A Futile and Stupid Gesture (film)

Last updated
A Futile and Stupid Gesture
Futileandstupidgestureposter.png
Film poster
Directed by David Wain
Screenplay by
Based on A Futile and Stupid Gesture
by Josh Karp
Produced by
Starring
CinematographyKevin Atkinson
Edited by
  • Jamie Gross
  • David Egan
  • Robert Nassau
Production
companies
Distributed by Netflix
Release dates
  • January 24, 2018 (2018-01-24)(Sundance)
  • January 26, 2018 (2018-01-26)(Netflix)
Running time
101 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

A Futile and Stupid Gesture is a 2018 American biographical comedy-drama film based on Josh Karp's book of the same title, directed by David Wain, and written by Michael Colton and John Aboud. The film stars Will Forte as comedy writer Douglas Kenney, during the rise and fall of National Lampoon .

Contents

A Futile and Stupid Gesture had its world premiere at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival on January 24, 2018, [1] and was released on January 26, 2018, by Netflix. [2]

Plot

The film's timeline stretches from 1964 to 1980. The film opens with Douglas Kenney and his classmate Henry Beard celebrating the release of their book, Bored of the Rings , with the Harvard Lampoon staff.

They graduate from Harvard and Kenney convinces Beard not to go to law school but instead publish a monthly magazine: the National Lampoon. Though Kenney is the magazine's main creative voice, there would be no magazine without the guidance of Beard. Kenney becomes the comedy writer and Beard the business manager, while the magazine also has a thriving art department.

They get financing from Matty Simmons. All of the writers work hard to be funny and meet deadlines. Work is a party atmosphere and illicit drug use is prevalent. The magazine is not initially a success until lawsuits are threatened by Disney, Volkswagen, Mormons, and many other established names. The comedy world is changed, and the magazine pushes the acceptance of satire and parody with each edition.

Kenney, due to burnout, suddenly leaves for nine months with a one-line note to Beard. The magazine stays successful under Beard. After five years Simmons agrees to a buyout and they each collect $3.5 million, a request demanded by Beard and Kenney. Beard, being unhappy and greatly stressed, takes his check and immediately exits the magazine.

National Lampoon expands to an hour radio show attracting more great comedians like Chevy Chase, Bill Murray, and Gilda Radner. But Lorne Michaels buys them all out and signs them over to Saturday Night Live . Special editions of the magazine are published such as one mocking high school yearbooks.

Kenney then moves to movies and writes Animal House in 1978. With the success of the film, cocaine takes over Kenney's life. As disputes with studio executives continue, Kenney writes Caddyshack . Not liking his work, he embarrasses himself being drunk and high at a press conference for the film.

Kenney, Beard, and Chris Hoffman all sell National Lampoon to Simmons' Twenty First Century Communications. Kenney's cocaine addiction takes over. Chevy Chase takes Kenney to Hawai‘i to beat the cocaine but cocaine wins instead. In 1980, at age 33, Kenney's body is found at the bottom of a Hawai‘i cliff (with his glasses and shoes neatly stacked at the top edge). As he has narrated his life's story through the movie, Kenney is displeased to see everyone sad at his funeral. The movie ends with Beard starting a food fight at the wake (just like at the Harvard Lampoon years ago).

Cast

A photo of Paul Rudd, who has appeared in many of Wain's projects, was used as Larry Kroger.

Production

Principal photography began in Los Angeles, California on April 14, 2016. [4] [5]

Release

The film's poster — showing Forte/Kenney looking worried as the muzzle of a revolver is pressed to his head, with the tagline, "If you don't watch this movie, we'll kill Will Forte" — is a reference to an infamous 1973 National Lampoon cover featuring a dog, with the caption: "If You Don't Buy This Magazine, We'll Kill This Dog". [6]

A single trailer was released on December 20, 2017. [7] The film had its world premiere at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival on January 24, [1] and was then released on Netflix on January 26, 2018. [2]

Reception

On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 67%, based on 43 reviews, with an average rating of 6.3/10. The site's consensus reads, "A Futile and Stupid Gesture entertainingly recreates the birth of an influential comedic movement, even if it struggles to cover its creative ground." [8] On Metacritic, the film has a score of 55 out of 100, based on 15 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews". [9]

Writing for TheWrap , Todd Gilchrist opined, "Even if the casting choices in portraying some of iconic talents in Kenney's orbit are occasionally questionable  a detail the film gleefully acknowledges  there's something delightful about watching actors known for comedy now try to capture the sound or energy of the performers who inspired them." [10] Ellin Stein of Slate stated, "There's a sense that the filmmakers have bitten off more than they can chew by trying to cram both the biography and the panoramic overview into one feature." [11]

Further reading

Related Research Articles

<i>National Lampoon</i> (magazine) American humor magazine

National Lampoon was an American humor magazine that ran from 1970 to 1998. The magazine started out as a spinoff from The Harvard Lampoon.

