The New Weird

   "Weird" is a word I find fairly difficult to describe. It's easy to say anything that deviates from the norm, but at what point does something different become weird? It's not something that can be easily measured, it's a case by case situation and a matter of someone's perspective. The objects and tools we use every day seem weird to people of different cultures such as the Amish. Something we use without a second thought, the very computer I type on right now is considered normal to almost  everyone I know, yet to some people it's foreign, almost alien. Hilariously, even some people mildly familiar with technology, including myself, can be introduced so something brand new on a computer and invoke the response, "that's weird." When it comes down to "weird" in regards to genre, it's a bit easier to place as opposed to the word's meaning overall. Anything "weird" in a genre is something new, unfamiliar, unexpected. Cowboys in the wild west is a fairly standard, inflexible genre. Common themes and elements are prevalent in almost all of them. Then there's Cowboys vs Aliens. A film primarily set in the expected genre of the Wild West, but with an alien invasion. Such a combination was unheard of when I saw the film years ago, so of course I thought it was weird. That didn't stop me from seeing it, in fact it encouraged me to go.

   An often overlooked use of "weird" in terms of media and genres comes in the form of comedy. Shaun of the Dead is a good example. In a generation of horror built upon the undead, zombies have made an important mark for the genre in film, television, books, and video games. Shaun of the Dead explores the weirdness of the shambling zombies in a humorous way. For example, the early jokes involve normal humans behaving almost like zombies. Shambling with their feet scraping the ground, moaning (or yawning) and slouched over, or when they ride on the bus to work with dead expressions and blank stares. While behavior like this is common, knowing you're watching a zombie film makes their behavior weird, and therefore humorous. A large amount of humor comes from the unexpected, so it's not surprising that things that are weird can be so amusing and funny. However, weird doesn't always mean outright funny. Weird can be reacted to differently, with repulsion or fear over humor. Like all jokes, it's the set-up and the right amount of "weird" that makes movies like Shaun of the Dead so funny.