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Essay: Dark Comedy Genre Analysis

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  • Published: 15 September 2019*
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Dark Comedy Genre Analysis

Dark comedies are films in which they make like of the subject matter which is typically taboo or as the genre name states, dark. I chose three films to analyze and compare and contrast whether they belong in such genre. Through narrative, characterization and basic theme I will elaborate on why the films are labeled as dark comedy. With these tools the real linear pattern of dark comedies will be shown and how every film is just like the other.

Each of the several films has an individual theme that makes them the major film they are in the dark comedy genre. From “bad things happen to good people” to “we all have limited time.” These films are lessons taught in a dark satirical way and it whats makes these films the genre, dark comedy. “the Fundamentals of Caring” directed by Rob Burnett. This is a film with the theme of “bad things happen to good people” which is shown in each character in the film. Strong themes on what it takes to be a good parent are touched upon as well between Ben and the effect of a bad parent is paralleled between Dot and Trevor. Dot and Trevor had completely different family dynamics that still lead both of them to dislike their fathers and speak highly of their mothers. Alongside “Seeking a Friend for the End of the World” directed by, Lorene Scafaria, It is about the meaning of life. The film is a symbol of the fact that we all have limited time. Rarely do we have a clear sense of how long our lives may last, but we do know that death is inevitable. And the truth that we so often avoid is If we would not continue doing the things we are doing now if we knew the end was near, then they are not the things we should be focusing on now with our lives. Then we have "Burn After Reading" directed by Joel Coen and Ethan Coen, which is almost a defiant statement by the Coen brothers about the truly cosmic insignificance of events and the relationships between them. Each of these themes although different all cumlinize into films of the same genre and even though they seem different they all all fairly similar

While studying and analyzing these films I realized that their narratives were very similar, the plot and arrangement of events all seemed familiar to one another. The first film watched was “Seeking a Friend for the End of the World.” I really enjoyed what this film had to offer. It was a very taboo topic which was, the end of the world, it wasn't a what if scenario it was literally the world ending in two weeks. The narrative was extremely similar to the other two films in the sense it had a basic formula of, we begin right in medias res, nothing super exciting then it gets worse, then it gets better and then it ends. Every dark comedy watched for this paper followed this specific narrative. The conflicts were minimal and the plot and structures were predictable. However after finding that not only one but three films contain this structure, i had realized it wasn't just the plot that carried this film it was the how genre influence the pleasure experienced by the audience member. From imagination to emotion tis film had it all. One thing that makes a film dark is the realization that life isn't what it's supposed to be, and we find humor in that. In fact one of the best quotes from the film is,” This isnt the ark, its the titanic, and there is not a life raft in sight.” The other films i had watched were "Burn After Reading" and “the Fundamentals of Caring.” These films helped my understanding of dark comedy all the way down to heroic quest within the films I chose to analyze. Each of these films has a heroic quest which makes them all similar. In “Seeking a friend for the end of the work” it’s a man attempting to find love before it’s too late, in "Burn After Reading" it’s a women trying to come up with the funds to have extensive surgery to find love, and finally we have “the Fundamentals of Caring” which spreads some light on a man trying to show a son type america before the son type is unable to. Each character has their own challenged to overcome and an adversity to surpass. The reason people rely on genres is to help them know what they want to enjoy, in fact in Bordwell and Thompson is says,“Some film genres tend to defined primarily by their subject matter (e.g. detective films), some by their setting (e.g. the Western) and others by their narrative form (e.g. the musical).” but one thing that affects the audience is past films within the genre. Audience members can enhance their experience by supplementing the immediate viewing experience by recalling content they found enjoyable in the past.  The interrelations of the prior and current content may generate even further enjoyable experience through imaginative recombination.

