Action comedy is a hybrid genre that combines elements of action fiction with comedy. While early action films feature stuntwork and humor, academic Cynthia King wrote that the genre only came into its own as a mainstay of the American action film genre in the 1980s when actors who had backgrounds in comedy such as Eddie Murphy began taking roles in action films.Template:Sfn The genre approaches various narratives and styles such as buddy films, superhero films, and Hong Kong action cinema featuring various actors such as Jackie Chan.
Action comedy has also been a recurring theme in television, with series such as The Dukes of Hazzard (1979–1985)[1] and Peacemaker (2022).[2]
Film
Academic Yvonne Tasker described most post-classical Hollywood action films as "more or less hybrids."Template:Sfn Action films are set across multiple settings and spaces with no single defining landscape and can become complicated in categorization which is sometimes acknowledged through hybridized designators such as action comedy.Template:Sfn
Characteristics
Cynthia King said that the term "action comedy" is typically reserved for action films in which humor plays a relatively central role.Template:Sfn Such films can take on a wide variety of formats, including buddy films involving mismatched partners such as the Lethal Weapon (1987-1998) and the Rush Hour (1998-2006) film series, as well as Hong Kong action cinema films featuring actors such as Jackie Chan. King also included within the genre the more comedic superhero films such as Mystery Men (1999), Hancock (2008) and The Green Hornet (2011).Template:Sfn
Elements of action comedy existed in early cinema, such as the chase sequences in pre-1915 films such as The Lonedale Operator (1911), which anticipate editing patterns of later action films such as Wheels on Meals (1984).Template:Sfn Later silent film comedies such as those featuring Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton (e.g., Easy Street (1917) and The General (1926)) featured chases, gags and stunts that would serve as inspirations for both comedic and non-comedic action set pieces in later action films.Template:Sfn These films include Chaplin and Keaton using physical materials on stage, either weapons or props, to emphasize, affect or respond to their bodily actions.Template:Sfn
King wrote that despite a large cinematic history of humor and peril, the action comedy film only "came into its own" as part of American action film genre in the early 1980s, notably when actors who had backgrounds in comedy such as Eddie Murphy began taking roles in action films.Template:Sfn
In his book, Lights, Camera, Action: Crafting an Action Script (2005), Gregory Sarno said that not all films containing conflict and humor are action comedies; Sarno considered films with action-laden subplots such as Big Momma's House (2000) and Dumb & Dumber (1994) to be closer to straight comedies because the action lacks an integral role in their narratives.Template:Sfn King echoed this point, saying that films such as Night at the Museum (2006) or Loaded Weapon 1 (1993) are better categorized as straight comedies since most of the action is framed comically with no serious violence or peril. She also said that the occurrence of sardonic one-liners in an action film, such as "Go ahead, make my day" from Sudden Impact (1983), is insufficient to categorize such a film as an action comedy.Template:Sfn
Mark Gallagher, in Action Figures: Men, Action Films and Contemporary Adventure Narratives (2006), stated that action comedies often feature a fish out of water theme, such as Murphy's character clashing with upper-class white communities and conventional police procedures in the Beverly Hills Cop (1984-2024) film series.Template:Sfn
List of films
TV series
| TV series | Year(s) | Template:Ref heading |
|---|---|---|
| Template:Sortname | 1983–1987 | [8] |
| Burn Notice | 2007–2013 | [9] |
| Chuck | 2007–2012 | [10] |
| Doom Patrol | 2020–2022 | [11] |
| Template:Sortname | 1979–1985 | [1] |
| Future Man | 2017–2020 | [12] |
| Kidd Video | 1984–1985 | [1] |
| Lethal Weapon | 2016–2019 | [12] |
| Our Flag Means Death | 2022-2023 | [13] |
| Peacemaker | 2022 | [2] |
| Remington Steele | 1982–1987 | [14] |
| Rush Hour | 2016 | [15] |
| Teenage Bounty Hunters | 2020 | [16] |
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 The Encyclopedia of American Animated Television Shows{{#if:Perlmutter|, Perlmutter}. Rowman & Littlefield(2018). ISBN 978-1-5381-0374-6
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 How HBO Max's 'Peacemaker' became a hair metal superhero spin on the ensemble comedy. USA Today(January 13, 2022). Retrieved December 12, 2022.
