8 posts tagged “comedy”
Each video starts as a semi-earnest look at the craft of acting, but it swiftly devolves into sibling rivalry and bickering as only brothers can.
Dave has great, awkward timing a la Michael Cera and oddly expressive eyebrows.
Although I can't figure out how to embed the video, you may also enjoy a series of videos called "Living 'Neath the Law with Jack McBrayer". This wholesome-looking actor (from 30 Rock among other things) teaches you a variety of skills, such as ripping off a drug dealer, or conducting a home invasion.
Be warned about language, if you are concerned with that sort of thing.
The main character is a London cop who is too competent and is making the rest of the department look bad. His superiors transfer him to a sleepy country town. It seems idyllic, but bodies soon start piling up. Friends are made, the self is discovered, arrests are made, and eventually the bullets start flying - and they don't stop.
Simon Pegg and Nick Frost star. There are also great roles and cameos by some awesome people like Timothy Dalton, Bill Nighy, Steve Coogan, Martin Freeman, Steve Merchant, Cate Blanchett, and Bill Bailey.
Too smart for American TV and very much dependent on its great personalities, this is my new youtubular obsession.
If you like knowing things and cheeky British humor, you just might fall in love too.
With reproduced 1970s-1980s color, bad incidental music, screen ratio, and even the old BBC logo, each episode covers a different topic with little regard for the facts and includes scientists performing the most boring experiments possible.
This show is well along the lines of John Hodgman's genre of faux expertise, and perfectly executed to the point of surreality.
Improvisational comedy is generally unscripted and free flowing comedy (as opposed to sketch comedy and stand up) and generally involves two or more people. Most improv groups perform on stage. I have a lot of friends who did this in college, taking suggestions from the audience to create funny scenes.
Improv Everywhere is a different sort of outfit. Based in New York City, this group takes comedy to the streets for surreal and wacky public acts. They are probably best known for their Pants Free subway ride, in which a couple hundred people will nonchalantly ride a specific subway train - but none of them are wearing pants. They read the newspaper and get on and off at different stops along the way. No one acknowledges each other and the "real" riders are left to ponder the meaning of it all. It's a highly orchestrated affair, say my friend who have participated.
Or, Best Buy is an electronics store, and all its employees wear blue polo shirts. Improv Everywhere rushed one store with dozens of people all wearing the same shirts and "helping" customers.
One of the guys who used to work at my office quit to do comedy full time (good for him!) and this is one project that he is involved in as well.
A slightly better kept secret is that he's been a famous comedian in England for decades. He was in the BBC historical comedy Blackadder with Rowan Atkinson (Mr. Bean), and with his friend and comedy partner Stephen Fry he did Jeeves & Wooster, as well as a really great sketch show called A Bit of Fry and Laurie, shown here.
Hugh's character on House is grumpy, misanthropic, sarcastic, and serious so it's really great to see him as a wacky and somewhat effete sketch comedian. He can do drama, accents, sketch comedy, sing and play piano and guitar, and do Shakespeare. What more could you ask for?
Religious comedy usually ends up being either too safe or too offensive for the mainstream, but this show hits the sweet spot between getting genuine laughs without really mocking any one religion.
I wouldn't mind seeing this show picked up on cable (the networks wouldn't dare).
Example:
"I work in the Miracles department."
"Oh, is that like Jesus on a tortilla chip?"
"No, that's PR."
Very well done, and it hits close to home for anyone who has ever had to "fix" anyone's computer - or who has needed their computer fixed.
[This clip is in Norwegian, and subtitled in both Norwegian and English]
