Ask Lemmy

Will Ferrell, Steve Carrel and Ben Stiller are the 3 horsemen of the comedy apocalypse

I agree with this comment in general, but don't think Ferrell is a good example. Or really, maybe he is a good example, but the way his movies are shot isn't a good example.

In Ferrell movies, the gag is that the actor says or does something outrageously dumb, and then the other actors largely go along with it, either pumping up the idea, or being coerced by it, or stomping it down in a hilariously insulting fashion. If there is ever a moment of awkward silence, it lingers for a second before the scene ends. Arrested Development is another example of this being done well. It's a farce - the actions are so bizarre and outlandish that we can't possibly imagine ourselves doing it, so we are absolved of sympathy for the cartoonish actor and enjoy seeing them fumble their way through the scene.

But there is a new wave of "cringe comedy" that seems to not understand what a farce is. A character will do something just beyond the limit of what we could imagine ourselves doing, so we can still identify with the character. Then the other characters react in the way people would react in real life - with stern condemnation or cold shouldering. And the scene goes on and on and on. It is terrible.