<i>Bored of the Rings</i> Parody of J. R. R. Tolkiens The Lord of the Rings by the Harvard Lampoon

Bored of the Rings is a 1969 parody of J. R. R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings. This short novel was written by Henry Beard and Douglas Kenney, who later founded National Lampoon. It was published in 1969 by Signet for The Harvard Lampoon, and, unusually for a parody, has remained in print for over 50 years. It has been translated into at least twelve languages.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michael O'Donoghue</span> American actor and writer (1940–1994)

Michael O'Donoghue was an American writer and performer.

<i>The Harvard Lampoon</i> College humor magazine

The Harvard Lampoon is an undergraduate humor publication founded in 1876 by seven undergraduates at Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Douglas Kenney</span> American comedy writer (1946–1980)

Douglas Clark Francis Kenney was an American comedy writer of magazine, novels, radio, TV and film, who co-founded the magazine National Lampoon in 1970. Kenney edited the magazine and wrote much of its early material. He went on to write, produce, and perform in the influential comedies Animal House and Caddyshack before his sudden death at the age of 33.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Will Forte</span> American comedian and actor (born 1970)

Orville Willis Forte IV is an American comedian and actor. He was a cast member on the NBC sketch comedy series Saturday Night Live for eight seasons between 2002 and 2010. During his time on the show, he played a recurring character that led to a feature film adaptation, MacGruber (2010), and a streaming television, MacGruber, limited series in 2021. Forte also created and starred in the sitcom The Last Man on Earth (2015–2018). For the series, he received three Primetime Emmy Award nominations: two for acting and one for writing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">David Wain</span> American writer, director, actor, and comedian

David Benjamin Wain is an American comedian, writer, actor, and director. He has co-written and directed six feature films, including Wet Hot American Summer (2001), Role Models (2008), Wanderlust (2012) and They Came Together (2014). He has also served as a creator, producer, writer and director on a number of television series, including Wet Hot American Summer: Ten Years Later, Wet Hot American Summer: First Day of Camp, Childrens Hospital and Medical Police. He has had small roles in most of the films and TV series he has produced or directed. Wain had a starring voice role as The Warden on the 2008–2014 Adult Swim animated series Superjail!, and has provided the voices for Courtney Wheeler and Grover Fischoeder on Bob's Burgers since 2012.

Michael Colton is an American screenwriter and former journalist. With writing partner John Aboud, he was a regular commentator on Best Week Ever and other VH1 shows, including I Love the '80s.

Martin Gerald "Matty" Simmons was an American film and television producer, newspaper reporter for the New York World-Telegram and Sun, and Executive Vice President of Diners Club, the first credit card company. Simmons gained his greatest fame while serving as the chief executive officer of Twenty First Century Communications.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anne Beatts</span> American writer (1947–2021)

Anne Beatts was an American comedy writer.

<i>National Lampoons Movie Madness</i> 1982 American film

National Lampoon's Movie Madness is a 1982 American comedy film produced by National Lampoon as the second film from the magazine. The film was originally produced under the title National Lampoon Goes to the Movies; completed in 1981, the film was not released until 1982, and was reedited and retitled as Movie Madness.

Henry Nichols Beard is an American humorist, one of the founders of the magazine National Lampoon and the author of several best-selling books.

Michel Choquette is a Canadian humorist who has written for print, for television and for film, and a comedian who has performed for television.

John Gemberling is an American actor and comedian best known for roles as Bevers on the Comedy Central series Broad City, as Gil on the NBC sitcom Marry Me, and as John Hancock on the Fox sitcom Making History. He also portrayed Steve Bannon on Comedy Central's political satire late night series The President Show, and Griff in the second season of Mixed-ish.

