This “debate” over women in comedy was always an unfortunate bit of business, in large part because it’s been propagated by male legends — e.g. John Belushi and, only last month, Jerry Lewis — as other talents do nothing but stand idly by. Credit to Paul Feig, then, for using (also-unfortunate) male industry clout to prove the naysayers wrong: following 2011’s Bridesmaids, he’s since directed the Sandra Bullock– and Melissa McCarthy-led The Heat, its mix of comedy and action giving the finer gender chances to explore two typically off-limits territories.
Expanding upon the latter title, in some ways, TheWrap tell us Feig has scripted and will direct Susan Cooper, “a realistic comedy about a female James Bond” set up at Fox. But, while laugh-oriented, the title is said to take its action seriously, with the helmer particularly inspired by the handling of spy activity in Casino Royale; testicle torture is off the table, though. Its “two-hander” (anyone else hate the term?) nature invites comparisons to his upcoming comedy, though let’s wait and see how that even turns out before throwing the it around as a positive. (The same could go for a “mother-daughter comedy” he’s begun scrapping together with Heat co-writer Katie Dippold.)
In the meantime, four clips from The Heat (featuring Sandra Bullock, Melissa McCarthy et al.) have arrived online, the bounty of which is sure to give some idea as to what’s being aimed for here. Although comedy clips are kind of a hard thing — both because these things are typically edited for “punchiness,” and also since they’re always derived of context — these “work” well enough; like the red band trailer, what it points toward, if not exactly provides, is decent reason for optimism.
The Heat will open on June 28, and clips can be seen below:
What do you think of Feig continuing the action-comedy line? Do these clips from The Heat inspire confidence?