Saturday, April 4, 2020

Deadpan delivery.

Blogging from A to Z Challenge


Theme: Humor in film -- what makes me laugh:


Deadpan delivery.

Buster Keaton is my favorite silent film comedian. Known as The Great Stone Face, his deadpan expression speaks volumes.

Comedians Bob Newhart, Bill Murray, and Hugh Grant, also come to mind when I think of deadpan delivery, and I had planned to share scenes of their work, but a reader, Frédérique (blog found here), mentioned John Cleese when commenting on my previous post and that reminded me of a hilarious scene in The Great Muppet Caper (1981).

For back story to this clip... Miss Piggy gave Kermit an address--not hers--where he can pick her up for a date. She needs to get into the residence in order to pretend she lives there, so she is trying to find an open window.

Meanwhile, inside the home, Neville (John Cleese) dines with his wife. She hears a noise and inquires about it. Neville looks at the window and matter-of-factly tells her, "Um, er, a pig...climbing up the...outside of the house." Then they go back to eating as though that is nothing unusual. Their whole conversation is dry and yet makes me laugh! It's found here.

2 comments:

  1. I agree about Hugh Grant and his acting skills at deadpan delivery. I loved the film Mickey Blue Eyes. He is so funny in his role without even trying. I know the critics didn't seem to like it, but it's one of my favorites of his.

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  2. @Sue ... I forgot about Mickey Blue Eyes! Now I want to watch that one again.

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