Scary Movie 4’ a hilarious pickup

Everyone accuses me of being a movie snob, favoring the independent movies with more substance over the big-budget, wow-me-with-special-effects flicks.

As far as comedies go, I’m more of a “Best In Show” girl as opposed to “Billy Madison” fan.

But let me tell you, sometimes a silly comedy of spoofs is just what you need after a stressful week. And “Scary Movie 4” was just that.

Admittedly, I wasn’t impressed by the first installment of the franchise, which is why I didn’t see the second or third. But I really needed a pick-me-upper. So off to the movies I went.

Last week, it was No. 1 at the box office, earning over $40 million, according to trackers Exhibitor Relations Co., and the promos for it did look funny, so I decided to give it a try.

I found the movie hilarious from the very first scene, and on. I just love it when celebrities make fun of themselves, because it shows that they have a sense of humor. And first up were Shaq and Dr. Phil. The two were chained to a wall in a spoof of “Saw.” Everyone knows Shaq can’t shoot a free throw to save his life, and he had to do just that. Take a wild guess how that ended.

Mike Tyson also made a cameo for a very predictable and gross scene.

From there, the writers spoofed “The Grudge,” “War of the Worlds” and “The Village,” then went on to make super-funny references to movies such as “Million Dollar Baby,” “Brokeback Mountain” and “Hustle & Flow.” “Scary Movie” star Anna Faris plays Cindy Campbell, poking fun at the Sarah Michelle Gellar character in “The Grudge,” and Craig Bierko stars as Tom Ryan, playing off the Tom Cruise character in “War of the Worlds.” One thing I have to give them all credit for is their attention to detail. Just about everything was perfect. Faris looked and acted just like Gellar, Bierko looked and acted just like Cruise, and Bierko’s daughter in the movie mastered Dakota Fanning’s screaming.

I thought the scenes in which they spoofed the independent movies mentioned above were the best. They were brief, but really funny. I’m not quite sure if too many got the “Hustle & Flow” references, but I know everyone got the “Brokeback” ones.

I also thought the scenes where Faris’ character speaks Japanese to the boy ghost were totally funny. All they were saying were “Nissan,” “Nikon,” “samurai” and “sashimi,” and I was totally cheering. I still laugh when I think of that scene.

The scene of a blind Carmen Electra using the bathroom during a town meeting, I could’ve done without. And who hasn’t made fun of Tom Cruise’s couch-hopping on “Oprah?” But the point remains that “Scary Movie 4” was exactly what I needed at the end of the day. It made me laugh during the whole entire movie, and made me care about the stresses of life a lot less.

“Scary Movie 4” is currently playing at the Kukui Grove Cinemas in Lihu‘e.

• Lanaly Cabalo, lifestyle writer, may be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 237) or lcabalo@kauaipubco.com.