Comedy & Social Change
The Use of Comedy to Suggest Social Change
Humor has become a popular method of addressing cultural challenges. Comedy has the power to entertain and educate audiences while simultaneously promoting social change. It has been used in films like Some Like It Hot, Blackkklansman, and Get Out to address issues like racism, injustice, and gender roles. These movies are notable for their use of humor to question societal norms. And because of the success of these films, they can reach larger audiences and encourage acceptance while acknowledging serious issues.
Some Like It Hot, directed by Billy Wilder, is a comedy film from 1959 and is set during the prohibition era. Two musicians, Joe and Jerry, witness a murder and must flee town from the mafia. They disguise themselves using drag to hide and join a female band. During the film, the two men face the challenges of womanhood and sexual harassment. The film ends with the characters fleeing the mafia onto a yot and exposing that they are in fact, men.
Some Like It Hot uses gender-bending to challenge the social norms of the 1960s. The use of gender-bending is intended to be a source of laughter. Because of that nature, the premise can appear inherently problematic by today’s standards. With the lens of presentism, the movie uses cross-dressing as an important vehicle to enlighten audiences about gender roles.
“Cross-dressing brings [Joe and Jerry] to a greater understanding of the opposite sex” (La Macchia). Macchia explains it best in their article, Some Like It Hot: Challenging Stereotypes through Laughter. The characters gain empathy through facing sexual harassment and unwanted advances. Jerry embraces feminity and “gains a new perspective that changes his perception of himself and women.” The movie even hints at homosexual characters. A side plot of the film included Jerry (as Daphne) becoming engaged with Osgood, a rich man with the hots for Daphne. “When Jerry finally admits to his fiancé that he is a man, Osgood responds with the film’s exemplary last line, “Well, nobody’s perfect.” (Barber).
During the 1960s, gender roles and perceptions of femininity and masculinity were heavily enforced. Using comedy, the movie pokes fun at the absurdity of these roles. “Some Like It Hot condemns gender stereotypes by challenging the morality and censorship of the time”(La Macchia). At the time, these were inappropriate topics (banned by the Hay’s Code) and Wilder received criticism from those offended by said topics. Women were expected to act and present a certain way. This makes Marilyn Monroe’s character, Sugar, so interesting. She is the antithesis of conservative womanhood. “She drinks; wears skimpy clothes; and is the one who takes the initiative with men, not the other way around. She actually embodies the desire for female sexual liberation” (La Macchia).
Blackkklansman is a 2018 comedy film directed by Spike Lee. The film is set during the 1970s and is based on a true story of an undercover cop Ron Stallworth infiltrating the Ku Klux Klan. Ron is the first black officer in Colorado Springs. The plot follows an investigation into the Klan with help from a white man named Flip. While Ron spoke to the leader on the phone, and later Duke Ellington, Flip would pretend to be Ron in person. The movie uses humor as a way to make fun of the irrational nature of racism and bigotry. At the end of the movie, Ron intercepts a bomb placed by the only female of the KKK. While doing this, the police arrive and the woman cries for help. They suspect Ron is harming the woman although he says he is part of the FBI. Flip arrives at the scene where he confirms Ron is part of the FBI and they release him.
This movie uses satire to address the serious racism and bigotry of hate groups and drama to propel the story. Director Spike Lee said, “We had to balance [comedy and drama], I don’t like to use the word ‘comedy,’ but there’s humor in, which comes from the premise of the film, which is a black man infiltrates the Ku Klux Klan…The absurdity, that’s where the humor comes from.” (McVey). By presenting the Ku Klux Klan’s ideology as something to laugh at, the audience can understand the ridiculousness of prejudice. The members are portrayed as ignorant and foolish which conflicts with their ideas of white superiority. Through satire, Blackklansman brings to light the actual danger that these hate groups can have and their impact on society. The audience is reminded that these problems have been here and are present. The movie also highlights the role that the police play in racial inequality and discrimination. Thus sparking important dialogues about the history of policing within the United States.
The film was released in 2018, a time when racial tension was on the rise within the country making the message of the movie stick. At the end of the movie, clips from the present are used to draw comparisons to the past. In the clips, David Duke is alive and well, the Proud Boys group marches the streets, a woman is killed in those protests, and Trump endorses “both sides.” Spike Lee’s decision to include these clips makes the audience understand that racism is still alive.
Get Out is a 2017 horror film directed by Jordan Peele. The movie follows a black man named Chris who visits the family of his white girlfriend, Rose. The longer Chris spends time at their residence, it appears something is off and strange. At a party full of the family's affluent white friends, Chris is faced with several microaggressions. Chris realizes something sinister is happening and fears for his life. The mother had been hypnotizing him into submission so they could use his body as a brain transplant. The movie explores themes of racism, cultural appropriation, and the danger of thinking that we live in a post-race society.
