Waiting For Guffaw

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It's a lonely place, finding Waiting For Guffman to be only somewhat amusing. I watched the film for maybe the 3rd time in my life last night, and it cemented what I'd previously dreaded having as my opinion: Yes, I find it only moderately funny. It's one of those movies that I find funnier to think about than to watch - the concept of Corky St. Clair as a character is funnier than the reality turns out to be.

I mean, I still laugh at the classic lines - "I been workin' at the DQ for.......", "You're... you're bastard people!" - but I find myself bored through long stretches of the film. Compare this to Best In Show, where I'm thoroughly entertained by every single frame of film, and, well, there really isn't much of a comparison.

I'm not knocking Christopher Guest; I enjoy pieces of Guffman and am glad it got him the acclaim and power to keep making movies - For Your Consideration is right up in my top five anticipated movies for this Fall - and I'm glad that Guffman's status as a classic got every funny person in town clamoring to be a part of his lil' group, because my life would be so much emptier without the doses of Jennifer Coolidge he delivers (not to mention Guffman geniuses Parker Posey and Catherine O'Hara)

But Guffman, on its own terms, just doesn't really do it for me. I expect that's the townsfolk-with-pitchforks knocking on my door right now.
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