From a linguistic perspective, few places breed innovation in how language develops and is used than prisons – these institutions tend to provide fascinating insights into how people change meanings of words ascribe entirely new definitions to existing terms, or even just outright create new phrases, all of which is usually done to establish some…
Tag: comedy
Between the Temples (2024)
“Give me your hand and I’ll give you mine” Everyday life comes with various challenges, which should resonate with the vast majority of us who are forced to navigate day-to-day obstacles simply to meet the minimum criteria to be considered a functional human being. Yet, despite these shared challenges, it’s our individual response to them…
Unbelievable Adventures of Italians in Russia (1974)
It tends to be quite a rare occurrence to find a film marketing itself as exactly what it intends to deliver, and avoiding any sense of unnecessary hyperbole for the sake of drawing attention to itself – and in its honesty, it actually veers towards being quite remarkable in its own right. This is the…
The Beautiful Blonde from Bashful Bend (1949)
Very few filmmakers made as much of an impact on comedy as Preston Sturges, whose invaluable contributions to cinema have made him one of the most endearing figures in Hollywood history, with his efforts as both a writer and director setting the foundation for the concept of a comedic auteur and not many artists can…
Goodrich (2024)
As a global culture, we have seemingly lost the ability to stop and watch the world as it passes us by – time moves extremely fast, and the rapid-paced lives that we live can sometimes distract us from the most beautiful and important moments that may not have much economic value, but nourish the heart…
The Comedy of Terrors (1964)
The blurring of comedy and horror is not always an easy process, but it is one that has yielded some of the most brilliant and provocative works in the history of cinema. It takes quite a special writer and director to combine two wildly different emotions – laughter and fear – and create an atmosphere…
Sorrowful Jones (1949)
The story of “Sorrowful” Jones, a wise-cracking bookie whose smart-aleck nature conceals a very insecure set of internal qualities is a timeless tale, so much that the story, as written by Damon Runyon (who first introduced the character in Little Miss Marker), has been told on multiple occasions, where luminaries such as Walter Matthau, Adolphe…
Eternally Yours (1939)
Every marriage has its ups and downs, with some having more than others. This is the case for Anita Halstead and Tony (otherwise known as The Great Arturo) – he is a charming and world-renowned magician, and she is his doting wife, their relationship started when she was in attendance at one of his performances,…
Meet Wally Sparks (1997)
As a culture, we are predisposed to enjoying some of the less intellectual sides of society, which mainly manifests in the form of the entertainment we consume. This obviously doesn’t apply to everyone, but I’d argue we all have our self-professed “guilty pleasures” that we tend to keep concealed from prying eyes. The most common…
Jeffrey (1995)
While there is a rule of thumb that states that tragedy plus time equals comedy, there are some subjects that are considered too taboo to be subjected to humour, or at least the kind of comedy that is appreciated by general audiences. HIV/AIDS is one such subject – despite the considerable efforts to eradicate the…
The Postmodern Pelican 