My point is not to gross you out. It’s that Black is a doer, and Cera is a sayer. There’s no reason you can’t like both brands of comedy, but I suspect deep down you appreciate one more than the other. I tend to find the commentary funnier than the act. For instance, I laughed harder when Cera said, “They’re doing the jackal dance, it’s not my strongest,” than when he actually danced. Seeing Cera’s character wet himself while hanging upside down wasn’t nearly as hilarious as Black saying, “Hey, I’m peeing on my face too, on the inside.” And that snake wrapping itself around Cera’s neck couldn’t top Black’s suggestion on how he could save himself: “You could eat it before it eats you.”
Are you a doer or a sayer when it comes to comedy? Vote in the poll below. And what did you think of Year One? Read Owen Gleiberman’s review here.
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Definitely a “sayer”. Arrested Development, the Big Bang Theory, 30 Rock, and anything by Joss Whedon: the biggest laughs for me were from banter and weird one-liners. That being said, I still very much enjoy everything Homer Simpson goes through, I love watching Peter Griffin suffer, and I never tire of Bus Bunny giving Yosimite Sam what’s coming to him. So I guess I like my cartoons to be more “do” than “say”. Either way, I’m more “Marx Bros.” than “Three Stooges”.
I’m a sayer for sure. I love a show or movie with clever dialouge.
Sayer. Jim Carrey never had much sway with me. I need the witty dialogue. A combination of the two is always best though. Judd Apatow movies for example.
I love shows with witty banter, but when it comes down to it, yeah, I’m a doer. The three things that have made me laugh the hardest:
1) The scene in The Big Lebowski when the ferret gets thrown in the tub with the Dude by the German Nihilists.
2) The whole Lemmy Winks episode of South Park. No exaggeration, I fell off a couch I was laughing so hard.
3) Pretty much any sudden and unexpected violence. Think the early scene where Brad Pitt’s character is hit by the car in Meet Joe Black.
So, well I generally find “sayer” humor smarter and funnier as a general rule, the right slightly twisted “doer” type humor really, really tickles me.
I would say I’m a “Sayer”, but I really can’t stand Michael Cera. He act is getting very old.
http://tvdonewright.com/2009/06/20/abc-scrubs-in-for-big-changes-goes-back-to-school/
I’ll only go see comedies in the theater if they look like they have an equal amount of both “doer humor” and “sayer humor.” I went to The Hangover for this exact reason and was not disappointed. This is probably also a key reason why my (and many others’) favorite comedy of all time is Ghostbusters.
I guess since we’re all here on a site *reading about* entertainment, we’d tend to be appreciators of commentary. Kristen’s recap of The Bachelor, for instance, is ten thousand times more entertaining than the show itself.
Too true; the commentary is really what makes the act worth anything.
I was going to say “sayer” because Craig Ferguson’s monologues and witty banter are my favorite comedy. Then I realized Craig can really move too–he dances or makes a unique expression to drive home a joke. He moves his body really well (Really well–sigh.) so Craig’s a doer too. (He can’t help it, he’s European.) To sum up, I’m bi-comedy, just like Craig.
I enjoy a good sayer, but I think the physical stuff is the hardest to really nail. Anyone can do a pratfall or walk into a wall, but what the great comedic physical actors do, the Peter Sellers’, the Jerry Lewis’, THAT’s some of the hardest stuff in my opinion. Don’t get me wrong, I love me some Michael Cera deadpan. But I would rather watch Tobias Funke fall through a refrigerator than listen to some of George Michael’s signature awkwardness any day (altough George Michael is still pretty terrific!)
After all these years the best witty banter in a dramedy for me is still Desperate Housewives. There are times when they are so funny, I’ve almost fallen off the bed laughing. But, I also agree I love physical comedy as well. Three’s Company over on the Nick at Night channel is great at that.
I am a sayer as well. I have little love for physical comedy (other than watching my FIL and husband walk full on into the same sliding glass door!That was BRILLIANT!)But a good line will get me every time. Now if someone can use their body to sell the line just a little more it is that much better. Then again I am soneone who can be satisfied listening to movies while doing something else. So I just might be weird.
Doers prefer Kramer.
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Sayers prefer George.
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I’m definitely a George.
Adam Sandler getting hit by the VW bug in happy gilmour
– unexpected violence can be very funny indeed – However you always need both to be truly great
Somebody mentioned Seinfeld characters; I think Julie Louis Dreyfus’s does “doer” AND “sayer” so well in her new show “Christine.” When it’s a good episode, the lines are flawless, and she always does the accompanying sight gags perfectly.