Through the genre of horror-comedy, Get Out effectively and horrifically addresses racism and microaggressions. The movie uses elements of horror as a metaphor for the objectification of black bodies by white society. A type of comedy that is used is cultural comedy. “A lot of the deeper comedic moments in Get Out tend to be "insider jokes." There are a lot of black-on-black comedic moments that African-Americans will recognize - as well as humor derived from the experience of being the only African-American in an otherwise white cultural setting.” (Outlaw).
Get Out has an impact on the portrayal of race in media by challenging stereotypes, and illuminating microaggressions. The success of the movie helped highlight a demand for diverse representation within media. Get Out further sparks important conversations about the way that media can perpetuate stereotypes and reinforces racial biases. Thus asking present-day content creators to become more accountable.
All three films share the goal of promoting social change and challenging societal norms. Humor is used as a way of engaging the audience about these issues while revealing absurdity. The use of comedy creates new perspectives on complex social issues and asks the viewers to question their own biases. These movies indicate the power of comedy.
Some Like It Hot uses comedy to convey the message of social change, more specifically challenging 1960 norms of gender and sexuality. Through its humourous tone, wide audiences can enjoy the movie while learning about gender identity, inequity, and harassment. By using drag to challenge these issues, Wilder promotes understanding and light-hearted acceptance for audiences of the time. The popularity of the film propelled it to wider audiences. Some Like It Hot is an example of the use of comedy as a way to shake societal norms.
Blackkklansman uses comedy as a way to convey the message of social change. Presenting the absurdity of racism and bigotry in an entertaining and thought-provoking way. The movie uses comedy to show the ridiculous extremes of the Ku Klux Klan while educating about the dangers of hate groups. Comedy breaks down barriers and allows for understanding and acceptance of perspective and experience while showing the importance of standing up to bigotry. Overall, the use of humor as a means of conveying the message of social change allows for wide audiences to lower their guard and become educated on important social issues.
In Get Out, comedy serves a critical role in conveying the message of social change. The movie, like Blackklansman, uses satire, parody, and slapstick to entertain the audience. By using humor to address issues involving race, audiences can confront their own bias and reflect on how they may be reinforcing racism. The humor also serves as a way to confirm the absurdity of the racism and stereotypes that black individuals face in America.
Although comedy can be a good tool to convey social change, it also has its challenges and limitations. The risk of perpetuating stereotypes and harmful thoughts is increased. For example, you need the audience to laugh at the bigots instead of with them. There is also the potential for downplaying serious social issues. If not used thoughtfully, comedy can seem like mere entertainment rather than a push for societal change. But when used effectively, comedy can inspire, empathize, and contribute to a fair and just society.
The impact of these movies on society is rather significant. These films have all challenged attitudes and stereotypes. Some Like It Hot and Blackklansman were revolutionary during their eras by pushing the boundaries in Hollywood. Get Out even made history, Jordan Peele “won the Academy Award for best original screenplay, making Peele the first African-American to win the award” (McNary). These movies have helped shift cultural conversations around gender and race. Simultaneously inspiring new filmmakers to continue using media to fight for social justice.
Although Some Like It Hot, Blackklansman, and Get Out is different in terms of genre and plot, all of these films use comedy as a way to address important societal issues. Each of these films uses humor and satire in its way to challenge societal norms and create empathy.
Some Like It Hot uses drag to highlight the challenges of womanhood and sexual harassment. It relies on physical comedy and slapstick humor to explore gender roles and sexual harassment. Blackklansman uses satire and irony to address very present racism and bigotry. Similarly, Get Out uses the genre of horror-comedy to address racial tension and hidden microaggressions. Humor may be a potent weapon for tackling difficult subjects, encouraging empathy and understanding, and uniting people through shared laughter.
Works Cited
La Macchia, Roberta. “Some like It Hot: Challenging Stereotypes through Laughter.” Hypercritic, 29 Oct. 2022, https://hypercritic.org/collection/billy-wilder-some-like-it-hot-challenging-stereotypes-through-laughter-1959-review/.
Barber, Nicholas. “Why Some Like It Hot Is the Greatest Comedy Ever Made.” BBC Culture, BBC, 24 Feb. 2022, https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20170817-why-some-like-it-hot-is-the-greatest-comedy-ever-made.
McNary, Dave. “Jordan Peele Becomes First African-American to Win Best Original Screenplay.” Variety, Variety, 5 Mar. 2018, https://variety.com/2018/film/news/get-out-wins-oscar-best-original-screenplay-jordan-peele-1202714071/.
McVey, Ciara. “Spike Lee Talks Finding the Right ‘Balance’ of Humor in 'BlackKklansman'.” The Hollywood Reporter, The Hollywood Reporter, 17 Apr. 2023, https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/general-news/spike-lee-finding-right-balance-humor-blackkklansman-1170881/.
Outlaw, Kofi. “What Is the Comedy in Get out?” Comicbook, Comicbook.com, 27 Feb. 2017, https://comicbook.com/popculturenow/news/get-out-movie-comedy-racial-jokes-explained/#1.
