Bogus Frerrell “Interview”
In an imaginary e-mail interview with Semi-Pro star Will Ferrell, Hoboken-based illusionist Dave Lozo, 30, pretends to criticize Ferrell for making the same movie over and over. The irony is that it hits on truths that would never be addressed, much less answered, in a genuine chat with Ferrell. Are made-up interviews preferable? Of course not, but they do seem to get down to things that real interviews sidestep.
“It seems that all your movies are the same and you have very little range as an actor, yet people continue to go to see your movies,” Lozo says. “In Anchorman, you played a dumb newscaster who takes his shirt off. In Blades of Glory, you play a dumb skater who crams his fat body into tights. In Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby, you play a dumb race car driver who at some point goes shirtless. All you ever do is play an idiot who shows off his sloppy body. Do you think America will ever get tired of that?”
The imaginary Ferrell says, “Absolutely not. American filmgoers are total idiots. They’ve been going to see the same romantic comedies and action movies for decades, so I see no reason to change up my formula.” And blah, blah, blah.
Lozo then asks, “If you have to summarize yourself and your career in one word, which would you pick — hack, fraud or thief?” To which the phantom Ferrell replies, “Excellent question. I am definitely all three of those things. See me in Wedding Crashers? I never stole a paycheck like I did in that one. I guess I would call myself a frauackief. It’s the only way to sum up my movie career.” Frauackief?
Lozo: “But Will, you were good in Stranger Than Fiction. An all-round solid performance, and you really convinced me you were physically attracted to Maggie Gyllenhaal. Why not take the plunge into more roles like that?
Ferrell: “Are you kidding? You know how much work that takes? After those make-out scenes with Maggie, I had to take a Crying Game shower in my trailer. Sorry, but I’ve got a good thing going here with my current crop of films. Heck, in Ricky Bobby, I didn’t even read the script. I just made up my lines as we went. I bet you didn’t know that.”
“If you have to summarize yourself and your career in one word, which would you pick — hack, fraud or thief?”
I’d go with…funny.
The faux-interview is funny and accurate but why pick on Maggie Gyllenhaal?
Do the idiots leaving comments on that dude’s blog really believe that he had an email conversation with Ferrell? Or are they very clever and just in on the joke?
At least Ferrell’s films are entertaining (Blades of Glory was ten times funnier than it had any right to be).
Adam Sandler has made the same movie for 13 years now, and only two (Happy Gilmore and The Wedding Singer) have been moderately funny.
I saw an interview where they asked him why he did so many sports comedies and he said it was just a coincidence, that they happened to come out that way. Um, no, Will, you shot like nine of them in two years…I think he’s really funny but he’s definitely not a “less is more” type of guy. It seems like he churns out about 3 of these comedies a year. Makes it less special, makes me less of a fan, but from a business perspective I can understand…if I could make $20 million for goofing around with my friends for a couple months I’d probably do it as often as I could too.
I know he isn’t, but it wouldn’t surprise me at all to hear Will Ferrell say those things. He’s said in multiple interviews that he has always felt like an interloper who is performing on borrowed time, as though someday someone is going to tap him on the shoulder and say “Excuse me, there’s been a mistake, you’re going to have to leave.”
I think that’s part of Ferrell’s appeal, he is aware of the joke and along for the ride. That being said, I still find him to be pretty amusing, and occasionally hilarious.
Based on the excerpts: Boo. Anyone who’s going to natter on about the fact that “audiences are dumb and they go to the same action movies and romantic comedies” is clearly writing from a pretty narrow viewpoint to begin with, and while I think the faux-interview could be interesting, this is just tiresome ax-grinding. Why not look more closely at Will Ferrell’s films and find something to say? Steve Himes is a terrific critic who thinks critically about the recent trend of man-child comedy. His thoughts on Ferrell:
With Elf, Ferrell creates a surrealist counterpoint to [hipper-than-thou Cusackian] detachment. Ferrell’s Buddy isn’t detached from anything; he’s engaged in the world around him, but lacks the life experience to see it in real terms. … The scene that embodies Favreau and Ferrell’s idea of Elf involves Buddy’s dad taking him to work. The secretary tells Buddy that he “looks nice,” to which Buddy replies, with dewy-eyed excitement, “I know, Daddy told me big boys wear work clothes to work.” The line could be spoken by any number of adultolescent ex-frat boys who found college to be little more than a four-year vacation from home. The cluelessness in his expression is so nescient that it’s something close to profound.
The gags stem directly from how Burgundy’s pretension overlays his unspoken self-loathing, making every statement a newscast, even when he’s lonely at home talking to his dog, “You’re so wise. You’re like a miniature Buddha, covered with hair.” The best line of the film sums up Ferrell’s entire approach to Burgundy: “I’m trapped in a glass case of emotion!” … Ferrell, like Bill Murray, seems to understand that comedy itself is just a veneer over cruelty, pity or depression, and he builds that into his characters. With Ferrell, you think about the characters first, not the gags themselves, because the gags are usually just natural extensions of the character.
