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DYING OF LAUGHTER. Álex de la Iglesia (Extracts of interviews).

MUERTOS DE RISA

Two years ago, while in a taxi on my way to the airport, I thought about the film and said to myself "I've got it." Mind you, I'd been thinking about it for a long time; even before I filmed "The Day of the Beast" I had it in mind: two comedians who fight on the stage... until they kill one another [...] We wanted to invent a couple of comedians with all their comic ingredients. Nino and Bruno remind us of a combination of the comedy show "Martes y Trece," the actors "Pajares and Esteso" and the showmen "Tip and Coll" although they are unique in their own right. In fact, they aren't really funny. One day on stage, however, they slap each other and realize that people laugh. The more they hit one another, the more people laugh until they finally kill each other "live" on stage.
However, in their daily lives off stage, their hatred towards each other is increasing. As a matter of fact, the more their mutual hatred grows, the more successful they become. The daily miseries turn their own existence into a nightmare. Their sad drama is that two entertainers who should be enjoying their success are experiencing hell. Why? Because each of them has what the other lacks - their mutual hatred stems from their mutual admiration.
All good comedies, deep inside, are dramas. "Dying of Laughter" is a human drama about friendship. It is a story about love and hate between two people with virtues and defects. It is a comedy that deals with serious issues. Humor is always a very serious matter.


ÁLEX DE LA IGLESIA.