferrell shows he knows how to write and he knows
how to make a film more than just about the laughs. This is
what distinguished Murray back in the day, but he needed Harold
Ramis to to develop those characters for him. This feels like
purely Ferrell material, but director Adam McKay may understand
Ferrell's appeal. The former head writer for SNL certainly
doesn't let Ferrel go into uncomfortable or unmanageable territory.
Where Stiller wants to play it safe with patented character
types that have worked in film after film, Anchorman proves
Ferrell as a dangerous recluse not afraid to test the audience's
tolerance for taste or temperament. It's unpredictable and
exciting, exactly what comedy needs right now. Ferrell has
about seven movies in the pipe right now, let's hope he can
keep the momentum. Because right now, it's in his favor. And
comedy couldn't be better off.
|
