Comedy has been famously defined as “tragedy plus time.” But it could also be defined as “extremely embarrassing stuff happening to other people.” That’s the guiding philosophy behind “This Supercut Will Make You Feel Awkward,” a half-agonizing, half-exhilarating new video from Burger Fiction. That title is no idle boast. For nearly 10 minutes, merciless editors Andy Schneider and Jonathan Britnell bombard the viewer with cringeworthy movie moments, almost all of them taken from comedies. Sex and bodily functions are the key motifs here. Unwanted advances are made. Private moments are made extremely public. Uncomfortable statements are uttered, occasionally during coitus. Male nudity may be considered a sub-motif of this supercut, as both Jason Segel and John Cleese both strip down for the sake of comedy and art. The appeal of this kind of humor is obvious: Viewers can watch this supercut and say to themselves, “Well, at least that’s not me.”
Still in all, the pain is visceral. For those modest folks who are prone to embarrassment, this is a video to watch furtively through interlaced fingers. The one saving grace here is that no one says “AWK-ward” in that annoying, sing-song voice.
There are certain superstars of cringe-based comedy. Eugene Levy, Steve Carell, Will Ferrell, Paul Rudd, and Sacha Baron Cohen all make prominent appearances here. But no one has suffered on screen quite like Ben Stiller. From There’s Something About Mary to Along Came Polly to the unholy Fockers trilogy, this man was seemingly put on the Earth in order to find himself in incredibly uncomfortable, humiliating situations. He’s almost a Christ-like figure, except that it’s his dignity being crucified for the sins of mankind. Meet The Parents, whose “cat milking” scene is included in this supercut, is practically social embarrassment torture porn, the nearest thing comedy has to something like Saw or Hostel. Those who blush easily are advised to turn back now.
[via Laughing Squid]