Why aren’t YOU thinking about the Master of Disguise all of the time?
February 7, 2013 2:55 PM Subscribe
The Master of The Master Of Disguise has watched the Dana Carvey flop The Master Of Disguise for 21 days straight and come up with some surprising insights.
The Kickstarter is a complete joke, but I suppose this is just a straight link to the content.
posted by Charlemagne In Sweatpants at 2:59 PM on February 7, 2013
posted by Charlemagne In Sweatpants at 2:59 PM on February 7, 2013
Mod note: Changed the link to the archive link, carry on.
posted by jessamyn (staff) at 3:03 PM on February 7, 2013
posted by jessamyn (staff) at 3:03 PM on February 7, 2013
"This character makes it clear that this movie had no script."
Bahahaha.
posted by Rustic Etruscan at 3:08 PM on February 7, 2013
Bahahaha.
posted by Rustic Etruscan at 3:08 PM on February 7, 2013
For some reason I thought this was about The Backyardigans episode which I feel certain is better than the Dana Carvey movie, even though I've never seen it.
posted by papercake at 3:10 PM on February 7, 2013 [4 favorites]
posted by papercake at 3:10 PM on February 7, 2013 [4 favorites]
Anyone remember Carvey's very short-lived (7 episode) sketch comedy show? I sure don't. It aired in '96. It was recently brought to my attention that the cast and writing staff for this show included Robert Smigel (the showrunner), Louis CK (head writer), Steve Carrel, Stephen Colbert, Dino Stamatopoulis, Charlie Kaufman, and Jon Glaser.
posted by mr_roboto at 3:11 PM on February 7, 2013 [9 favorites]
posted by mr_roboto at 3:11 PM on February 7, 2013 [9 favorites]
Turtle turrrrrrtle!
posted by yellowbinder at 3:18 PM on February 7, 2013 [6 favorites]
posted by yellowbinder at 3:18 PM on February 7, 2013 [6 favorites]
I don't think it goes far enough. Instead of adding a few comedic scenes, he needs to explore the psyche of the Master Of Disguise, what makes him tick. Why does he Disguise himself? I think this is an edgy psychological thriller just waiting to be made.
Filmed entirely in black and white and presented in reverse chronological order The Master uses his skills to delve into a sinister plot, something terrible and gritty, we don't know what it is.
The film opens with the final showdown with The Mastermind, and works its way back. We see The Master work through a series of encounters with low lives of all sorts, in a twilight world of death and betrayal. They drop cryptic hints that the world may not be as it seems. As he burns each contact he must change his identity.
The main hook is that each identity is played by a different actor or actress. Why settle for one star when you can have ten.
The final scene will show that there was no plot at all, no criminals. Each identity was a facet of himself, tying to tell him what is really happening. In reality, he is unconscious and slowly bleeding to death, the victim of a revenge killing. The last shot we see his face, it is the face of the The Mastermind.
posted by Ad hominem at 3:20 PM on February 7, 2013 [16 favorites]
Filmed entirely in black and white and presented in reverse chronological order The Master uses his skills to delve into a sinister plot, something terrible and gritty, we don't know what it is.
The film opens with the final showdown with The Mastermind, and works its way back. We see The Master work through a series of encounters with low lives of all sorts, in a twilight world of death and betrayal. They drop cryptic hints that the world may not be as it seems. As he burns each contact he must change his identity.
The main hook is that each identity is played by a different actor or actress. Why settle for one star when you can have ten.
The final scene will show that there was no plot at all, no criminals. Each identity was a facet of himself, tying to tell him what is really happening. In reality, he is unconscious and slowly bleeding to death, the victim of a revenge killing. The last shot we see his face, it is the face of the The Mastermind.
posted by Ad hominem at 3:20 PM on February 7, 2013 [16 favorites]
Sad twist, after watching the movie continuously for days, the watcher realizes that he in fact isn't turtley enough.
posted by Bulgaroktonos at 3:42 PM on February 7, 2013 [2 favorites]
posted by Bulgaroktonos at 3:42 PM on February 7, 2013 [2 favorites]
I have a soft spot for this movie, since it was on heavy rotation on HBO one summer when my fourteen-year-old self was charged with babysitting my kid sister while my mom taught summer classes.
Even now we occasionally mutter "the mastahhh, the mastah of deeeguise!".
posted by lineofsight at 3:51 PM on February 7, 2013
Even now we occasionally mutter "the mastahhh, the mastah of deeeguise!".
posted by lineofsight at 3:51 PM on February 7, 2013
Papercake, I've seen that episode many (many (many)) times, and it's called Le Master of Disguise.
