First Trailer for THE COMEDY Starring Tim Heidecker Plays Up the Film’s Negative Reviews

The first trailer for the polarizing drama The Comedy has gone online, and it’s not exactly your standard trailer debut.  Instead of showing a montage of clips from the film that give viewers an idea of the plot, a dialogue-free scene plays out while the film’s harshly negative reviews are displayed onscreen.  The pic stars Tim Heidecker as a man who has just inherited his father’s estate, but stumbles into reckless situations in hopes of freeing him from his desensitization.  The film debuted earlier this year at the Sundance Film Festival and received an enthusiastically mixed response, with some praising the film’s commentary on the culture of cynicism and others decrying its bleakness as “one of the most wildly inappropriate and pitch black comedies I’ve ever seen in my life.”  This marketing approach is kind of genius because it’s statements like that that make me want to see this film.

Hit the jump to watch the teaser trailer.  Directed by Rick Alverson the film also stars Eric Wareheim and LCD Soundsystem’s James Murphy.  The Comedy will be available VOD on October 24th and opens in limited release on November 16th. 

Via Vulture.

Here’s the official synopsis for The Comedy:

On the cusp of inheriting his father’s estate, Swanson (Tim Heidecker, “Tim & Eric Awesome Show, Great Job!”) is a man with unlimited options. An aging hipster in Brooklyn, he spends his days in aimless recreation with like-minded friends (“Tim & Eric” co-star Eric Wareheim, LCD Soundsystem frontman James Murphy and comedian Gregg Turkington a.k.a.“Neil Hamburger”) in games of comic irreverence and mock sincerity. As Swanson grows restless of the safety a sheltered life offers him, he tests the limits of acceptable behavior, pushing the envelope in every way he can. Heidecker’s deadpan delivery cleverly masks a deep desire for connection and sense in the modern world. The Comedy wears its name on its sleeve, but director Rick Alverson’s powerful and provocative character study touches a darkness behind the humor that resonates with viewers long after the story ends.