Tribeca Soils Diaper With ‘Baby Mama’
By Craig Kennedy - March 5th, 2008; 11:52 am
I seem to recall the Tribeca Film Festival taking a fair amount of crap in recent years for some of their selections. The US premiere of Spider-Man 3 last year, for example.
Well, if the trailer is to be taken at face value, Tribeca has sunk to a new low this year with its opening-night film: Tina Fey and Amy Poehler’s Baby Mama.
I’ve seen the witless trailer twice now and it’s one of the lamest I’ve seen in a long time. I know, I always say you can’t judge a film by its trailer, but it’s a comedy and a laugh free trailer feels like a danger sign to me. Besides, is this really the kind of thing Tribeca wants to set the tone with?
For better or for worse, this year’s festival opens April 23rd. The rest of the slate has not been announced.
I am disappointed with the trailer, NOT funny. I mean I loved Mean Girls, and SNL obviously, and now Tina’s 30 Rock, so if she screws up with Baby Mama, I honestly might be able to forgive her witty ass.
Anybody else tired of the Oh God She’s a Woman! And She’s Funny! And pretty! stories that greet all these comediennes? I got news for the press, bending over backwards congratulating yourself for how un-sexist you are usually means you’re sexist, and this is coming from a guy who probably has a touch of horndog sexism in him himself.
I think Tina Fey has potential, but she’s, in my opinion of course, not nearly as funny as she’s made out to be. She’s overrated, I think, because
a. She writing in a genre ghetto (TV comedy) where any half competence is bound to stick out.
b. she’s an attractive woman. Purty damn it!
Nick, that rant wasn’t aimed at you. I, and not for the first time today, went half-cocked without reading the comments that proceeded mine.
I enjoyed Fey on Weekend Update and her show is better than most (which at least makes it better than a kick in the balls, but Chuck’s point is taken), and yeah, I think she’s pretty.
She may be overrated, but surely she’s better than this? Certainly Tribeca is, one would hope.
No I agree Craig, I think Fey has plenty of potential, and, in fairness, I’m just not much on Saturday Night Live. 30 Rock is ok for what it is. I did like Mean Girls, but again, I feel myself wanting to add the phrase “for what it is.”
No worries Chuck :)
I really enjoyed Mean Girls, like really. To this day I am quoting the film, and I would like a new film to be able to quote all day long, and Baby Mama just doesn’t look like the film to give me what I want dammit!
Craig, clearly you missing the woman-peeing-in-sink fad that has invaded the zeitgeist of America. Obviously, Baby Mama is really ahead of its time and is cause for celebration at film festivals far and wide for capturing such a poignant culture touchstone and treating it with subtle humor and nuanced discourse. We’ll be talking about that scene alone for years to come.
Men are sink-peeing now too Joel. It’s the pansexual rage. Check out the trailer for What Happens in Vegas. Or better yet, just ram a hot poker up your ass. The sensation is roughly similar.
Whoa, Craig. We are in a mood, aren’t we? ;-)
I’m sure Malick could make a sink peeing scene seem like art.
lol…sorry Alison. The trip to the multiplex last weekend still has me a little cranky.
Sartre, there would be poetic voice over and perhaps the sound of wind blowing through the grass.
It’s okay. I was just teasing, Craig.
[voice over] We were a family. How’d it break up and come apart, so that now we’re turned against each other? Each standing in the other’s kitchen. How’d we lose that good that was given us and piss it all away?
ahahahahaha.
The Thin Yellow Line
“I’m sure Malick could make a sink peeing scene seem like art.”
Another one of those great existential questions. I dare counter with this– it depends on who is the pee-er, sweet sartre.
Having said that, Blanchett and/or Day-Lewis as sink pee-ers = art, damn it!
I can see the Oscars already Dorothy.
LOL Dorothy! What? You don’t think Marion would be an artful pee-er?
Can’ t you just see it, Craig:
“I drink your…” Okay, I’ll stop there. Unnecessary!
sartre, I’m sure Mlle. Cotillard would be a most enthralling pee-er!
Ahahahahhahahahhaha
I’m reminded of the truly witless “comedy” that came out a few years back — and I can’t even be bothered to imdb the name — from a female writer on SOUTH PARK that sold for a million bucks but was supposed to launch the genre of “gross-out chick comedy.” Happily, women had better things to do and the film died. Do I digress?
I like Fey and I do have a half-theory that bad trailers can somtimes make good movies.
How does one digress from a conversation about urine?
Bad trailers can sometimes make good movies for sure, but this would have to be a case where they intentionally removed all the funny bits so as not to spoil them OR it’s deeply contextual comedy that only works when you see the build up.
I’m having trouble believing either one.
The funny thing about comedies is that sometimes a joke looks lame in the trailer and yet when it pops up in the actual movie, the film has built up, not so much context, as it has character familiarity and what didn’t work in the trailer works in the film. I’m not saying it will be the case here, but I’m saying I’ve preemptively poo-pooed a lot of comedies that ended up being pretty damn funny. Food for thought.
Hey, thanks for stopping by Limey.
In general, I think you’re right and as much as I talk about the fallacy of trailers, it’s hypocritical of me to turn around and judge a whole movie by one.
If I’m wrong and Baby Mama turns into a minor comedy classic., I’ll be the first one to admit it.
It’s interesting what you say about character familiarity. It’s similar to watching a series comedy on TV. If you just watch one episode, especially of a show that’s been on the air for a while, you miss out on a lot of stuff the regular audience takes for granted. Character stuff that’s been built up over the years. Like on the American TV show Seinfeld, every time the Kramer character would stagger into a room suddenly, everyone would laugh, but someone who’d never seen the show would scratch their head and wonder what the fuss was about.
A movie I suppose can work in the same way though on a smaller scale. Context counts.
Having said that, If Baby Mama doesn’t suck, I will eat a bug.