I was driving about the city ‘pon the yester and noticed a billboard for the new film She’s Out of My League which advertised it as “The funniest movie since The Hangover.”
I did not let my eyes stay off the highway long enough to read the name of the esteemed critic that had provided this gem, this jewel, this shiny precious stone of a quote. I’m not terribly inclined to dig around for even 60 seconds on the internet finding the quote’s source either. Still, I was inclined to look up and verify that The Hangover came out last June. So basically this advertisement is boasting that She’s Out of My League is the funniest movie in the last nine-to-ten months or so.
Note that it does not say “Funnier than The Hangover,” or “Just as funny as The Hangover,” or even “it is to The Hangover what Cookie Crisp is to actual chocolate chip cookies. Obviously not as good, yet passable in a pinch.” No, this just says it’s the funniest comedy since The Hangover, which really doesn’t tell us anything. What if in the time since The Hangover came out every comedy has been about as funny catching as catching a shank to the neck in the prison yard? Being the funniest movie in a sea of unfunny films doesn’t necessarily mean you’re actually funny, just like beating your drunken friend in a game of H-O-R-S-E on the 8-foot goal in your driveway doesn’t mean you’re a good athlete.
Just Don't It.
Now, I understand the idea behind this sort of advertising. The Hangover is still fresh in people’s minds and it was a huge financial success. The ad is basically saying, “If you paid money to see The Hangover and enjoyed it, maybe you’d like to take a chance on our flick. Because… well, just because we name-dropped it. What more do you want from us?” Of course, the film has apparently opened in 3rd place this weekend behind Tim Burton’s Mad-Hatter in Wonderland and Green Zone, so perhaps those ads did not have the positive effect that the studio had hoped for.
Here’s my take: if you’re going to say your movie is the best (or funniest / scariest / most thrilling / etc.) movie of its kind since Some Other Similar and Popular Flick, try to shoot for a SOSPF that’s a bit older. The movie-going public can be gullible, but maybe not so gullible as to not make the same observation I did. Now had the ad said that it was the funniest movie since Wedding Crashers or Superbad, I think more people would have taken notice. Those have actually made their way to cable, at least. Not so old that they cease to be relevant in the current era of diminishing attention spans, and not so recent that the comparison drawn to them would be meaningless despite their obvious popularity. Wedding Crashers might get increasingly quoted as the years go by, and it seems that “McLovin” references have somehow managed to not quite get old yet in many circles. It’s obvious to me that those would have been better movies to reference, but that’s just me.
Ads like this almost make me pine for the days when studios would use quotes that straight up dissed their SOSPF. There was a time when a studio would have paid a quote-whore to write something like, “Makes The Hangover look like some weak-ass, Focus on the Family sponsored documentary about the dangers of tongue-kissing.” Now, all we have to look forward to is television ads declaring She’s Out of My League is the “#1 Comedy in America!” as if beating out a Carlos Mencia comedy is an achievement. I’m pretty sure science has proven that Carlos Mencia and comedy cannot coexist in the same environment. So congrats She’s Out of My League, you are better than certain failure. Wave a banner.
