Thursday, April 23, 2020

Timing.

Blogging from A to Z Challenge


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


Timing.

You've probably heard of comic timing -- tell the punch line too soon or too late and it ruins the joke. Sometimes in film, humor comes from the timing being off, or something happening at the worst possible moment.

I enjoyed Thor: Ragnarok (2017) because it contained numerous humorous moments. Here are just two funny scenes involving worst possible timing...

When Thor's (Chris Hemsworth) hammer doesn't arrive at the heroic moment as planned.  "Wait. I'm sorry, I didn't time that right"...

(Located at approx. 2:20 thru 2:52 of this clip.)

BestClips: Thor: Ragnarok - Thor vs Surtur

And when Bruce Banner (Mark Ruffalo) doesn't transform into the Hulk in a timely manner, it provides great comic relief in a tense situation.

Best MovieClips: Thor: Ragnarok - Hulk Transformation

I almost used the following clip from Napoleon Dynamite (2004) when I posted about gallows humor, but saved it for today because of the timing.

Take a farmer putting down his cow... that's not funny. Take a busload of children... that's not funny. But have that school bus arrive just as the farmer pulls the trigger... that's the worst possible time! And it's funny. (Well, for those of us who laugh at gallows humor.)

Movieclips: Napoleon Dynamite -
The Bus Shows Up at Exactly the Wrong Time

Is there a scene of comedic timing that comes to mind? Please share!

8 comments:

  1. Can't see the last video. The other ones are great examples of good timing, or not ;)

    T is for Taupe

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  2. @Frederique ... I wonder if others are also unable to see the last video.

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  3. Yes, timing is everything! I was able to see the last clip, FYI.

    Janet’s Smiles

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  4. The last clip with the cow and bus worked fine for me. I think of the final scene in Some Like It Hot between Jerry and Osgood when he's trying to explain he's a woman. Hilarious!

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  5. @Janet ... I'm glad you were able to see the clip! Thanks for letting me know.

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  6. @Sue ... So true... how does one find the perfect time to reveal you've been disguising yourself as the opposite sex? hahaha

    The first time I saw it (years ago) I was so busy crushing on dreamy Tony Curtis that I overlooked Jack Lemmon's performance. In later viewings I realized he completely nailed the part of Daphne and had so much fun with it! He's my favorite now.

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  7. Huge fan of Ragnarok. Great post, comedic timing is a huge thing to get right. Thanks for sharing this. - Dragons & Spaceships

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  8. @Dragons & Spaceships ... Thanks for your comment. I'm glad you enjoyed the post!

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