<i>A Futile and Stupid Gesture</i> 2006 book by Josh Karp

A Futile and Stupid Gesture: How Doug Kenney and National Lampoon Changed Comedy Forever is an American book by Josh Karp that was published in 2006. It is a history of National Lampoon magazine and one of its three founders, Doug Kenney, during the 1970s. The book was based on numerous interviews with people who contributed to the magazine, and people who performed in The National Lampoon Radio Hour, and the stage show Lemmings.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Spee Club (Harvard)</span> Social club at Harvard University

The Spee Club is a final club at Harvard University. After voting to adopt a gender-neutral membership policy in September 2015, the Spee Club became the first Harvard final club to admit members regardless of gender. The clubhouse is located at 76 Mount Auburn Street in Cambridge, Massachusetts

<i>Thats Not Funny, Thats Sick</i> (book)

That's Not Funny, That's Sick: The National Lampoon and the Comedy Insurgents Who Captured the Mainstream is a book by the journalist Ellin Stein, published by Norton in June 2013. Based on many interviews, the book is a history covering some of National Lampoon magazine's lifespan and that of some of its creators, starting with the original founders' time spent at The Harvard Lampoon, and ending in 1980 after the funeral of co-founder Doug Kenney.

<i>Drunk Stoned Brilliant Dead</i> (film) 2015 film by Douglas Tirola

Drunk Stoned Brilliant Dead: The Story of the National Lampoon is a 2015 American documentary film directed by Douglas Tirola. The film is about National Lampoon magazine, and how the magazine and its empire of spin-offs changed the course of comedy and humor.

The State is an American comedy troupe. The troupe was founded by a group of New York University students in 1988, as an offshoot of the NYU improv comedy group The Sterile Yak; it was briefly named The New Group before landing on the name The State. The troupe's members are Kevin Allison, Michael Ian Black, Robert Ben Garant, Todd Holoubek, Michael Patrick Jann, Kerri Kenney-Silver, Thomas Lennon, Joe Lo Truglio, Ken Marino, Michael Showalter and David Wain. As a group, the troupe is best known for creating and starring in the 1993-1995 MTV sketch comedy series The State. However, since the show aired, members of the troupe have frequently collaborated on other television and film projects, including Viva Variety, Reno 911!, and the Wet Hot American Summer media franchise. The comedy group Stella is composed of three of The State's members, Showalter, Black and Wain, and starred in the 2005 sketch comedy series Stella, among other works. Additionally, some members of The State have achieved independent success as comic actors, writers and directors.

References

  1. 1 2 Debruge, Peter (2017-11-29). "Sundance Film Festival Unveils Full 2018 Features Lineup". Variety. Retrieved 2017-11-29.
  2. 1 2 "January premieres on Netflix". Screencrush. Retrieved 2017-12-13.
  3. "Will Forte Creates National Lampoon in First 'A Futile and Stupid Gesture' Trailer". Collider. 2017-12-20. Retrieved 2017-12-23.
  4. Siegel, Tatiana (April 14, 2016). "Netflix Rounds Out Cast of National Lampoon Movie 'A Futile & Stupid Gesture'". The Hollywood Reporter . Retrieved June 22, 2016.
  5. "Netflix's A Futile & Stupid Gesture Starts Principal Photography Today". Netflix . April 14, 2016. Retrieved June 22, 2016.
  6. "National Lampoon Issue #34 – Death". January 1973. Archived from the original on July 20, 2008. Retrieved July 24, 2008.
  7. Ramos, Dino-Ray (2017-12-20). "'A Futile And Stupid Gesture' Trailer: Will Forte Creates National Lampoon In Netflix Comedy". Deadline. Retrieved 2018-02-01.
  8. "A Futile and Stupid Gesture (2018)". Rotten Tomatoes . Fandango . Retrieved 2021-10-10.
  9. "A Futile and Stupid Gesture Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved 2018-02-01.
  10. Gilchrist, Todd (2018-01-24). "'A Futile and Stupid Gesture' Film Review: National Lampoon Biopic Gently Celebrates Anarchy". The Wrap . Retrieved 2018-02-01.
  11. Stein, Ellin (2018-01-26). "A Futile and Stupid Gesture Fails to Capture the Spirit of the National Lampoon". Slate Magazine . Retrieved 2018-02-01.