Ricky Bobby is brash, he’s in your face, and that’s the way he sells gum: “If you don’t chew Big Red, then fuck you.” Ricky Bobby is complete nonsense, but it doesn’t make any difference because he’s so cocksure (“I get up in the morning and I piss excellence.” “I’m a big hairy American winning machine!”) It’s this facade, the boisterous balderdash of Ricky Bobby that Ferrell keys on for his satire of the new Southern gentleman. … It’s not just the American macho thing, but suburban narcissism √ɬ¢√¢‚Äö¬¨√¢‚Ǩ¬ù in other words, the new market of NASCAR.
So I vote for writers who say something interesting.
Sorry, I should done the hyperlinks differently.
His schtick is getting a little old but he is 100x funnier than Adam Sandler. Sandler is focking brutal.
Will Ferrell did address tis somewhat in the latest Entertainment Weekly:
Fairly or not, a few reviewers and moviegoers will ding the actor for plagiarizing his own shtick in Semi-Pro. But Ferrell knows it’s fruitless to obsess too much over backseat career management. ”For every person who says, ‘I’ve seen you do that before,’ someone else will say, ‘I love when you do that thing,”’ he says with a shrug. Still, it’s clear that he’s wary of appearing to milk a joke for too long. Semi-Pro comes on the heels of two other sports comedies, and Ferrell says he’s ready to retire his jersey, at least for now. He’s passed on a Tootsie-like golf comedy and a beach-volleyball movie called Bronze God. ”I also got pitched, like, ‘What if you’re a thoroughbred jockey who’s just way too tall, but you still want to do it,’ ” he says. ”I’m like, ‘Oh, and I go up against all the short jockeys?’ ‘Yes!’ I was like, ‘I’ll keep it in mind.”’ He laughs. ”I’ve been telling people I want to do a movie about a hot-air-balloon enthusiast. ‘It’s a little more erudite, but it’s still a sport √ɬ¢√¢‚Äö¬¨√¢‚Ǩ¬ù or, you know, sporting.’ I get a lot of blank looks. No one laughs at that, ever.”
Here is a list of the only Sandler films worth mentioning:
Punch Drunk Love
Reign Over Me
Billy Madison
Happy Gilmore
The Wedding Singer (maybe…)
Spanglish (maybe…)
“the cluelessness in his expression is so nescient that it’s something close to profound.”
uh-oh. i think we have a winner here. i’m not even sure how to approach the logic of that statement; i can’t quite stop laughing.
but what really got to me was the mentioning of will ferrell in the same sentence as bill murray. oh god, i’m dyin’ at that one. somebody, help me, please.
Ferrell is one very funny dude. I love to escape into his silly frivolities.
I’m there this weekend. Let the flames begin!
I love Ferrell. I like both Stranger Than Fiction and Melinda and Melinda but those both bombed so who can blame Will for making with the cash grab?
I have high hopes for Semi-Pro. The trailer is awful which means the best jokes are too dirty to put in. I’m so there.
Here is a REVISED list of the only Sandler films worth mentioning:
Happy Gilmore
The Wedding Singer
Knowing your body of work is inconsequential is only half the battle, Will. And please spare me the “I never thought I would be here” bullshit. No one gets to where Will Ferrell is without cold hard calculation. The notion that this all just dropped into his lap and that if they take it away he’ll just go teach classes at The Groundlings is ridiculous. Will Ferrell is a clown. There is nothing wrong with that. The world needs clowns. The only problem with clowns, viz. (jesus christ there are too many to mention) Jerry Lewis, Robin Williams, Roberto Begnini, John Belushi, Billy Crystal, Steve Martin, et al, is that eventually, they want you to acknowledge what an ARTISTE they are. Will Ferrell will want this too, at some point, and like all the others, he will be unmasked for what he really is, not an artist, not someone with something importatnt to say, but a sentimental fool, a little boy who only wants one thing: applause, of which they can never get enough. Clowns want you to clap for them for living and for dying, especially for dying, but they know that will never happen, which is why they are so goddamned bitter and hateful. I know this because I am a buffoon, a long-winded one, and as everyone knows, buffoons are the poor-man’s clown, even more bitter and alone.
ferrell is clueless about being funny; he wouldn’t know how to do something clever or say something witty if his life depended on it. he’s one of those snl alums, like sandler, who have capitalized tremendously on a minimal amount of talent.
nevertheless, i was amazed that he was able to make it through “stranger than fiction” without turning it into some kind of tawdry mess. every time he was on the screen, i sat there wincing, expecting the worse. fortunately, he was reined in, and i was able to sit through the entire movie without feeling the need to take a shower at the end.
Here is a re-revised list of the only Sandler films worth mentioning:
Will’s movies are like comfort food, and sometimes you just want a good solid meal that makes you feel good. Nothing special, nothing fancy, just good eats. A meal where you know exactly what you are getting, no surprises, just yummy. And then it’s over and you move on. Nothing wrong with that. Heck, not that many great comedies being made these days, not that his are great, but they do entertain, they make you feel good and do little to no real damage. What’s wrong with that?
