Introduction
We've all probably heard the term "Tugging at our heart strings." It refers to the act of trying to garner sympathy through a sad story...I hate that.
I HATE it when something tries to say "you should feel bad because of this!" If I want to feel bad about it, I will, but I don't want to when you try to forcibly tell me I should. Tugging at the heart strings is like pulling a single chord on a lyre and saying "Isn't that beautiful?" Yeah, maybe, but it is just a single note. How much can one care about a single note? You have to give us a song, actually play the lyre, and play it well, before you can begin to make claims about its beauty.
In a less abstract fashion, this applies to movies as well. I hate sad stories because they want you to feel bad for everyone involved, yet I see no reason to care for them. Sure you want them to get a happy ending, but if the entire movie is sad and somber, how much do you expect that happy ending? And when it comes, how much less do you care because you lost interest in the characters because you knew only bad things would happen to them?
You remember the trope "Comedy Relief?" There was a time where it wasn't just in comedies; it used to be in dramas, where it belonged. It was a scene or person that could release the tension, and help the audience relax, and allow the audience to care what happened again. After all, if something funny can happen in a sad story, then it surely must be interesting right?
That is just it. Pathos doesn't work when you only work on one emotion, it requires that you use the full range. In a comedy, you need drama. In a drama, you need comedy.
To quote Joss Whedon: "Make it dark, make it grim, make it tough, but then, for the love of God, tell a joke."
It really works wonders when it comes to making people care about characters; because people like to laugh more than cry.
Thus we come to my point: the pathos in a comedy is greater than that in a drama.
(Saying it out loud, it sounds like something that'd come out of my "philosophy" teacher...)
To prove my point, I have two movies: Disney's The Emperor's New Groove, and Yes Man.
Both of them are comedies, and both have much stronger moments than anything even an Oscar-winning drama can drum up, because they play the lyre well.
First, the Emperor's New Groove.
The Emperor's New Groove
A Comedy through and through, that was funny as a kid, and has gotten better with age. Unlike other Disney films, this movie does not have any big depressing moments (like Bambi's Mom, Hazel the squirrel, Mulan being discovered, et cetera), and quite frankly, such a moment would not be fitting. There is a bit of a somber moment leading into the third act, but the somber moment revolves around a character lost in their own blue screen of death, and acceptance of their fate, as well as character development.The movie plays a very happy tune... But the true strength lies in what notes are not played.
I'm pulling a song lyric here to explain:
"I've heard there was a secret chord
That David played, and it pleased the Lord"
Leonard Cohen, "Hallelujah"
-Courtesy of AZ Lyrics
On the heartstrings Lyre, there is a note that resonates very well. Undesired attempts to pull it will have the opposite reaction, and a note won't sound. That chord is what a film wants to hit. Emperor's New Groove does not hit it... But it doesn't need to.
Consider this: Kuzco (the eponymous emperor) is only 18 years old. Recall what you were like at 18. Likely it is no different from when you were 15 or 16; you know, still a kid. He has also been waited on hand and foot all his life (so of course he's going to be spoiled and not care about the lives of others). The closest thing he has had to a family is Yzma, who is scary beyond all reason, and is the cause of Kuzco's predicament. We know this because Yzma said she practically raised him, and he has been emperor for at least 10 years if not his entire life, meaning his parents have been dead for quite a while. And by the end of the movie, Kuzco does gain a good friend, and a pseudo-family. These are all things that would allow the movie to hit that secret chord, yet the movie does not hit it. Why? Because it never brings it up, just sets it up and implies it. The movie does not have to play the chord, because it is letting you play it.
I dub this action "Implied Pathos." Where if you're not interested, you can ignore the pathos as the film does not play it. But if you are, you can complete the song. Implied pathos does not need to mention it or discuss it, it merely lets you play the notes.
This only really works in a comedy, because the implied pathos needs something to hide behind. In a drama, it is front and bare. In a comedy, it is safe, and can arise when it is called.
The Emperor's New Groove is hardly a perfect movie, but it ranks highly on my list of top 10 Disney movies. It is still below Wreck-It Ralph, but that is for a reason explained by the next movie...
Yes Man
You know why Spiderman 2 is considered by some to be the best super hero movie ever? I don't entirely know, but one piece of it is watching a character we like put his life back together.
Yes Man is basically Carpe Diem, without the ties to the stupid actions of "YOLO." It's a man learning not to pass up living your life, and to enjoy every day. It would make a decent drama... But a significantly better comedy. Why?
It all comes down to sympathy and empathy. It's easier to empathize with someone you like, than someone you're indifferent to. And it is easier to like someone when they make you laugh.
In a drama, Carl (our main character) wouldn't be as enjoyable, because he's just a normal guy who happened to live a boring life. So when he improves his life, we don't care nearly as much.
While in a comedy, (Or rather, this movie), we are brought along for the ride. We care what happens to him, because it can mean making us laugh. It's the same thing with Buddy from Elf.
There is also another factor: if a character's going on a ride, the audience needs to experience it in some way too.
just take this scene:
You don't need context.
That scene is what I mean by bringing the audience along. Don't lead them by the nose, but let them follow. Entice them. If a character is having fun, help the audience have fun too.
Make a character fun and funny, people will like him and care what happens. Take them on a ride with that character, and they'll love them more.
Why does a comedy have better pathos than a drama?
Because it does not need to force it on you. It can hide the pathos and let you find. It gives you a reason to care about the characters, and lets you join the ride.
It starts the heartstrings lyre, and lets you join in.
Now I want to learn the Lyre so I can turn hearstrings lyre into a thing...
.........
I am a terrible Brony. It is only just now, after writing this entire essay, that I recall there is a background pony named Lyra Heartstrings
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