Completely different.
posted by sauril at 4:44 PM on February 7, 2013 [2 favorites]
Completely different.
posted by sauril at 4:44 PM on February 7, 2013 [2 favorites]
I'm glad i'm never bored enough to do stuff like this.
posted by phylum sinter at 4:57 PM on February 7, 2013 [3 favorites]
posted by phylum sinter at 4:57 PM on February 7, 2013 [3 favorites]
There goes my suspension of disbelief.
posted by Repack Rider at 5:02 PM on February 7, 2013
posted by Repack Rider at 5:02 PM on February 7, 2013
I have not watched The Master Of Disguise for 3842 days straight.
I need to start a blog and share my observations.
posted by mazola at 5:31 PM on February 7, 2013 [1 favorite]
I need to start a blog and share my observations.
posted by mazola at 5:31 PM on February 7, 2013 [1 favorite]
I really like this sort of thing. Old bad movies like Plan 9 from Outer Space and every monster movie and horror movie get picked apart in detail by the B-Master Cabal. Good films are picked apart by pretty much everybody. But I love hearing about the plots of bad modern movies that people ignore, since there's usually so much bizarre plotting in them. The How'd It Get Made podcast is too jokey, but is there anything like this blog or this in depth Transformers review?
posted by Charlemagne In Sweatpants at 5:45 PM on February 7, 2013 [4 favorites]
posted by Charlemagne In Sweatpants at 5:45 PM on February 7, 2013 [4 favorites]
Anyone remember Carvey's very short-lived (7 episode) sketch comedy show? I sure don't. It aired in '96. It was recently brought to my attention that the cast and writing staff for this show included Robert Smigel (the showrunner), Louis CK (head writer), Steve Carrel, Stephen Colbert, Dino Stamatopoulis, Charlie Kaufman, and Jon Glaser.
The whole series is on Crackle, legal and legit, for free. You should watch it. It is good. (Though, being '96, it leans heavy on the Bob Dole.)
posted by Sys Rq at 5:53 PM on February 7, 2013 [4 favorites]
The whole series is on Crackle, legal and legit, for free. You should watch it. It is good. (Though, being '96, it leans heavy on the Bob Dole.)
posted by Sys Rq at 5:53 PM on February 7, 2013 [4 favorites]
I couldn't even watch Star Wars for 21 days straight.
posted by Mezentian at 6:33 PM on February 7, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by Mezentian at 6:33 PM on February 7, 2013 [1 favorite]
That's nothing. I plan on watching Groundhog Day everyday that Phil Conners character relives February 2nd.
See you in about 40 years suckas.
posted by littlesq at 8:15 PM on February 7, 2013 [2 favorites]
See you in about 40 years suckas.
posted by littlesq at 8:15 PM on February 7, 2013 [2 favorites]
40 days, actually. Though originally Phil Connors went through thousands of iterations, in the final version (allegedly, I haven't counted this myself) he goes through six weeks worth of Feb. 2nds, enough to get him out of winter, essentially.
posted by Navelgazer at 9:22 PM on February 7, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by Navelgazer at 9:22 PM on February 7, 2013 [1 favorite]
Off topic: Tumblr archive pages are the WORST.
posted by Chrysostom at 9:38 PM on February 7, 2013 [3 favorites]
posted by Chrysostom at 9:38 PM on February 7, 2013 [3 favorites]
Navelgazer: "40 days, actually. Though originally Phil Connors went through thousands of iterations, in the final version (allegedly, I haven't counted this myself) he goes through six weeks worth of Feb. 2nds, enough to get him out of winter, essentially."
So, he learns how to play piano, do ice sculpture, and speak French in six weeks?
posted by Chrysostom at 9:42 PM on February 7, 2013 [1 favorite]
So, he learns how to play piano, do ice sculpture, and speak French in six weeks?
posted by Chrysostom at 9:42 PM on February 7, 2013 [1 favorite]
In the original version of Groundhog Day Phil Connors went through thousands of iterations, yet never managed to watch Master of Disguise IIRC.
posted by mazola at 10:25 PM on February 7, 2013 [2 favorites]
posted by mazola at 10:25 PM on February 7, 2013 [2 favorites]
That's because Master of Disguise hadn't been made then.
But he could have written the script, I suppose.
That's now my head cannon.
posted by Mezentian at 11:12 PM on February 7, 2013
But he could have written the script, I suppose.
That's now my head cannon.
posted by Mezentian at 11:12 PM on February 7, 2013
So, he learns how to play piano, do ice sculpture, and speak French in six weeks?
