Comedy films aim to provoke laughter and entertainment through lighthearted and humorous stories with happy endings. They exaggerate situations, language, actions, and characters for comic effect. Comedies observe human flaws and frustrations, providing temporary relief from everyday life. Some common subgenres include romantic comedy, parody, and gross-out comedy. In the 1930s, the arrival of sound films led visual slapstick to decline, but verbal and dialogue-driven comedy rose in popularity, exemplified by stars like the Marx Brothers, Laurel and Hardy, and Jack Benny.

1. Media Research!

2. What is Comedy?
Sub Genres: Comedy film
Definition: light and humorous drama with a happy • Anarchic comedy film
ending. • Gross-out film
• Parody film
• Romantic comedy film
Comedy Films are "make 'em laugh" films • Screwball comedy film
designed to bring about laughter from the • Slapstick film
audience. Comedies are light-hearted dramas,
made to amuse, entertain, and provoke
enjoyment. The comedy genre humorously
exaggerates the situation, the language, action,
and characters. Comedies observe the Examples of comedy Films:
deficiencies, foibles, and frustrations of life, • Big Momma’s House
providing merriment and a momentary escape • Rush Hour
from day-to-day life. They usually have happy • Men in Black
endings, although the humour may have a • A guy thing
serious or pessimistic side. • Meet the fockers

3. Comedies?
• Comedies usually come in two general formats:
‘comedian-led’ and ‘situation-comedies’ that are told
within a narrative.
• Both comedy elements may appear together and/or
overlap. Comedy hybrids commonly exist with other
major genres, such as musical-comedy, horror-comedy,
and comedy-thriller.
• Comedies have also been classified in various subgenres,
such as romantic comedy, crime/caper comedy, sports
comedy, teen or coming-of-age comedy, social-class
comedy, military comedy, fish-out-of-water comedy, and
gross-out comedy.

4. The 30s Clowns
• With the coming of sound, slapstick went into a bit of a decline and the
flexible freedom of the earliest comedians was curtailed. Comedy was
transformed, however, and began to be refined as an art form, with new
themes, elements, and written characterizations, and comedic humor was
now being derived from clever dialogue.
• Visual comedy remained strong throughout the 1930s, but now witty
dialogue and verbal comedy were added. Some of the great comedians or
teams, including Laurel and Hardy, the Three Stooges, the Marx Brothers,
and Abbott and Costello, or individuals such as radio star Jack Benny, Eddie
Cantor, Joe E. Brown, W. C. Fields, and Mae West emerged.
• Hal Roach's company was responsible for other ground-breaking comedy
shorts during the 1930s, including the popular "Our Gang" series that
lasted until 1944.