Screwball Comedy: Difference between revisions

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{{trope}}
{{trope}}{{page should be category}}
[[File:screwball_7952.jpg|link=Visual Pun|right]]
[[File:screwball 7952.jpg|link=Visual Pun|right]]


[[I Thought It Meant|No, this doesn't mean what you think.]]
[[I Thought It Meant|No, this doesn't mean what you think.]]


The [[Screwball Comedy]] has a pretty precise definition: a comedy film -- usually in black and white, although some were made in color -- in which an uptight, repressed, or [[Uptight Loves Wild|otherwise stiff character gets broken out of his or her shell]] by being [[Manic Pixie Dream Girl|romantically pursued]] by a [[Cloudcuckoolander]] (or a similar character type). It does ''not'' just mean "zany comedy." ''[[The Producers]]'', say, is not a screwball comedy, although it is screwy, ballsy, and very funny.
The '''Screwball Comedy''' has a pretty precise definition: a comedy film—usually in black and white, although some were made in color—in which an uptight, repressed, or [[Uptight Loves Wild|otherwise stiff character gets broken out of his or her shell]] by being [[Manic Pixie Dream Girl|romantically pursued]] by a [[Cloudcuckoolander]] (or a similar character type). It does ''not'' just mean "zany comedy." ''[[The Producers]]'', say, is not a screwball comedy, although it is screwy, ballsy, and very funny.
It is characterized by fast-paced repartee, farcical situations, escapist themes, and plot lines involving courtship and marriage and showing the struggle between economic classes.
It is characterized by fast-paced repartee, farcical situations, escapist themes, and plot lines involving courtship and marriage and showing the struggle between economic classes.


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=== Classic screwball comedy examples include (period 1934-1944): ===
== Classic screwball comedy examples include (period 1934-1944) ==




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* ''[[Topper]]'', followed by two sequels. Based on two novels by Thorne Smith, who also wrote the book on which ''[[I Married A Witch]]'' is based.
* ''[[Topper]]'', followed by two sequels. Based on two novels by Thorne Smith, who also wrote the book on which ''[[I Married A Witch]]'' is based.
* ''[[Twentieth Century]]''
* ''[[Twentieth Century]]''
* ''[[You Can't Take It With You]]''
* ''[[You Can't Take It with You]]''


Later and modern examples of screwball comedy include:
Later and modern examples of screwball comedy include:
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* ''The [[Runaway Bride]]''
* ''The [[Runaway Bride]]''
* Conversely, the 1928 silent Marion Davies comedy ''The Patsy'' can be regarded as a sort of very early prototype for the genre.
* Conversely, the 1928 silent Marion Davies comedy ''The Patsy'' can be regarded as a sort of very early prototype for the genre.
* ''Ticktock'', a ''horror novel'' by [[Dean Koontz]], is deliberately written as a [[Screwball Comedy]].
* ''Ticktock'', a ''horror novel'' by [[Dean Koontz]], is deliberately written as a Screwball Comedy.
* ''[[Dharma & Greg|Dharma and Greg]]''
* ''[[Dharma & Greg|Dharma and Greg]]''
* ''[[House Sitter]]''
* ''[[House Sitter]]''
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{{reflist}}
{{reflist}}
[[Category:Comedy Tropes]]
[[Category:Comedy Tropes]]
[[Category:index]]
[[Category:Index]]
[[Category:Screwball Comedy]]
[[Category:{{PAGENAME}}]]

Latest revision as of 15:34, 4 May 2020

No, this doesn't mean what you think.

The Screwball Comedy has a pretty precise definition: a comedy film—usually in black and white, although some were made in color—in which an uptight, repressed, or otherwise stiff character gets broken out of his or her shell by being romantically pursued by a Cloudcuckoolander (or a similar character type). It does not just mean "zany comedy." The Producers, say, is not a screwball comedy, although it is screwy, ballsy, and very funny. It is characterized by fast-paced repartee, farcical situations, escapist themes, and plot lines involving courtship and marriage and showing the struggle between economic classes.

In other words, a Parody of a Romantic Comedy.

Classic screwball comedy examples include (period 1934-1944)

Later and modern examples of screwball comedy include:

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