Presumably not, but the number of days we see ended up being tied to the "six more weeks of winter" thing.
posted by Navelgazer at 11:51 PM on February 7, 2013
Presumably not, but the number of days we see ended up being tied to the "six more weeks of winter" thing.
posted by Navelgazer at 11:51 PM on February 7, 2013
See you in about 40 years suckas.
I've seen this quote about Groundhog Day, and it is what i prefer to believe, it's just so unimaginable that you have a hard time wrapping your head around, but gives the movie a real horror factor.
"Ramis states in the DVD commentary that he believes 10 years pass. However, in an e-mail response sent to Heeb magazine, Ramis said, "I think the 10-year estimate is too short. It takes at least 10 years to get good at anything, and allotting for the down time and misguided years he spent, it had to be more like 30 or 40 years."
and
"According to Stephen Tobolowsky, Ramis told him that the entire progress of Groundhog Day covered 10,000 years."
posted by usagizero at 12:35 AM on February 8, 2013 [2 favorites]
I've seen this quote about Groundhog Day, and it is what i prefer to believe, it's just so unimaginable that you have a hard time wrapping your head around, but gives the movie a real horror factor.
"Ramis states in the DVD commentary that he believes 10 years pass. However, in an e-mail response sent to Heeb magazine, Ramis said, "I think the 10-year estimate is too short. It takes at least 10 years to get good at anything, and allotting for the down time and misguided years he spent, it had to be more like 30 or 40 years."
and
"According to Stephen Tobolowsky, Ramis told him that the entire progress of Groundhog Day covered 10,000 years."
posted by usagizero at 12:35 AM on February 8, 2013 [2 favorites]
I barely remembered Carvey's show, but was reminded of it when I came across his Beatles Anthology spoof, with Colbert as George.
posted by TheSecretDecoderRing at 12:44 AM on February 8, 2013
posted by TheSecretDecoderRing at 12:44 AM on February 8, 2013
"According to Stephen Tobolowsky, Ramis told him that the entire progress of Groundhog Day covered 10,000 years."
Apparently in one version of the screenplay that never made it to film they show him keeping track of time by going to the town library, reading one page of a book, reshelving it and moving on; over the course of the movie he's shown changing books, then shelves, then rows, until he's shown reading the last page of the last book before breaking down.
posted by mhoye at 5:07 AM on February 8, 2013 [10 favorites]
Apparently in one version of the screenplay that never made it to film they show him keeping track of time by going to the town library, reading one page of a book, reshelving it and moving on; over the course of the movie he's shown changing books, then shelves, then rows, until he's shown reading the last page of the last book before breaking down.
posted by mhoye at 5:07 AM on February 8, 2013 [10 favorites]
I remember when MoD came out and watching the commercials on tv. All I could think was "Poor Dana Carvey."
posted by Thorzdad at 5:44 AM on February 8, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by Thorzdad at 5:44 AM on February 8, 2013 [1 favorite]
I remember my mom being really excited to see this when it was released. My mom usually goes in for romantic comedies and introspective foreign films, so I didn't really understand why she was so interested in seeing this pile of kiddie dreck.
Turns out she'd been watching some interview with Dana Carvey, and he'd talked at length about how he'd done the movie because of his kids. I guess most of the characters were ones he used to entertain them when they were little. Being a mom, she thought that was stupidly touching and had to see the movie, so I got taken along for the ride.
Say what you will about Master of Disguise, it was still better than when she dragged me to see What the Bleep Do We Know?
posted by Diagonalize at 7:27 AM on February 8, 2013
Turns out she'd been watching some interview with Dana Carvey, and he'd talked at length about how he'd done the movie because of his kids. I guess most of the characters were ones he used to entertain them when they were little. Being a mom, she thought that was stupidly touching and had to see the movie, so I got taken along for the ride.
Say what you will about Master of Disguise, it was still better than when she dragged me to see What the Bleep Do We Know?
posted by Diagonalize at 7:27 AM on February 8, 2013
The least surprising insight being that the turtle guy looks like Mitch McConnell.
posted by MikeMc at 9:44 AM on February 8, 2013
posted by MikeMc at 9:44 AM on February 8, 2013
Well the fact that turtle guy looks like Mitch McConnell is how you know that he's a "master" of disguise. His turtle disguise looks like a real turtle!
posted by Bulgaroktonos at 9:52 AM on February 8, 2013
posted by Bulgaroktonos at 9:52 AM on February 8, 2013
My kids liked it. They were around 6 and 9 at the time.
posted by joseppi7 at 11:54 AM on February 8, 2013
posted by joseppi7 at 11:54 AM on February 8, 2013
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posted by kittensofthenight at 2:58 PM on February 7, 2013