I agree with a lot of what you said analyzing this video. I definitely think the high-pitched, unrealistic voices made the video funny, and it would have just been annoying or kind of creepy if there were real voices with real people. I think it was a bit of an exaggeration picking at gender roles and gender norms, and I am honestly not quite sure how I feel about it. I did not think it was all that hilarious. I thought it definitely had some funny parts, but overall, I thought it was a little boring to be honest.
I agree with the different theories you brought up in your analysis of it. I think the incongruity theory also has a big part to play in this clip because the ending and the conversation as a whole is a little unexpected and out of the ordinary. I am not quite sure what I was expecting from the video, but it was definitely not an argument between Barbie and her boyfriend with an ending of her holding up a chalkboard saying "you're right."
I think the fact that it was picking at Barbie who is supposed to be the "perfect human"... a literal doll... is kind of ironic and adds to the funniness of the video especially as random things like the toilet note and the walk to the fridge are mentioned. I think the comedy of the clip is increased by the perception of Barbie and the fact that it is also a movie and not real life makes it funny when she compares their relationship to Romeo and Juliet.
Overall, it was an interesting clip, and I see how comedy theory can be applied to it, but it does not necessarily fit my taste in comedy.
I think you make a good point regarding the way that incongruity theory also applies to the clip. It does seem to break expectations by presenting Barbie in a totally different way than usual. I suspect superiority theory also is relevant here based on how silly the argument between the couple is presented.
ReplyDeleteWhy do you think it doesn't fit your taste? It actually reminds me of videos from an earlier era of the internet when these sorts of videos with dolls were more common. It is true also that the video would be intense if it were live action, which just shows how the same thing can be funny or not depending on the context.
ReplyDeleteI agree that Barbies are supposed to represent the "perfect human," but I think they more represent the "perfect woman." Barbie dolls have a nice figure and look very pretty. The fact that Barbies are used to exaggerate gender norms fits perfectly with this video.
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