- ↑ 3.00 3.01 3.02 3.03 3.04 3.05 3.06 3.07 3.08 3.09 3.10 3.11 3.12 3.13 3.14 3.15 3.16 3.17 3.18 3.19 3.20 3.21 3.22 3.23 3.24 3.25 3.26 3.27 3.28 3.29 3.30 3.31 3.32 3.33 3.34 3.35 3.36 3.37 3.38 3.39 3.40 3.41 3.42 3.43 3.44 3.45 3.46 3.47 3.48 3.49 3.50 3.51 3.52 Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedrt - ↑ 4.00 4.01 4.02 4.03 4.04 4.05 4.06 4.07 4.08 4.09 4.10 4.11 4.12 4.13 4.14 4.15 4.16 4.17 4.18 4.19 4.20 4.21 4.22 Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedcosmopolitan - ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 5.6 5.7 Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedmenshealth - ↑ Deadpool & Wolverine | Rotten Tomatoes. www.rottentomatoes.com. Retrieved 2025-01-04.
- ↑ From Grieco With Love: Remembering 'If Looks Could Kill'. Forbes(July 29, 2016). Retrieved December 29, 2023.
- ↑ 'A-Team' is viewers' most-wanted oldie for prime-time revival. The Independent(October 23, 2003). Retrieved December 15, 2022.
- ↑ Action Comedy TV: Showrunner Matt Nix. Deadline Hollywood(March 14, 2010). Retrieved December 2, 2022.
- ↑ Social TV: How Marketers Can Reach and Engage Audiences by Connecting Television to the Web, Social Media, and Mobile{{#if:|, {{{last}}}}. Wiley(2012). ISBN 978-1-118-23965-0
- ↑ Season 4 of 'Doom Patrol' to premiere on Dec. 8. upi.com(October 10, 2022). Retrieved December 12, 2022.
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 Action Comedy. Hulu. Retrieved December 2, 2022.
- ↑ How 'Our Flag Means Death' Built a Realistic but Farcical Pirate Ship. IndieWire(March 12, 2022). Retrieved December 12, 2022.
- ↑ John McTiernan: The Rise and Fall of an Action Movie Icon{{#if:Taylor|, Taylor}. McFarland(2018). ISBN 978-1-4766-3233-9
- ↑ Rush Hour TV Series In the Works for CBS from Bill Lawrence, Brett Ratner. TVLine(September 30, 2014). Retrieved December 12, 2022.Template:Dead link
- ↑ Teenage Bounty Hunters Trailer: High School Girls Kick Ass After Class in Netflix's Edgy Action Comedy. TVLine(July 30, 2020). Retrieved December 12, 2022.
Sources
- A Companion to the Action Film{{#if:Barrowman|, Barrowman}. Blackwell Publishing Ltd.(2019). ISBN 978-1119100492
- Action Figures: Men, Action Films and Contemporary Adventure Narratives{{#if:Gallagher|, Gallagher}. Palgrave Macmillan(2006). ISBN 1403970122
- Action Cinema Since 2000{{#if:|, {{{last}}}}. Bloomsbury Publishing(2024). ISBN 9781839022784
- A Companion to the Action Film{{#if:King|, King}. Blackwell Publishing Ltd.(2019). ISBN 978-1119100492
- Lights, Camera, Action: Crafting an Action Script{{#if:Sarno|, Sarno}. Littlebear Productions(2005). ISBN 978-0595360574
- Action and Adventure Cinema{{#if:|, {{{last}}}}. Routledge(2004). ISBN 0-203-64515-4