The nice thing about a lot of “dumb” comedies is that you can kind of shut your brain off for a bit. But that doesn’t mean you’re sitting through a solid 90 to 120 minutes of dumb fun.
In fact, a lot of these “dumb” movies have some pretty “smart” moments , a lot of which were pretty ahead of their time . Here are just a few of those moments.
Somehow, ‘Zoolander’ managed to predict later “fashion” movements.
The 2001 comedy satirized fashion in a pretty incredible way, including “Derelicte,” a fashion line based off homelessness (as commentary for the fashion world and the way it lacks sensitivity for its inspirations).
Which in itself would be one thing, but then Yeezys happened.
Kanye West’s brand, Yeezy, literally took inspiration from the homeless. Which (very rightfully so) sparked a lot of backlash for the sheer lack of sensitivity and respect he showed toward homeless people. Oh, how life imitates art.
‘Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery’ and the power of “no.”
Austin Powers’ whole schtick is that he’s a James Bond parody, right down to the British spy action and the frequent sleeping around. But even someone as promiscuous as him understands simple concepts of consent.
In one scene, he actively denies a woman who he can tell is too drunk to consent.
“I can’t, darling… you’re drunk, it’s not right.” And this was before the #metoo movement had people more conscious about how things like intoxication can affect consent.
’21 Jump Street’s’ depiction of cops.
The movie starts with a montage of Jenko and Schmidt training to become police officers, and when they finally graduate, Jenko asks, ” Ready for a lifetime of being badass mother [expletives] ?”
…Only for the duo to then do mostly nothing while on park duty.
They arrest a dude who gets released because they didn’t read him his rights.
And then they immediately get transferred to Jump Street. Did they get rewarded for essentially doing nothing but making the lives of the park-goers slightly worse? Kind of looks like it.
‘Anchoman 2’ telling people what they want to hear.
In one scene, the sequel managed to provide surprisingly accurate commentary on the news cycle, and its focus on the things people want to hear rather than what they should hear.
Ron Burgundy even asks, “Why can’t we just tell them what they wanna hear?”
And from there, they dominate the news with feel-good, ultra patriotic stories, rather than showing any of the things viewers probably should hear about. Sounds a little familiar.
‘Half Baked’ made quitting a terrible job cool.
Even if you’ve never seen the stoner comedy in full, you probably recognize the “[expletive] you, [expletive] you, [expletive] you, you’re cool, and [expletive] you, I’m out” scene, where Scarface quits his job.
It’s actually pretty accurate to how anyone feels when they’re having a bad day at a service job.
And while the movie probably didn’t think a Great Resignation would ever happen, it really did the whole not wanting to waste time being underpaid at a miserable job thing before it was cool.
‘Orange County’s’ “you need an ending” scene is surprisingly insightful.
Throughout the film, Shaun is trying to get out of Orange County and into Stanford, all so he can be a better writer. And when he gets his critiques from Skinner, he gets more than what he bargained for.
In a lesson that feels strangely close to home, Skinner tells Shaun that he’s already a good writer.
Though Shaun wanted to leave Orange County because he thought it was holding him back, it and the people he knew ended up serving as inspiration for him.
‘Semi Pro’ gave us basketball players dancing in costumes.
Yes, the concept of that sounds incredibly silly. But it also serves a surprisingly intelligent purpose as well. As we see, the team needs a coach, but really only has a promoter (and choreographer?).
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If anything, this movie kind of teaches us that it’s okay to admit your strengths and weaknesses.
Not everyone can be good at everything. Sometimes, it’s for the best to just leave the coaching to someone who knows what they’re doing.
Thanks, ‘Dodgeball,’ for reminding us that we’re perfect the way we are.
You wouldn’t expect a heartfelt message to come from a movie like Dodgeball of all places, and yet that’s exactly where you can find a little body and self-acceptance.
At a gym called Average Joe’s.
“You’re perfect just the way you are. But if you feel like losing a few pounds, getting healthier, and making a few friends in the process, then Joe’s is the place for you.” So funny, and yet so strangely wholesome.
‘Step Brothers’ taught us not to give up on our childhood dreams.
At a pivotal point in the film ( the Catalina Wine Mixer) the two step brothers begin to lose hope, when Robert gives Brennan and Dale a really random, yet deep, speech.
In it, he tells them not to give up their dinosaur.
Sure, Robert’s childhood dream made absolutely no sense (he wanted to be a T-Rex, for some reason). And sure, the whole speech is played for laughs . But there’s a lesson in there too. Don’t be normal. Don’t give up your dinosaur.
