Sitcom

A situation comedy, often shortened to the portmanteau sitcom, is a genre of comedy that features characters sharing the same common environment, such as a home or workplace, with often humorous dialogue. Such programs originated in radio, but today, sitcoms are found mostly on television as one of its dominant narrative forms. This form also includes mockumentaries such as The Office and Parks and Recreation.

A situation comedy television program may be recorded in front of a studio audience, depending on the program's production format. The effect of a live studio audience can be imitated by the use of a laugh track.

History

The terms "situational comedy" or "sitcom" weren't commonly used until 1950s. Some of the characters, pratfalls, routines and situations as preserved in eyewitness accounts and in the texts of the plays themselves, are remarkably similar to those in earlier modern sitcoms such as I Love Lucy and The Honeymooners. The first television sitcom is said to be Pinwright's Progress, ten episodes being broadcast on the BBC in the United Kingdom between 1946 and 1947. In the United States, director and producer William Asher has been credited with being the "man who invented the sitcom", having directed over two dozen of the leading sitcoms, including I Love Lucy, from the 1950s through the 1970s.

Sitcom (film)

Sitcom is a 1998 French surrealistic satire film written and directed by François Ozon. The story documents the moral decline of a once esteemed suburban family, whose descent into degeneracy begins with the purchase of a small white rat.

The film's name is a direct reference to American sitcoms, which are noted for their focus on traditional family values and whimsical humour.

Plot

The patriarch of a seemingly normal nuclear family returns home one day with a small white rat. The animal soon has an adverse effect on his wife and children, influencing them into enacting their darkest, most hidden desires.

The son loudly announces his homosexuality and begins throwing wild orgies, the daughter deliberately flirts with death and practices sadomasochism on her boyfriend (Stéphane Rideau), while the mother seduces her son so she can "cure" him of his orientation. After the father eventually kills and devours the offending rat, he turns into one himself; when his family discover this, they band together and brutally slay him.