The Palgrave Handbook of Music in Comedy Cinema

This handbook tackles the understudied relationship between music and comedy cinema by analysing the nature, perception, and function of music from fresh perspectives. Its approach is not only multidisciplinary, but also interdisciplinary in its close examination of how music and other cinematic devices interact in the creation of comedy. The volume addresses gender representation, national identities, stylistic strategies, and employs inputs from cultural studies, musicology, music theory, psychology, cognitivism, semiotics, formal and stylistic film analysis, and psychoanalysis. It is organised in four sections: general introductions, theoretical investigations, music and comedy within national cinemas, and exemplary case studies of films or authors. Foreword Reference Preface: About This Handbook—Rationale, Organisation, and Contents Part I: General Introductions Part II: Theoretical Approaches and Analysis of Devices Part III: Music and Comedy Within National Cinemas Part IV: Composers, Styles, and Corpus Studies References Contents Notes on Contributors List of Figures List of Tables Part I: General Introductions Chapter 1: From Dionysia to Hollywood: An Introduction to Comedy’s Long (and Bumpy) Road Ancient Suspicion, Inveterate Prejudice (Attempts at) Theorising Comedy Superiority Theories Incongruity Theories Release Theories Humour and Ethics Film Comedy References Chapter 2: The Semiotics of Humour: Universal Humour Techniques in Comedy Writing On the Semiotics of Comedy Why We Laugh: Theories of Humour Basic Techniques of Humour Generation and Style On Comic Techniques Absurdity, Confusion, and Nonsense (Logic) Chase Scenes (Visual) Definitions (Language) Disappointments and Defeated Expectations (Logic) Eccentricity (Identity) Insults (Language) Parody (Identity) Stereotypes (Identity) On Personality Types in Comedies Boasters or Alazons Pretenders or Eirons Gulls Hicks or Agroikos Pedants Old Men or Senexe Fools or Shlemiels On Performance and Mise en Scéne Facial Expressions Body Language Make-up and Props Voice Usage Noises and Sound Effects Scenery Music References Chapter 3: Scoring Laughs: A Meditation on Music and Mirth Musical Comedy Techniques Surprise Contrast Funny Instruments/Sounds/Onomatopea Intermusical References/Quotations Jocular Lyrics/Contrafactum Puns Parody/Imitation/Satire Genres Off/Odd Performance Music as Comedic Device in Cinematic Contexts Context Diegesis References Part II: Theoretical Approaches and Analysis of Devices Chapter 4: Audiovisual Parallelism and Counterpoint as Strategies of Musical Humour Synchronised Parallelism Conceptual Metaphor Theory and Conceptual Blending Case Study: Otis’s Theme from Superman Conceptual Parallelism Audiovisual Counterpoint Irony Audiovisual Counterpoint in Genre Parodies Audiovisual Counterpoint as a Tool of Satire Audiovisual Counterpoint Through the Lens of Conceptual Integration Conclusions References Chapter 5: The Audiovisual Architecture of Musical Pauses, Punchlines, and Jablines: Paddington’s Punctuation Introduction Paddington’s Journey A Bear Walks into a Bar Paddington’s Punctuation Conclusions References Chapter 6: The Self-Aware Soundtrack: Music as Metaleptic Device in Comedy Film Introduction Metalepsis/Postmodernism Satire / Parody / Irony Case Studies References Chapter 7: ‘She’s a Babe ... SCHWING!’: Feminine Spectacle and Parody in Comedy Film Scoring Defining the Schwing History of the Schwing The Feminine Romantic Cliché Versus the Bad Girl Trope Proto-Schwing Films Genre and the Schwing Why Is the Schwing Funny? Twists on the Schwing Final Thoughts References Chapter 8: Pop-Rock Authenticity, Intertextuality, and Humour in the Films of Adam McKay and Will Ferrell Introduction Music and Humour Mediocre Singing and Bad Performances Good Music and Pop-Rock Authenticity Conclusions References Chapter 9: ‘The Man for His Time and Place’: Identity, Musical Comedy, and the Compiled Soundtrack in The Big Lebowski ‘A Very Complicated Case, Maude. Lotta Ins, Lotta Outs, Lotta What-Have-Yous’: Intellectualised Eclecticism, Fandom, and the Compilation Score ‘Way Out West There Was This Fella...’: Listening Widely Through the Dude’s Ears ‘Mr Treehorn Treats Objects like Women, Man’: Stereotyping, Musical Humour, and Shifts in Register ‘Yeah, Well That’s Just Your Opinion, Man’: Contemporary Consumers, the Comedy Film, and Pre-existing Music References Chapter 10: Mozart in the Kitchen: Musical Reference and the Crisis of Action in Last Action Hero Introduction ‘Just Do It!’