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My POV
Brian A. Wilson
Robert McKee's Comedy Seminar
Los Angeles, December 9, 2001
Review, Part 2 of 2
McKee's comedy seminar leaves a lot to be desired.
By comparison, his "Story"weekend seminar barrages one with information. Throughout its presentation, you feel you're in the hands of a master analyst, someone who has examined the subject to its very core, then found a way to extract, interpolate and present the information in functional, useful parts.
If "Story" is "The Godfather" of such seminars, then McKee's Comedy day is the "Stop or My Mom Will Shoot" equivalent.
McKee's timing seemed off, an unfortunate situation for a comedy presentation.
Yes, he's still the blustery, crusty presenter, full of swagger and titanic eyebrows and cocky stage presence. But time and again, he devoted all of his time and gentle pacing to long-winded set-ups and anecdotal background; then, when he would present the nugget of information, he would rush through the line at such a pace that it was impossible to record it accurately. Only rarely would he repeat the pearl of wisdom, and if you think raising your hand and saying, "Could you repeat that?" repeatedly is feasible in a McKee's seminar, you haven't sailed with Captain McKee.
To brand the seminar with McKee's own condemnation of certain films, the seminar was "interesting." By that, he-and I-mean that one leaves with some input, but without an emotional charge, certainly not the emotional charge packed by "Story."
I believe the sentiment was shared by my classmates. Many stayed until the last second, not, I believe, to glean the last ounce of information from the master, but because they still had that, "Hey, that's it? It's over? But what about...." feeling.
Anybody who has taken "Story" knows, that's the last sentiment anyone in that seminar would express.
"Comedy" was fine, as far as it went. It just didn't go far enough. I hope that McKee will develop the presentation as he gives it, and it is a relatively new seminar for him. Certainly the comedy genre is a rich vein, one that would be open to more thorough analysis and deconstruction.
Unfortunately, this ain't that seminar. Not yet, anyway.
It's no laughingstock, but it's no belly laugh, either.
Grade: C+
Keep writing.
BW
LA
PS Give yourself 20 extra points in the Hollywood game for reading this two days after Christmas! |
