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Comedy Around The World

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I love comedy tv shows or movies. Classic american slapstick, British comedy, what little comedy my country of Canada produces.. even classic cartoons. I also like the comedy from Hong Kong. (being of a fan of Jackie Chan's older films introduced me to some funny HK comedy that was a silly style I liked). I'd like to check out more comedy shows from around the world, but I can't seem to find any. It's interesting and surprising how different humour is in other countries. I like silly, fun comedy, with minimal drama. Since India is all Bollywooding it up to great success in the western world lately I would have though they'd have some popular comedy whether classic or modern, but the best I can find is comedy romance which isn't really what I had in mind. Are there any Indian movies that aren't romantic? Indians sure are a passionate people, judging from the films they show on tv, seems like all they think about is love lol. Ofcourse, I'd need to be able to download something and have english subtitles since I don't have a little Babelfish inserted into my ear. Either that, or a show/movie with no dialogue (like Charlie Chaplin or Mr Bean??)

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Do you like, friends tv serials, a comic american show. Just make some search on you tube and try to see any serial from the movie. In my opinion they are the best. This serial is about 5 friends living together in an apartment and they are all together in different silly situations and they are really fun. Than I like lots of American comedies, there are lots of other I used to watch at tv but don't remember their names.

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Seinfeld. Frasier. you gotta check those two on IMDB. while you're at it, maybe head on to Amazon to check a compilation DVD. perhaps some second-hand copies found it's way at eBay so check that too. :Don youtube, you can simply search for japanese comedy. no translations needed as you will fully understand the comedic situations the japanese stage. :)also google monty python. these are hilarious, coming from the brits. :Pdownloadables? can't help you with that since these are still subject to international copyright and we can't post them here. :D

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I really don't think regional humour works in other languages... so I would stick to watching comedy in whatever language I know. Unless I'm trying to learn another language. :)Yeah, Monty Python is good. Also, search youtube for Rowan Atkinson. And no, don't click on the Mr. Bean videos, there are other, much better options available.Whenever bored, I watch clips of "whose line is it anyway" on youtube.And Colin Mochrie is a canadian too! (Er, so is Ryan Stiles, I think)

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For some random comedy, check out Russel Coight's All Aussie Adventures and Lano & Woodley, both from Australia. Here in the UK there is far too much to mention :)

 

Whenever bored, I watch clips of "whose line is it anyway" on youtube.

Always a good choice. Where would I be without Dave?

 

And Colin Mochrie is a canadian too! (Er, so is Ryan Stiles, I think)

Colin Mochrie is originally Scottish, but now lives in Canada. Ryan Stiles was born in the US, but now also lives in Canada.

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I've seen all of the Mr Bean episodes and he's not too bad (but not the best). lol. Most people hate that character though I know. Rowan was better as Blackadder. I didn't really like Friends but I only saw a few episodes. I was a Seinfeld fan though.Has anyone heard of "Bad news" the fake british heavy metal band? They're like Spinal Tap but I find Bad News much more funny. They only did a couple videos.All Aussie Adventures looks kind of cool from Wikipedia, so does Lano and Woodley.

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Check out Russell Peters, another Canadian who uses his own heritage as the punch line to most of his work. He is an Indo-canadian. Or Shawn Magubner (sp?), another Indo-canadian (I think). Both of them are hilarious. Canada has produced some very good humour. Check it out. John Candy, Jim Carey, Leslie Neilsen are just a few who have made in the big time.

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In most cases, to enjoy comedy in another language, you need to know that language, because subtitles may not capture the comic essence or they may miss the point completely! For instance, comedy in my state (whose language is Telugu) is mostly created by clever manipulation of words, which can be hard to understand with subtitles. For that matter, try watching "Friends" with subs from any other language - it can be done, yes, but you can't enjoy it completely!

 

I'd like to check out more comedy shows from around the world, but I can't seem to find any. It's interesting and surprising how different humour is in other countries. I like silly, fun comedy, with minimal drama. Since India is all Bollywooding it up to great success in the western world lately I would have though they'd have some popular comedy whether classic or modern, but the best I can find is comedy romance which isn't really what I had in mind. Are there any Indian movies that aren't romantic? Indians sure are a passionate people, judging from the films they show on tv, seems like all they think about is love lol.

