Crime Comedy

A hybrid of the crime film and the comedy, playing the conventions of the crime genre (tough guys and gangsters, capers and heists, cops and robbers) for laughs. The brains behind the jobs usually aren't that bright, or fail to take into account several factors which place the culprits in rather sticky situations. Often the crimes are unsuccessful and/or bumblingly executed or are presented in such a lighthearted matter that one ends up rooting for the criminal to get away with their loot unscathed. There have been some wonderful entrees in this genre from Hollywood (Larceny Inc., Beat The Devil, The Pink Panther series, Topkapi, Gambit), but it is arguably the European cinema, notably the English comedies from the Ealing Studios (Kind Hearts And Coronets, The Ladykillers, The Lavender Hill Mob, and the Ealing-influenced A Fish Called Wanda) and the farces in Italian cinema (Big Deal On Madonna Street), that have perfected the genre. It has also enjoyed a resurgence of popularity in the independent film scene of the 1990s, with several movies (Palookaville, Bottle Rocket) seamlessly blending the cliches of the crime thriller with comic appropriations.

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