—Action, Education, Desire ‘Moe Who?’—Mozart in Last Action Hero ‘Stand[ing] Still’—Mozart and Anti-action Getting It—Musical Jokes in Last Action Hero ‘Delicate and Precise’—The Nozze Overture in Film ‘You Have a Real Life’—Mozart and the Depth of Reality Legible Irreducibility—Last Action Hero’s Compromise Conclusions References Chapter 11: ‘The Music Shouldn’t Acknowledge Any of the Jokes’. Audiovisual Incongruence and the Functions of Music in Contemporary Dark Comedy Films Defining Dark Comedy (Film) Defining Incongruence Music in Contemporary Dark Comedies: Four Case Studies Four Lions The Death of Stalin Fargo In Bruges Conclusions References Chapter 12: Seriously Funny Music: The Use of ‘Serious’ Music for Comedic Effect National Lampoon’s Animal House (1978) Airplane! (1980) The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad! (1988) Conclusions References Chapter 13: DJ, Interrupted: Delivering Punchlines with a Record Scratch Interrupting the Score The Punchline Cadence Chekhov’s Record Player Chekhov’s Musician(s) The Film Score DJ Conclusions References Chapter 14: On Being ‘In the Know’: When Classical Music Gets Played for Laughs A Seriously Funny Composer Musicologists as Joke-Butts ‘Great Experts’ Perspective References Part III: Music and Comedy Within National Cinemas Chapter 15: Carry On Regardless: The Musical Humour of Eric Rogers Taking an A ‘I Do Like to Be Beside the Seaside’ Carrying On Composing A Musical Sausage-Machine Main-Title Sequences Parody Thematic Quotations Classical Versus Pop Cartoon Music That’s Carry On References Chapter 16: Musical-Comedic Stereotypes and Cinema. A Case Study of Irish-Themed Features, 1946–1952 Introduction. Jigs, Reels, and ‘Bridies’ Music, Comedy, and Stereotypes in Cinema Irish Comedy and Music Stereotypes Between the Jigs and the Reels: British Composers and Irish Themes Irish Comic Themes, Music, and Hollywood Film, 1946–1952 Jiggs and Maggie Max Steiner and Comic Stereotypes of Irish Ethnicity: My Wild Irish Rose Turning the Tide? Conclusions References Chapter 17: The Paladin of Italian Comedy: Totò and Music ‘Totò’s Immensely Human Element...’ The Songs Totò as Band Conductor Totò’s Gestural Hyperboles Comic Sketches, Quotations, and Subtexts Conclusions: Totò and Music References Chapter 18: Mocking Sound: Das Kabinett Des Dr. Larifari (1930) as a Parody of Early German Sound Film The Coming of Sound and the Berlin Entertainment Scene Sound Film-Operetta, Singing Stars, and Tonfilmschlager Singing Stars in German Cinema: Sängerfilm Cabaret, Variété, and Revue Performances Das Kabinett Des Dr. Larifari as a Parody of Sound Film and Its Musical Conventions Parodying Richard Tauber’s Film Ventures ‘Everlasting Love Is Only Found in Novels’: Parodying Sound Film-Hit Songs and Their Mediality A Duel of the Tenors in the Boxing Ring: Entertainment Beats ‘Art’ Sound Film and Jazz Bands: The Dissolved Cinema Orchestra Sound Film-Revue Girls Conclusion References Chapter 19: ‘Hubert, You Are Sooo ... French!’ Musical Pastiche and Parody in Michel Hazanavicius’ Espionage Comedy Films OSS 117 (2006, 2009) ‘Outmoded’ Music to Contemporary Ears Musical Punctuation A Playful Revival of ‘Outdated’ Musical Codes Ostentatious Musical Scores Overconspicuous Underscoring Taking Up ‘Straight-Faced’ Film Scoring A Musical Comedy of Repetition Generalised Ludicity A Referential Light Tone Incongruous Film Music Sound Stereotypes of Exoticism Conclusion References Chapter 20: From Imperio to Lola: Mapping Comedy in the Tradition of Spanish Folkloric Musicals (1930–1960) Comedy and Folkloric Musicals in Spanish Cinema The Success of Folkloric Musicals: Imperio Argentina and Her Morena Clara Lolita Sevilla, the Anti-folklórica The Whirlwind Lola Flores for a New Morena Clara References Chapter 21: We Can Sing and Laugh like Children: Music as Comedy in the Film Musicals of Grigorij Aleksandrov and Isaak Dunaevskij Song Referentialism Instrumentation Conclusion References Chapter 22: Playing with Borders: Film Music and Social Criticism in Swedish Comedies by Hasse and Tage Film Historical Contextualisation and Comedy Film-Musical Techniques The Films in Focus The Use of Songs: The Swedish Heritage Blurring the Diegetic/Non-diegetic Border Parodying Genres and Film-Musical Conventions Playing with Hierarchies: Making Visuals and Music Collide Conclusion References Chapter 23: Harassing Hogwash Scored with Happy Hardcore: The Ruthless Humor of the Dutch New Kids Films Dutch Post-war Comedy Film Turbo’s Plot Nitro’s Plot Happy Hardcore Camp Parody References Chapter 24: On and Beyond Mickey-Mousing: Revisiting Yuan Muzhi’s Scenes of City Life (1935) A Watershed Moment in Chinese Cinematic History A Comic Prelude ‘Noise-Musicality’ from the Lower Strata of Society Instance #1: The Train Station3 Instance #2: Xiaoyun’s Home4 Instance #3: The Pawnshop5 Rendering Sounds of the City The Sounds of Money and Materialist Dreaming Timpani-Cymbal Motif Rising Arpeggio Motif Conclusion References Chapter 25: Overview of Music in Nollywood Comedy Cinema Introduction Approaching Nollywood Film and Film Music Genres Approaching Music in Nollywood Comedy Films Native Fowl Discussion References Chapter 26: Comedy and Parody in the Songs of the Hindi Cinema Indian (Film) Culture and Song Parodies The Emergence of Parody Song-Scenes in the Early Conventional Cinema Parodies and Comic Characters in the Conventional Hindi Cinema Parody in the Decline of the Conventional Cinema Conclusions: Fragmentation and the Song Scene in Comic Parodies References Chapter 27: Parody, Comedy, Subversion: Music in Japanese Comedy Cinema Subversion: Approaches to Music in Early Japanese Cinema Parody: Music as ‘Gag’ and Pun Jazz as Comic Signifier Deflection: Yasujirō Ozu and Musical Deflection as Lightly Comedic References Chapter 28: Music for Tricksters and Music as Trickster in the Classical Hollywood Score Outwitting Don Juan Tricksters in Trouble Musical Trickery in Psycho Conclusions References Part IV: Composers, Styles, and Corpus Studies Chapter 29: The Joke’s on You: Puns and Punchlines in the Music of the Marx Brothers References Chapter 30: ‘Valse Elegante’: The Comedic Film Music of Charlie Chaplin Compositional Techniques Music Hall Influences Silent Era Influences Popular Songs Opera and Operetta Orchestral Music Dance Forms Conclusions References Chapter 31: Jacques Tati and the Musical Construction of the Comedic Tati’s Comedy Music-hall Sound Music Mon Oncle (1958) In the Beginning There Was Sound Music of the Old Town Arpel City Jazz for Traffic New Car in the Old Town Final Ballet From Mon Oncle to Play Time Play Time (1967) Hulots Tativille Percussive Opening Waiting for Giffard Buttons and Steps Sonic Chairs Rhythmic Ballet Musical Collapse of Modern Construction Conclusions: Tati’s Musical Construction of the Comedic References Chapter 32: Music For Low Comedy and High Romance: Malcolm Arnold’s Score for Hobson’s Choice (David Lean, 1954) The British Cinema Industry in the 1950s David Lean and Hobson’s Choice Malcolm Arnold and Film Music Malcolm Arnold’s Score for Hobson’s Choice The Opening Sequence The Moon Sequence The Love Theme Self-reflexivity Conclusions: The Use of Cinematic Techniques to Create Comedy Comedic and Serious Music Restraint References Chapter 33: The New King of Comedy: Theodore Shapiro and the New Millennial Comedy Score Introduction Serious