Parks and Recs' Mocumentary Style

My favorite comedy show by far is the sitcom, "Parks and Recreation" starring Amy Poehler and many other hilarious actors. The style that is used in Parks and Rec is "mockumentary" and the cinematographer, Michael Trim, conducts it in such a way that is so entertaining and flows beautifully. Many people compare the style of the show to "The Office," but I believe that "Parks and Recreation" exceeds the cinematography of "The Office" and makes it smoother and funnier.

The shots are sometimes rough and shaky, but that is an aspect of the mockumentary style that really makes it come to life. Throughout every episode there are several times where characters break the fourth wall and stare straight at the camera. The actress who stands out the most when doing this is Aubrey Plaza who plays the character of April Ludgate. In many scenes she makes hilarious faces and reacts to things that other characters say by breaking the fourth wall and it adds to the humor of the show perfectly.

The excellent zooms, pans, and various other camera movements follow the characters in a way that is intriguing and entertaining. There is never a dull moment because the camera is basically always moving. "Parks and Rec" has come a long way since its pilot episode, which was not the strongest, to their seventh and final season where I'm going to bawl my eyes out because this show became a television phenomenon. The mockumentary style was a perfect way to go about filming this series, and it really makes it easier not only to connect with characters but to be involved with the various different plots. The writing for this show is absolutely hysterical and the style of it keeps viewers entertained for hours on end. I highly recommend that everyone take some time out of their days and watch this show.

An Open Letter to NBC

Hey NBC. What's up? 

Let me start out by saying that I love you guys. Seriously. You've always been my favorite network. Ever since I was old enough to start watching The Office and Saturday Night Live, I've had total faith in your ability to showcase comedies that other networks might shy away from. While you may not have a flair for the dramatic like CBS or a weird obsession with animated comedies/Seth Macfarlane (I'm looking at you FOX), you've always stuck with your roots and delivered some really solid, hilarious, heartfelt shows. Let's be honest; you had your heyday back in the late 90s when you struck gold with Seinfeld and Friends, but since then, you've had The Office, the cult hit Community, and the critical darling that was 30 Rock. I like to ignore Whitney and Animal Practice altogether and just say that, hey, you've done a pretty great job.

But that's not why we're here today, NBC. You know that, and I know that, so let's not beat around the bush: it's time to stop fucking with Parks and Recreation. By now, any fan of the show has probably heard about how you've only given the Pawnee crew 2 new episodes in the month of November (postponing the Halloween episode until a few weeks after the actual holiday) and won't be airing new episodes after that until mid-January, when Community is also slated to return. In it's stead, you'll be airing reruns of the Voice, SNL clip shows, and....The Sound of Music. Vulture broke the news here and, as I'm sure you know, all hell immediately broke loose. Adam Scott, who plays Ben Wyatt on Parks and Rec, tried to cover your ass by saying that this was your intention all along and that you weren't just prepping the show for cancelation, but some of us are displeased either way.

I know what your strategy is here, NBC: your Thursday night comedies are quickly losing ground in the ratings battle, and you blame Parks and Rec for being a bad lead-in to your new shows Welcome to the Family (which was already canceled, ouch) and the Sean Hayes anchored sitcom Sean Saves the World. You want viewers at any cost. It's a business, I understand. But - if I may put things extremely bluntly - your business model sucks, as do your new shows.

Parks and Recreation is adored by everyone, fans and critics alike, myself (quite largely) included. It has a great ensemble cast, extremely witty writing, and is heartfelt to boot. It's just an all around great American show. It's far better than your biggest Thursday night competitor, The Big Bang Theory; we all know that, but the general American public seems to have missed the boat on that one. That's ok though. With a strong presence on Netflix and a good start to it's sixth season, Parks has the potential to really hit it's stride....if only you'd let it.

NBC, Sean Hayes is blaming you for the poor ratings his show is getting, and I personally agree with him, though in an altogether different way. Your ads for this show are absolutely obnoxious; and not just the commercials, but the little stupid banner ads you play 24/7 that show Sean jumping over a couch, trying to look all cutsie and single goofball dad-ish and shit. Stop. Please. This show is not good now, and I'll be damned if it's ever going to get good anytime in the future. Instead of trying to pander to the wider, mindless crowd that flocks to CBS sitcoms, give us more shows like Parks and Rec, not less. Build your comedy lineup around it; maybe even advertise it or something. I'd be happy if you even aired a single episode in the month of December.

I'm sorry if I lost my temper there, NBC, but this is something that is very near and dear to my heart. I look to Ron Swanson as the incredibly mustachioed, bacon-and-egg fueled role model I never had, and to Leslie Knope as the strong, positive leader that Pawnee - hell - that America needs right now. You've got a real gem on your hands here NBC, and while I don't know what your plans for the future are, I just want to say this: the citizens of Pawnee may want to get Leslie Knope out of office, but all I'm asking is that you don't impeach Parks and Recreation just yet.

I'm a little obsessed with Parks and Rec...

I know I wrote about another NBC comedy, Chuck, last week, but I just had to do it again. Sorry. This past weekend I spent some time getting caught up on Parks and Recreation, and let me just say, it was a really good decision. Parks and Rec is shot in the super popular single-camera cinéma vérité style similar to The Office and Modern Family.

Amy Poehler as Leslie Knope

Parks and Rec centers on Leslie Knope, the deputy director of the Parks and Recreation department in a small Indiana town called Pawnee. Despite being happy at her seemingly boring and uneventful job, Leslie has high political aspirations. She is very optimistic and perky and she works extremely hard to keep the department from falling into ruin.

I think one of the very best things about this show is the amazing ensemble cast. Every single member of the cast adds so much value to the content, and they're really what makes the show. Nick Offerman as the stoic and hilarious Ron Swanson is by far my favorite character. While he pretends to dislike his job and his co-workers, it's very obvious that he enjoys his time there. His relationship with the intern/secretary, April, is definitely one of the highlights of the show. The similar way in which they respond to the craziness of the other characters combined with their excellent use of sarcasm really add a lot of comedy to the show.

Nick Offerman as Ron Swanson

Additionally, the rest of the department is composed of Tom Haverford (played by Aziz Ansari) whose hilarious business antics offer a constant form of amusement, Jerry Gergich (played by Jim O'Heir) who is constantly picked on by the rest of the characters, similarly to Toby on The Office, to name a few.

Overall, Parks and Rec follows along the lines of several NBC comedies, however, it does so in a way that makes it unique while still being one of the best written comedies on television. If you do decide to give Parks and Recreation a try, do yourself a favor and go beyond the first couple episodes in season one. If you do, you'll be rewarded with both a great comedy and you'll get to see Louis C.K. in his reoccurring guest role, which is really wonderful and hilarious. I hope you decide to give it a chance!

(And if you need any more incentive, here's a blooper reel from the show...)