The University of Maine DigitalCommons@UMaine Honors College 5-2012 Why are Comedy Films so Critically Underrated? Michael Arell Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/honors Part of the Dramatic Literature, Criticism and Theory Commons, and the Film and Media Studies Commons Recommended Citation Arell, Michael, "Why are Comedy Films so Critically Underrated?" (2012). Honors College. 93. https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/honors/93 This Honors Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by DigitalCommons@UMaine. It has been accepted for inclusion in Honors College by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@UMaine. For more information, please contact
[email protected]. WHY ARE COMEDY FILMS SO CRITICALLY UNDERRATED? by Michael Arell A Thesis Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for a Degree with Honors (Bachelor of Music in Education) The Honors College University of Maine May 2012 Advisory Committee: Michael Grillo, Associate Professor of History of Art, Advisor Ludlow Hallman, Professor of Music Annette F. Nelligan, Ed.D., Lecturer, Counselor Education Tina Passman, Associate Professor of Classical Languages and Literature Stephen Wicks, Adjunct Faculty in English © 2012 Michael Arell All Rights Reserved Abstract This study explores the lack of critical and scholarly attention given to the film genre of comedy. Included as part of the study are both existing and original theories of the elements of film comedy. An extensive look into the development of film comedy traces the role of comedy in a socio-cultural and historical manner and identifies the major comic themes and conventions that continue to influence film comedy.