Music and Incongruity Serious Set-Up for Comic Twist Serious Music for Serious Aspects The Serious Approach and Stylistic Unity Playing the Comedy Conclusions References Chapter 34: ‘Cut It Out, Cricket’: Affective Management Through Diegetic Music and Song in Howard Hawks’s Comedies and Comic Dramas Affinities: Rio Bravo and To Have and Have Not Initiations: Only Angels Have Wings and Bringing Up Baby Expressing and Managing Opposites: Monkey Business and Ball of Fire Populating Landscapes: The Big Sky and Hatari! Managing Fallout References Chapter 35: Tormented by Pigeons. Music, Satire, and Smutna Comedy in the Zbigniew Preisner–Krzysztof Kieślowski Collaborations Polish Comedy and the National/Transnational Existential Comedy Playing with Genre Trashing Chopin Playing Badly Comic Timing: Beats and Flaps Comic Characterisation Conclusion References Chapter 36: Louis de Funès as Gendarme: Comic Incongruity and Self-Reflexive Music in the Golden Age of French Comedies (1964–80) The Beginning of Le gendarme de Saint-Tropez as Comic Incongruity The ‘Marche des gendarmes’ and Comic Incongruity in Le gendarme de Saint-Tropez The ‘Marche des gendarmes’ and Comic Incongruity in Le gendarme en balade The Finale of Le gendarme de Saint-Tropez as Comic Incongruity and Metacinema Conclusion References Chapter 37: Songs and Scores in the Films of Mel Brooks: The Collaboration with John Morris The Collaboration Hollywood Composers: From Stage to Screen Morris, Bernstein, and Newborn Analysis: Blazing Saddles Main Theme and Grand Finale Authentic Screen and Musical Characters A Collaboration of Song and Score: The Grand Finale Analysis: Young Frankenstein Main Theme Blurring the Lines: Non-Diegetic and Diegetic Analysis: High Anxiety—An Essence of Herrmann Analysis: The Producers—‘Hold Me. Touch Me.’—Duo Virtuosi Conclusions References Chapter 38: Taking Mancini’s Comedy Scores Seriously Training as Film Composer Mancini and Comedy Early Years: Universal Early Romantic Comedy Collaborations with Edwards Breakfast at Tiffany’s Charade The Pink Panther and Hatari! Time of Transition Silver Streak The Final Years Conclusion References Chapter 39: Ennio Morricone’s Music for La Cage aux folles (1978) Multiplicity of Personalities and Relativity of Truth Cage and Cage Morricone’s Toolbox Descriptions of Cues Logo. Cue #3 – ‘Una strana coppia - Titles/Introduction’. Cue #7 – ‘La gabbia dei matti’, 00:10:00 to 00:12:07 ‘Zaza Is Hideous’, 00:04:54 ‘The Worst News’, 00:14:40 ‘Cultural Attaché’, 00:16:20 ‘With A Girl?’, 00:21:52 ‘The End of The Moral Order’ ‘A Little Effort’, 00:32:32 ‘...From His Own Home’, 00:38:53 De-queering Albin ‘A Real John Wayne’, 00:45:17 ‘Madame President’, 00:52:45 ‘The Better Cemetery’, 00:59:45 ‘The More Things Change...’, 01:06:49 ‘Just A Monastery’, 01:10:48 ‘A Wig in The Soup’, 01:16:00. ‘Albin enters!’ / ‘Laurent Has 2 Mommies’, 01:25:08. ‘Simone enters!’ ‘Is White Slimming?’, 01:30:03 Conclusions References Chapter 40: Irony, Comic, and Humour: The Comedic Sides of John Williams From Johnny to John: The 1960s and 1970s The Comic and The Humorous The 1960s Comedy Decade The 1970s Transition The 1980s and Onwards Unusual Timbres, Rhythms, and Harmonies Playful Music and Light Parentheses Audiovisual Disjunction and Dark Humour The 2000s: From Viktor Navorski to Haddock and Thompson and Thomson Conclusions References Chapter 41: Jocular Juxtapositions, Parody, and Ludicrous Lyrics. Music in Monty Python’s Comedy Films The Ballad of Sir Robin Monty Python and The Holy Grail Library Music Monty Python’s Life of Brian Always Look on the Bright Side of Life The Meaning of Life Penis Song Bach Swashbuckler Conclusion References Chapter 42: Music and Comedy in the Films of Woody Allen Musical ‘Types’ in Allen’s Films From Modernism to Postmodernism: Locating Woody Allen’s Comedy Style Allen as a Cinematic Postmodernist Comedy as Parody and Pastiche References Afterword The East Side Player Piano The Scottish Castle References Index