Ferrell, like Sandler, is a talented and funny guy who seems to be happy to take the easy route.
The running joke of decent Sandler films on this thread is a bit amusing but there are geniune laughs in Billy Madison and Happy Gilmore though I’m hesitant to call either a GOOD movie. Sandler showed he has some range in Punch Drunk Love and Reign Over Me but he seems wary of taking it further. But as much as I’m appalled by, say, The Waterboy, I’d never say the dude has nothing going for him.
I can usually find a chuckle of two in the Owen Wilson/Ferrell/Stiller family of movies but the more of them they do, the less funny they are. On the other hand, you get a comic trying too hard to be serious and you end up with Number 23 or Man of the Year so….grab your laughs where you can, I guess.
I will say this about Ferrell, he’s not afraid to share the limelight in his films. From Carell and Rudd in Anchorman, to Reilly, Baron-Cohen and the two kids in Talladega Nights, to Arnett and Poehler in Blades of Glory, his co-stars are often funnier in his movies than he is. It’s nice that he has the guts to allow that.
Here are the next three Will Ferrell films:
PLAY THAT FUNKY MUSIC WHITE BOY: Ferrell plays the only white guy in a ’70s disco band.
HIGH-FI: Set in the late `80s, Ferrell is the recently-divorced owner of a ’70s era record store that is in competition with the new CD store across the street (owned by Samuel L. Jackson).
PUBES: Ferrell is a writer for an early-70s porno magazine that is about to publish its first issue featuring pubic hair. The hilarious thing is that Ferrell has never seen a real vagina up close!
I have a theory about why the films of so many comics are not very good. Adam Sandler, Eddie Murphy, Tim Allen, Martin Lawrence, David Spade, Dane Cook are all capable of doing good work, but have been in some wretched movies. Am I the only person who laments the career Eddie Murphy could have if he chose to be in projects that matched his talent? As performers their fist medium is stand-up or improv. They may not really appreciate film or initially want to be in films. But the life of a comedian is arduous. So when they are placed in the position to be in films, they have no point of reference as to how to choose roles. Their agents are likely trying to get them to make the most money they can in the shortest amount of time. There are very few people out there like Woody Allen, who wanted to make films and used doing stand-up as a means of getting there.
I have a theory about why the films of so many comics are not very good. Adam Sandler, Eddie Murphy, Tim Allen, Martin Lawrence, David Spade, Dane Cook are all capable of doing good work, but have been in some wretched movies. Am I the only person who laments the career Eddie Murphy could have if he chose to be in projects that matched his talent? As performers their fist medium is stand-up or improv. They may not really appreciate film or initially want to be in films. But the life of a comedian is arduous. So when they are placed in the position to be in films, they have no point of reference as to how to choose roles. Their agents are likely trying to get them to make the most money they can in the shortest amount of time. There are very few people out there like Woody Allen, who wanted to make films and used doing stand-up as a means of getting there.
Talladega Nights is funnier than the entire decade of the 90s.
In a few years we’ll be reading film-theory articles about how the Will Ferrell films directed by Adam McKay compare with Jerry Lewis’ work for Frank Tashlin.
Yeah, Ferrell is not nearly in their class, but those darn Marx Brothers just made the same movie again and again.
Worse yet, I heard that Jim Agee is working on a piece on slapstick comedians for Life! As if lowbrow clowns like Buster Keaton could possibly compare with a genius like Danny Kaye.
Old School, Anchorman, Talladega Nights are easily 3 of the best comedies of this decade.
Talladega Nights is funnier than the entire decade of the 90s.
Worse yet, I heard that Jim Agee is working on a piece on slapstick comedians for Life! As if lowbrow clowns like Buster Keaton could possibly compare with a genius like Danny Kaye.
“PLAY THAT FUNKY MUSIC WHITE BOY: Ferrell plays the only white guy in a ’70s disco band.
HIGH-FI: Set in the late `80s, Ferrell is the recently-divorced owner of a ’70s era record store that is in competition with the new CD store across the street (owned by Samuel L. Jackson).
PUBES: Ferrell is a writer for an early-70s porno magazine that is about to publish its first issue featuring pubic hair. The hilarious thing is that Ferrell has never seen a real vagina up close!”
Careful George, don’t go giving him any ideas! They sound so much like his films, that you actually had me going till the third one.
And I’d see all of them, as I’m a fan for now. His humor is good for a brainless night. Though I don’t know how long that’ll last, as he does do the same thing over and over. At least he has the balls to admit it.
The Ramones made albums of exactly the same music and ended up in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Never underestimate the ability to do the same thing, and have it be successful time and time again.
And, I say this unashamedly, as long as Ferrell continues to make my sides ache with laughter (the “if you have a small child, use it as a shield” line in the Semi=Pro trailer almost made me piss myself), I don’t really care.
He’s not trying to be Ingmar Bergman fer chrissakes…
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