To continue the characterization is a large portion of what makes a dark comedy a genre. In "Burn After Reading" we find a woman, Linda Litzke, as the main protagonist which brings me to my next point. Gender role, the Earliest adventures were undertaken by men and Exceptions were exceedingly rare. Women usually were the prize won through heroic deeds or else evil forces arrayed against the hero. We find that in this film roles are reversed throughout this film. Starting with the first couple we meet we, Osborne and Katie Cox, in this relationship we see Osborne as more of a passive man and does whatever his soon to be ex-wife says. We see many women taking leadership roles in this film. Another example inthe films names was in “the Fundamentals of Caring”. Elsa, Trevor the boy with muscular dystrophy mother, as a single parent taking care of a son with a serious medical problem yet she find comedy and is able to take care of her son with little to no help, except for the main protagonist who is the caregiver to this boy, Trevor. Although these films are all based on  major taboos like the world ending, muscular dystrophy, and government conspiracies, we find little taboos being sprinkled about to really strange these films. An example of this is George Clooney in "Burn After Reading." He is a man who is cheating on his wife which we later find out she knows and is divorcing him, but he build a giant sex toy just to see how far he can get while cheating on his wife. Nobody wants to talk about sex toys and throwing a homemade sex toy in a film just makes it more taboo. More recent adventures included females who were partners in some form of adventure, usually in a secondary role, but significantly contributing. This is most relevant in “Seeking a Friend for the End of the World.” In which we find main character Dodge trying to find love until he meets Penny, a women in is pre-apocalyptic apartment building as the world is ending. She helps him take focus off himself as he helps her attempt to get back to England before the world ends. In the final scenes of the film we see the impact a week with Penny has on both dodge and herself,”I… am madly in love with you, Penny. You're my favorite, favorite thing.” Then Pennys says ,”I thought that somehow we'd save each other.” Although the main protagonist is a man we see the impact a loner women has on him as the world is ending after his life falls apart. She puts it back together. However the most recent changes in today's films provide for female heroes who may have a male partner which is again most prevalent in "Burn After Reading." Linda, the main character, has a homosexual man, Chad who works at the gym with her and is played by Brad Pitt. Throughout the film before Chads accidental death by Harry, George Clooney, we see Chad as the right hand man to Linda attempting to help her get the money for her plastic surgery. This further proves the gender role swap in today's films. One aspect we don't find within the films is a main antagonist. Begin
ning in the late 1800s and increasingly since the 1960s, ‘anti heroes’ or protagonists of questionable character have become common. In every one of these films we have the protagonist with questionable character. In “the Fundamentals of Caring” we have main character Ben, played by Paul Rudd, is a man who had a role in the accidental killing of his child which lead to his wife divorcing him. He becomes a caregiver to right a wrong or fill a gap in his heart. Although is was for all the wrong reasons he made a connection with Trevor the sick boy and through this a friendship is formed. Characterization is a large portion of how genre is assigned and will forever hold its place in making a genre.

When making a film there are two large decisions, the setting and the culture the film is based in. Culture determines setting and so forth, each film is based in some type of present time being the late 2010 to current time which is quite similar to how we are now. This makes the films more relatable and realistic s seeing they can happen even in today's world. These films were chosen because I enjoy them but they also move in settings from kinda possible to “I can see this happening right now.” Since these films reflect contemporary values, beliefs, events. They therefore provide great opportunities to develop understanding of a particular perspective or trend. Beginning with “Seeking a Friend for the End of the World” we have a world that is ending, this shows the selfishness of our human nature within the first two minutes of the film. In the first scene of the film we find Dodge and his wife in a car when he radio comes on statig there is no hope for the human race as the world is ending in two weeks, after this we see his wife shortly leave the car and run away. Later on we find Dodge sulking in the bathroom when his best friends wife, Diane, comes in and begins to kiss him, he stops and Diane begins to talk about how “nobody is anyone anymore” and she explains,” Your wife left you, how come she gets what she wants and I can have what I want.” This begins the whole theme of the film which is selfishness and what you want during the end of the world. In the end we find Dodge and Penny as the world ends. We see Dodge change as a person as he comes to terms with the end of the world. In Bordwell and Thompson they describe “The Wizard of Oz” as a call for endurance in the face of unexpected loss, even though it is also a colorful musical. This is much like “Seeking a Friend for the End of the World.” Even though his life is over he still goes on to find the person he wants to spend his last moments with. Moreover there is "Burn After Reading", this film is more based on a series of coincidences and the stupidity of others. Another film Bordwell and Thompson bring up in relation to genre is the film “Babel” which implies that the world is a complex multinational interconnected web of cause and effect, at the same time that it is also a close look at several different family relationships. This ties in fantastically with "Burn After Reading." The film is a catastrophe of cause and effect beginning with one major plot line and expanding to three all due to coincidence. There is a quote from "Burn After Reading" that I believe summarizes this film in its entirety and it is when Osborne Cox, played by John Malkovich, in which he says,”You represent the idiocy of today.”

The dark comedy genre are films that are sarcastic, humorous stories which help the audience examine otherwise ignored darker, serious or pessimistic subject matter. These films approach subjects, such as death, war, or illness, in a farcical or mocking manner. These films I chose were within these boundaries which helped explain the relation of all of them. Through narrative, characterization and basic theme I explained how the films are labeled as dark comedy. Watching these films analytically helped define genres and how they are all related and this will be shown throughout the essay.

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