The Foot Fist Way

The Hollywood rules for shooting comedy stipulate that scenes must be brightly lit and the camera work must be invisible (smooth, mounted shots). Deviate from these rules by using a more documentary style, with handheld cameras and cold natural lighting, and things get...squirmier.

They might also get funnier. For instance, take a comedy screenplay featuring a clueless blowhard, something suitable to be made into a standard Will Ferrell vehicle, but instead have the actors play it straight and shoot it like a low-budget documentary. Now it's funny because the joke is on the audience...watch most of them wince, cringe, and walk out. Anyone left still cracking up is your friend.

Danny McBride — whom you remember from bit parts in Tropic Thunder and Pineapple Express last summer — takes over the Ferrell role but has the balls to play the miserable prick as a real guy, never reaching for laughs. I hear he even pulled an Andy Kaufman stunt, appearing on Conan in character to perform a botched Taekwondo demo and abuse the other guests...someone please track this clip down.

This is the first film from director Jody Hill, who also co-wrote with McBride. Let's hope Hill doesn't lose his perverse anti-comic sensibility as he moves on to more commerical projects; slated for release in April is Observe and Report starring Seth Rogen and [heart flutters] the effervescent Anna Faris.