Bollywood, the Hindi cinema industry, is surely going places, but its becoming too commercial. There are a few good films coming now and then but most of the new ones are duds :D But it doesn't hurt to look at the past for something....If you can get these movies they're a treat to watch. I'm not giving an exhaustive list because some people may not like that, but if you want to get a bigger list, feel free to PM me :D

 

1. Hera Pheri : An old Hindi comedy which has some great acting and a lot of funny, crazy scenes.

 

2. Golmaal : Fun Limited - If you are ready to believe what is shown in this movie, it can sure be a great comedy ride :)

 

3. Pushpaka Vimanam/Pushpak - This is a real gem and I would highly recommend anyone to watch it. It's a silent movie and although poorly edited at times, it is a comedy classic, rated very high at Imdb (9.1/10 At one time it was rated higher than the Godfather! :D) It's a really sweet movie with lots of comic instances.

 

 

Your concept of comedy from around the world is really interesting. I too enjoy comedy in different languages (my total being 4 for now :P . From the US I like "The Simpsons" very much and watch every episode. There's an old British comedy called "Mind Your Language" from the 70's which can really make you laugh. And one doesn't really need to know the language to enjoy Japanese comedy!

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That's what I like about physical comedy, the words aren't so important. Don't get me wrong, I like witty dialogue as well. There's a French silent comedy actor who had a somewhat popular movie, I'm not sure if I liked it, but the point is I did notice there was an obvious different type of humor going on in it, very slow, not overly physical, just kind of humor about people behaving oddly.I have a friend who moved from India to Canada only a few years ago, and my joking always insulted her and I couldn't figure out why she was so sensitive. There's a movie (that's not overly great or funny imo) called Comedy in the muslim world and it's about this comedian traveling to the east, India, and trying to figure out what people find funny. I don't know if the movie was supposed to be a exaggerated movie or it has some truth, but in the movie Indians didn't understand "sarcasm". I then realized that all the times I was saying sarcastic jokes to my Indian friend, she thought I was being serious and insulting her which was strange to me because people are very sarcastic where I come from and nobody takes each other seriously. There's a canadian comedy series filmed around my area called Trailer Park Boys, it's very vulgar and low-budget and might not appeal to everyone but seeing how I think it's the only tv show thats ever been filmed in locations that are near me, with characters that, from what I hear, speak with my accent (which i didn't know I had), I try to support it lol.I'll watch those movies if I can find them.. they look fun to watch.Very impressive that you speak four languages.. I only speak two.. which isn't too bad I suppose since a lot of north americans seem to only learn English. I watched a Hindi show once and I was quite proud that I could at least filter out the frequent Namastes.. and there was another word or phrase that was repeated frequently though I can't remember it! I've never seen a Japanese comedy :)

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I have a friend who moved from India to Canada only a few years ago, and my joking always insulted her and I couldn't figure out why she was so sensitive. There's a movie (that's not overly great or funny imo) called Comedy in the muslim world and it's about this comedian traveling to the east, India, and trying to figure out what people find funny. I don't know if the movie was supposed to be a exaggerated movie or it has some truth, but in the movie Indians didn't understand "sarcasm". I then realized that all the times I was saying sarcastic jokes to my Indian friend, she thought I was being serious and insulting her which was strange to me because people are very sarcastic where I come from and nobody takes each other seriously.

No offense, but you can't say what a whole nation is like just by meeting a few people! Sarcasm is used commonly everywhere, and between friends it is present 24X7, no matter what the country may be! :) Does your friend understand all the nuances of the English language? I'm guessing the change in language must have intimidated her....just guessing! That, or she must be really sensitive as you said;.

I don't know if the movie was supposed to be a exaggerated movie or it has some truth, but in the movie Indians didn't understand "sarcasm".

I personally hate all movies which try to "discover" India through comedy. They really exaggerate on a lot of issues and this creates a wrong impression on those who watch them. If these movies were to be believed then India has more elephants than people, and the people don't know a single word of meaningful English! :D So the next time you see such movies, I suggest you have a laugh and leave it at that, coz most of it'll be just made-up stuff.

There's a canadian comedy series filmed around my area called Trailer Park Boys, it's very vulgar and low-budget and might not appeal to everyone but seeing how I think it's the only tv show thats ever been filmed in locations that are near me, with characters that, from what I hear, speak with my accent (which i didn't know I had), I try to support it lol.

A lot of comedy shows are using vulgarity to sell laughs these days. It's happening here too, but we don't really have much choice :P

Very impressive that you speak four languages.. I only speak two.. which isn't too bad I suppose since a lot of north americans seem to only learn English

It's not really impressive - many people here know at least three languages - English, Hindi and the regional language. The only extra one I know is Japanese, which I'm still learning. And if I'm not wrong, a lot of people in North America are interested in Japanese too.

I've never seen a Japanese comedy sad.gif

I'll find you some good videos and send them to you soon :D

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