Slapstick is more of a Three Stooges thing. The Marx Bros. had a more vaudevillian style of comedy that came from the characters, they were all quick on their feet and were great for playing off each other. Harpo doesn't speak, so he does dabble in slapstick but he's still much better than Larry, Moe, or Curly. You really need to watch Duck Soup again, or Animal Crackers(that's my favorite).

getting back to your point of the plot not mattering in ghostbusters, i believe it matters a great deal. the marx brothers were very funny and all, but as kingpin said, its a different time period. the plot of ghostbusters is half the fun. the only real improv is the comedy, yet the movie does contain suspense and even a love interest that develop along with the plot. and we all know how important a good plot is after seeing ghostbusters 2. the reason many don't like it or hold it to the same caliber as the first is because the movie was almost a duplicate of the first plot.

and kingpin. i like the name, it sounds very much like a fan fic, not to generalize it or anything though. cant wait to dive into the reading, but do you know how i can get to M. Scott's scripts?

You're confusing plot with premise.The plot is the whole EPA, Gozer, Dana stuff, the premise or idea is the fact that they are Ghostbusters. But please don't chime in about the Brothers Marx, anyone who understands the Marx Bros. could see it. You probably haven't even seen a Marx Bros. movie, and just know them from cartoons and other references throughout pop culture.

The Marx Brothers utilized an anarchic style of comedy that they mainly used to poke fun at high society. They were all about mayhem and madness, a kind that can never be duplicated (and that has never been duplicated, by Ghostbusters or otherwise). To compare the Marx Brothers to anything is an insult to the Marx Brothers.

Let's not turn this into a fight over (of all things) who understands the Marx Brothers and who doesn't. Why not educate us about them first.

And drawing a comparison between the Ghostbusters and the Marx Brothers isn't that huge of an insult - after all, Sigourney Weaver compared the Ghostbusters to the Marx Brothers.

Really, everyone is taking these Marx Bros. comparisons to far, I'm saying that Ghostbusters is in the same vein, the same style. I'm not saying that the Ghostbusters are better, or the new Marx Bros. for a younger generation, I'm just comparing the mad-cap comedy styles. How many of Groucho's jokes are written in the script, probably as many as Bill Murray's. So that's what I mean, like in Animal Crackers can you believe Groucho is a great African-explorer, as much as I believe Bill Murray is a parapsychologist in Ghostbusters, that in itself is a joke.

i think you misunderstood what i meant about the plot. the idea of ghostbusters being ghostbusters is original and genius and the premise, but i didnt even refer to that in my previous post. i refered to the story of the ghostbusters, how they came to be, the love interest, the epa, the final battle, and even the suspense the movie creates is all part of the plot, which is what i was refering to. what i take from what you said earlier is that ghostbusters would have done great with a story from a C-level movie, or maybe one written by a middle-schooler. thats what i hear when you say plot doesnt matter.
and i still dont see how ghostbusters places itself in a time period by utilizing the EPA. im pretty sure the EPA still exists today, and it would probably do the same thing to the ghostbusters that it did back then.
and you are right, i have never seen a Marx brothers movie, but i have listened to them many times. their manner of comedy seems to me to be more like setting up a joke and saying it. they do it very cleverly, but it does not come as natural as it does from bill murray or Dan Aykroyd.

You truly have not seen a Marx Bros. movie, and where have you listened to them? They went from vaudeville straight to movies, then Groucho went to radio for a while, and then he went to television. And their jokes were very natural, some were obviously set up, but that's because they were always playing off not so great actors and comedians, but when Groucho and Chico face off it's always hilarious, and natural. The plot of the EPA places itself because the 80's had a very environmentally conscious attitude. Today the bad guy would not be the EPA. As for the plot being genius, well then you don't even know your Ghostbuster mythos, the fact that they are Ghostbusters is taken from various incarnations of comedians playing Janitors of the paranormal, like the Bowery Boys, or Abbot and Costello, even Mickey Mouse, Goofy, & Donald played a team of Ghost Catchers in the 30's or 40's for a cartoon. And the rest of the plot comes from just creating some sort of central conflict for a climax, other than that, not as important.

it seems as though you like to pick out random little things that i say and criticize them haha.
but anyway, im sure that there were marx brothers acts that do come very naturally. and its stretching to place the ghostbusters as an 80's movie soley based on the EPA's involvement. there's a tie, but its not THAT strong.
and im sorry for saying genius. you refered to the premise when you thought i meant that and i was clarifying by describing the premise in my own words. i apparently exagerated.
but the plot as you refered to it is the basic plot for any story. yet details, which are part of the plot, not the premise, are written into the plot, not improvised.
id love to see an improvised movie with a weak plot do well in theaters, but pigs will probably fly first.

I'm not sure I agree on the green issue either, the environment is just as big a issue as it was 20 years ago, just the technology has developed a bit.

But I digress.

I think we'll have to have a draw on the Marx thing, there are probably bits which seem much like some of the old Marx films.


But I've really been that interested in the Marx Bros, they had some good lines that I liked (The Party of the Third Party), but overall I don't really have much interest.

Moving along:

Venky: Basically, the title (As it should do) ties into the premise of the film…I'm tempted to use an established set of events…but I've also got the hankering to do something a little unexpected.

As for M. Scott's scripts, they can be viewed in the fanfic area at GBN archieve, I believe.