SOUTH PARK is Stupid funny, THE THREE STOOGES are Stupid funny, That
show JACK-ASS is/was Stupid funny. Stupid funny is NOT funny. It's
contrived, ignorant of the natural laws of humor, and generally created
out of lethargy of new ideas.
MONTY PYTHON is Dumb Funny.
Laurel and Hardy were Dumb Funny, SHAUN OF THE DEAD is Dumb funny.
Dumb-funny IS funny. It's inventive, thoughtful, and concentrates on
its target of humor with dutiful precision and intelligence that you
ride with it out of sheer fascination to see where its logic is going
to go next.
Of course, we're the States and we get most of
the good stuff British Show Biz has to offer. Simon Pegg apparently is
the new offering for the Brits to show us new ways how to laugh. And
thank God for that. This guy wrote and stars in this new film opening
this week and, together with his writing partner and director, Edgar
Wright, shows us that you can make a funny movie about zombies and
still not resort to inane stereotypes and kids bitching about high
school and parents.
Pegg plays Shaun, a 29 yr old assistant
manager to a Radio Shack type place whose life is . . well, dead as are
the lives and minds of the people around him. So how is he to guess
that the brain-dead inhabitants that surround his life have suddenly
become zombies when they ALWAYS act that way?
Its this
premise that evokes some of the laughs in act one. Act two is his
realization and call-to-duty to save those he loves. Accompanied by his
pal ED, (Nick Frost), a hip-hop slacker/PeterPan who sees the whole
peril as a video game, they both make this story an oft times hilarious
and therefore tolerable ride through Dawn of the Dead clichs.
Even though this film was written and directed by smart and acutely
inventive comic minds, even the dull-witted will enjoy the horror
stuff. Yeah, there are fart jokes but theyre sparse. Yeah theres blood
and guts but its not in your face. Yeah there are those tense moments
but they dont go on so long that youre saying Just kill them, for
Christ sake!
Some will find some of the reality factor a bit
out of place in the flow of things. There are tears and moments where
reality sinks into the characters lives. But that is what makes this
film so dumb funny.
Tags:
US Movie Film Humor School Writing british Funny 
