Mondo Bizarro's Top 12 Films Showcasing *FAILED* Comedians!
Comedies are a showcase, but that doesn't always stick. A number of up-and-coming comedians were given their own films to highlight them and help propel them to mega-stardom. A good number of those times, it worked. Today, however, we're going to focus on the ones that did not. This list is going to include films from the 1930s to the 1990s. The connective thread is that all of the people in this film went on to a very minimal level of success. There's another thread that will be running throughout the list, but you'll see what that is shortly. There may be a little controversy here (especially over my #1 choice), but bear in mind that this list is inherently not talking about the quality of the film. Now if I say otherwise in the actual commentary, that's another story. Let's hop to it, shall we? 12. The Gorilla (1939): Poor Bela- you've suffered so much. After the massive success of 1931's Dracula, Bela Lugosi's career went on a slow, downward spiral. Why? There are a number of reasons that anyone can feel free to look up. In 1939, he was teamed up with a comedy trio- The Ritz Brothers. They are not an infamous group by any means, but they are certainly no Marx Brothers. At least this is the only Bela Lugosi film here... 11. Disorderlies: You ain't fat! You ain't nothing! Actually, the stars of this 1987 comedy are kind of fat. Those Boys are Fat indeed! This rap/comedy group had one feature film- this one! The film is built around them being hired as bad hospital workers as part of a scheme to exacerbate the death of the family patriarch. Ha ha ha- murder. 10. Spooks Run Wild/Zombies on Broadway: Yeah, I lied. As Lugosi's career continued his downward spiral, he appeared in these two films. The first is a 1941 film featuring the East Side Kids. Yes, them. The other film comes to us from 1945 & is built around Alan Carney and Wally Brown. These two had a longer career overall, but are still not remembered by people that are either over 60 or obsessed with movie trivia (guilty). Fun fact: the pair were such a rip-off of Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis that they were actually (unsuccessfully) sued by the studio behind the group. 9. Cabin Boy: Do you even remember this one? Be honest now! This 1994 comedy was a vehicle for Chris Elliot and made thanks in part to his buddy David Letterman. I saw it. I barely remember it. I can tell you the plots of obscure import films from all corners of the world, so what does that tell you? 8. Drop Dead Fred: This one applies to everyone that doesn't live in Britain. Nostalgia Critic fans know this film all too well. Rick Mayall is the focus of this tale and boy does he...exist. It's rough. All you Harry Potter fans, count your blessings- his character was cut out of the entire series. 7. Bela Lugosi Meets a Brooklyn Gorilla: What can I possibly say about this? Right before his death in 1956, the classically-trained actor continued to work in whatever film would hire him. Boy, that was a mistake! This film is built around Duke Mitchell and Sammy Petrillo, a pair of lounge comedians given a film. The result- a public domain mess that is notable only for it's title. NOW I'm out of Bela films. For real this time. 6. Young Einstein: Yahoo can't be serious! The Aussie comedian who famously-sued the Internet search company (and lost!) had his first film here. He plays an inaccurate version of the famous inventor and saves the world from an accidental atomic bomb. How? By playing the electric guitar. Unlike others here, the guy has gotten more films since. How many films? Two- in the last twelve years. Who are you- Terrence Malick?!? 5. The Jerky Boys- The Movie: Yes, this exists! The comedians famous solely for doing prank calls got a movie...which features Alan Arkin. I'd be outraged, but I sat through The Return of Captain Invincible. I feel bad giving this film any attention, so let's just move on to... 4. Freddy Got Fingered: ...a film that I kind of like. Yeah, it's terrible...but I can't stay mad at it. Tom Green got his big break on his MTV show and used it to get this film. In the ensuing years, he has appeared in a ton of films...that you will only find in Blockbuster. With that company dying out, good luck finding Green's films in the future! 3. Chairman of the Board: It had to be you! Carrot Top. The name alone says a lot and polarizes groups of people. I don't like him. I don't like this movie. On the plus side, I'm in good company. Basically, it's me and everyone in the world that has eyes! As for those of us with ears... 2. The Adventures of Ford Fairlane: Hickory dickory dock, your career ran out the clock! Andrew "Dice" Clay was a big comic on the touring circuit and got famous for his crude, gender bias. He promoted his film on a hard-to-find episode of Saturday Night Live. In the next season, he was mocked by the same show in an episode where he's portrayed by...Steven Seagal. Hot damn! 1. UHF: Don't hate me- I like the film! This 1989 film is a cult classic, thanks in part to its random and esoteric humor. Again- I love this movie and wish that more people had seen it. The fact remains that "Weird" Al has never become a truly-household name, at least not on par with the caliber that he should be given that he got his own film. I guess the millions and millions of records sold is a good consolation prize. For more movie talk, go to my blog. It has bees- my God. Up next, I cover the weirdest and most random Syfy Channel films ever. I'm looking at you, Stonehenge Apocalypse! Stay tuned...
Comments
When you think about it, UHF could also count as having a failed comedian (Victoria Jackson) in a major supporting role.
While I can't deny that UHF did completely fail in it's attempt to expand Weird Al's career into other areas of comedy beyond pop music satire & novelty records, I have to argue with your assertion that ""Weird" Al has never become a truly-household name". His 30-odd year long career as a musical parodist has made him an instantly recognizable household name to millions, just not as a film comedian.
But in looking at this list, there's one question that just screams out at me: Why isn't Pauly Shore on it? I mean, on a purely literal level I know why: he didn't have just one film that failed and so was never allowed to do another, he had a *whole frickin' career* of horrible, unfunny movies that they somehow kept letting him make. What I mean is *Why*, for the love of God, was this allowed to happen???
...Also, no "Shakes the Clown" staring Bobcat Goldthwait? The movie itself may be a forgotten footnote, but some might argue it deserves to be remembered if only for the supposed critic's quote used in the promos, "The Citizen Kane of alcoholic clown movies".
How DARE you disrespect Rik Mayall in saying that you're glad he was cut from Harry Potter. Having Peeves appear in the movies would have been complete and utterly awesome!
I would a put Rocket Man starring Harlan Williams on this list. Nobody remembers that movie.
Are there people out there who don't know who Weird Al is? His name is pretty much synonymous with comedy songs.
That Andrew Dice Clay thing is pretty funny. Of course it doesn't surprise that SNL would do something like that as everyone is fair game with that show.
This was bound to get some feedback. Not surprisingly, I got it for the two things that I figured would...
1. Good point, actually Pharmmajor. Let's just say that I was referring to her and let people calm down.
2. 'Shakes' or 'Rocket Man' would be good ones. I can't catch them all, I suppose.
3. Pauly Shore sucks. I don't know why he got so many films. As a kid, I liked 'Encino Man,' but even that was more for Brendan Fraser. I haven't paid to see a Shore film since. Hell, the only time that I didn't want to punch him was in 'The Phantom of the Mall.' By the way, that exists.
4. The Rick Mayall thing was a joke. Relax. As a side note, if you were a real big fan of Rick and the character's he's played, you might want to remember that there's a 'C' in his first name.
5. The point about "Weird" Al is that he's not a movie star on the level of say Adam Sandler. I own literally all of the guy's albums on CD- and one on record- so I'm certainly a fan.
Will I piss off another Harry Potter fan next week? Check it out and see!
UHF is actually pretty cool. It is a strange flick, but I think it works for Weird Al fans. This was good list. Very interesting compilation.