Say It Isn't So

Despite being teased and criticized about it I have long asserted and will continue to assert that of all entertainment comedy is the most difficult to succeed at. It is. First, comedy is subjective. Just because I find something funny does not mean you will, so trying to find that common ground is a certain challenge. Second, the execution of comedy is an almost impossible task: Timing is the thing. Miss your mark, your entrance to a punchline, and you might as well cash it in to become a mime.

So, then. When someone attempts comedy and succeeds they must be celebrated. They must be applauded. They must be recognized, held aloft for all to know and respect.

So, then. When someone attempts comedy and fails (without even benefit of pratfall), it is best to be polite and not point out the failure; instead, look at what was attempted and appreciate the effort put forth.

Such is the case with "Say It Isn't So": A well-intended comedy that does not succeed, even when and where it should.

"Say It Isn't So" is, superficially, a clever comedy. The creators of it knew so. Of course they would: The producers of this flick are none other than the Farrelly Brothers, they who brought forth such comedic cleverness as "Dumb and Dumber" and "There's Something About Mary". Here are pratfalls, mishaps, sexual in-jokes, animal-based gags, farts (and related efforts), and deliberately demeaning acts targeting the central characters.

Now such efforts make for many of the comedies churned from the Hollywood Machine nowadays. Many of which succeed--more or less.

Here's the thing: It is not enough to mimic. One must be able to take a given joke or gag and interpret it in such a way you know it but you don't.

Which, bluntly, is what "Say It Isn't So" amounts to: The perpetuators of this flick know humor, but they cannot do comedy.

To the story, now: Heather Graham and Chris Klein star as Jo and Gilly: Respectively: A hairdresser and a dog-catcher, who fally madly, deeply, completely in love, but then find they are--uh, ew--brother and sister.

So Jo leaves town to avoid Gilly, and marries a millionaire who, predictably, is a jerk.

Here's the thing: Gilly remains behind and comes to find that he and Jo are not, after all, related.

Here's the thing: Jo's family thinks it is wonderful Jo will marry such a well-to-do sort, so they conspire and scheme to keep Gilly away from Jo and Jo from learning the actual truth.

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