Post by Doomsday on Feb 11, 2018 18:52:37 GMT -5
Brigsby Bear (2017)
The only reason I know about this movie and the only reason I watched it was because Fanible posted about it in the Shoutbox. He said it was his favorite movie of the year which piqued my interest because, what the hell is Brigsby Bear? We're at that time of year where award shows take over the air waves and people start posting their own top 10 lists which alway makes for good discussion. Personally, none of the more popular movies really stood out for me. Dunkirk, Get Out, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing Missouri, they were fine but none of them really stood out for me as something special or overly memorable. They weren't bad, just nothing that made me want to sit down and watch it again. When Fanible posted about Brigsby Bear I immediately thought that it was strange that his favorite movie was one that I hadn't even heard of. I did a 2 minute Wikipedia and saw that it was the product of some Saturday Night Live alums. Considering how I view SNL as the antithesis of comedy I was at first skeptical but Andy Samberg is someone who might be an annoying performer but he's written some great stuff. And Mark Hamill has a major(ish) role? I'm in.
Brigsby Bear features Kyle Mooney as James, a twenty-something guy who for his entire life has lived in a bunker with only his parents (Mark Hamill and Jane Adams) and favorite children's tv show for company. That show, Brigsby Bear, is his life. He knows every episode, every character, every adventure he goes on. One day the police raid the compound and James discovers that he in fact was kidnapped as an infant by his fake parents and knows nothing of the outside world. When he's reunited with his family they learn that Brigsby Bear still has a solid and deep control over him. To James' horror he learns that Brigsby Bear isn't a real show, it was only made up by his fake parents as an educational control method. With the help of the sympathetic detective in charge of the investigation (Greg Kinnear) James decides that Brigsby has to complete his adventures once and for all and enlists his family and new real-life friends in making a Brigsby movie for all to see.
Although it may seem like an overused sentiment, Brigsby Bear does feel like a fresh, original movie. It's written by some presumably funny people and while it might not be a laugh a minute riot it's very endearing and heartfelt. I use the word presumably because frankly I'm not overly familiar with Kyle Mooney's work and I really don't know much in the way of Andy Samberg, I just know they've done a lot of work for SNL which for me doesn't bode well. Studying the state of comedy is always fascinating to me because it's often hard to see a lot of overlap between what is mainstream (crap like SNL) vs. what's legitimately funny (certain stand-ups like Norm MacDonald, Bill Burr, other non-female comics). Of course comedy is completely subjective but it's not hard to peg the kind of comedy that pushes the envelope. SNL hasn't pushed the envelope for years. The only time it's not safe is when it gets raunchy or it gets political and even that wears thin very quickly. SNL to me has been the kind of show that people enjoy if they aren't really into comedy all that much and want something easy to digest. Brigsby Bear however doesn't seem like the work of people who want to come at you with a ton of jokes. It's not offensive, it doesn't go dark or make you uncomfortable. There are laughs, perhaps too few, but it's meant for you to feel for James and in a way root for Brigsby at the same time. It's a little predictable and has certain 'end of the world' elements that might be familiar but the execution is really pretty charming. While I might not go so far as to say it's my favorite movie of the year (sorry Fanible), I'm certainly glad I was able to discover it (thanks Fanible). This is the kind of movie that I think over time will have good word of mouth as more people find it and pass it along like I certainly will.
A- so says Doomsday
The only reason I know about this movie and the only reason I watched it was because Fanible posted about it in the Shoutbox. He said it was his favorite movie of the year which piqued my interest because, what the hell is Brigsby Bear? We're at that time of year where award shows take over the air waves and people start posting their own top 10 lists which alway makes for good discussion. Personally, none of the more popular movies really stood out for me. Dunkirk, Get Out, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing Missouri, they were fine but none of them really stood out for me as something special or overly memorable. They weren't bad, just nothing that made me want to sit down and watch it again. When Fanible posted about Brigsby Bear I immediately thought that it was strange that his favorite movie was one that I hadn't even heard of. I did a 2 minute Wikipedia and saw that it was the product of some Saturday Night Live alums. Considering how I view SNL as the antithesis of comedy I was at first skeptical but Andy Samberg is someone who might be an annoying performer but he's written some great stuff. And Mark Hamill has a major(ish) role? I'm in.
Brigsby Bear features Kyle Mooney as James, a twenty-something guy who for his entire life has lived in a bunker with only his parents (Mark Hamill and Jane Adams) and favorite children's tv show for company. That show, Brigsby Bear, is his life. He knows every episode, every character, every adventure he goes on. One day the police raid the compound and James discovers that he in fact was kidnapped as an infant by his fake parents and knows nothing of the outside world. When he's reunited with his family they learn that Brigsby Bear still has a solid and deep control over him. To James' horror he learns that Brigsby Bear isn't a real show, it was only made up by his fake parents as an educational control method. With the help of the sympathetic detective in charge of the investigation (Greg Kinnear) James decides that Brigsby has to complete his adventures once and for all and enlists his family and new real-life friends in making a Brigsby movie for all to see.
Although it may seem like an overused sentiment, Brigsby Bear does feel like a fresh, original movie. It's written by some presumably funny people and while it might not be a laugh a minute riot it's very endearing and heartfelt. I use the word presumably because frankly I'm not overly familiar with Kyle Mooney's work and I really don't know much in the way of Andy Samberg, I just know they've done a lot of work for SNL which for me doesn't bode well. Studying the state of comedy is always fascinating to me because it's often hard to see a lot of overlap between what is mainstream (crap like SNL) vs. what's legitimately funny (certain stand-ups like Norm MacDonald, Bill Burr, other non-female comics). Of course comedy is completely subjective but it's not hard to peg the kind of comedy that pushes the envelope. SNL hasn't pushed the envelope for years. The only time it's not safe is when it gets raunchy or it gets political and even that wears thin very quickly. SNL to me has been the kind of show that people enjoy if they aren't really into comedy all that much and want something easy to digest. Brigsby Bear however doesn't seem like the work of people who want to come at you with a ton of jokes. It's not offensive, it doesn't go dark or make you uncomfortable. There are laughs, perhaps too few, but it's meant for you to feel for James and in a way root for Brigsby at the same time. It's a little predictable and has certain 'end of the world' elements that might be familiar but the execution is really pretty charming. While I might not go so far as to say it's my favorite movie of the year (sorry Fanible), I'm certainly glad I was able to discover it (thanks Fanible). This is the kind of movie that I think over time will have good word of mouth as more people find it and pass it along like I certainly will.
A- so says Doomsday
