The #1 Cracked Gist

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What is the Cracked Gist?

The focus of each Cheat Sheet is called The Gist. Think of the concise humor of the Craptions section crossed with our Pop Culture articles. Your goal here is to summarize everything anyone needs to know about the subject of your cheat sheet in one hilarious paragraph (500 character limit).

A few things to keep in mind:

  1. Don’t feel the need to rip every movie that you write a gist for. It’s perfectly fine to have a positive, passionate opinion about a film. OR: You don't have to love the movie, but you don't have to hate it either. Being negative does not mean you are being funny. We are never dismissive in our pop-culture articles.
  2. Focus on contributing to movies you have seen, and thought about.
  3. Avoid using the first joke that pops into your head. We're not looking for you to summarize the jokes other people would make. We're looking for you to make interesting and unique observations about the subject you're summarizing.
  4. Try to keep swearing to a minimum. Sometimes, well-placed profanity can help a joke land. Most of the time, a swear word makes your joke feel forced.
  5. There's no one correct way to write a Gist. If you can summarize everything we need to know about the movie in 10 words, that can be funny. It can also come off as glib. If you're having a tough time figuring out how to strike that balance, go to the movie section of Cracked, and study up.

Here are some samples that should give you a good idea of the wide variety of Gists that can work:
The Dark Knight
Independence Day

  • +3

After a legendary folk-music producer dies, his kids organize a tribute concert. The washed-up Folksmen are good to go, as are The New Main Street Singers, a revamped "neuftet" with only one member of its original 1960s lineup. Reuniting legendary duo Mitch and Mickey is more problematic, because the one-time couple have been split for decades and Mitch is a reclusive mental case who can barely bring himself to face his former lover, let alone sing with her onstage. The concert comes together, highlighting the enduring irrelevance of 1960s folk music and the geriatric baby-boomers who still remember it.

michaelbrent
Add Your Gist

A Mighty Wind (2003)

Source: TMBDb.org

Information Not Available
Information Not Available
Overview
  • Rating:
    PG-13 (USA)
  • Theatrical Release:
    April 16, 2003
  • Budget:
    Not Available
  • Box Office:
    Not Available
  • Runtime:
    1 hrs 31 min
  • Produced by:
    Karen Murphy
  • Screenplay by:
    Eugene Levy Christopher Guest
Director
Christopher Guest
Cast
Bob Balaban Jonathan Steinbloom
Catherine O'Hara Mickey Crabbe
Eugene Levy Mitch Cohen
Christopher Guest Alan Barrows
Michael McKean Jerry Palter
Freebase CC-BY
Source: A Mighty Wind on Freebase, licensed under CC-BY
Cracked Gists
500 characters left
  1. After a legendary folk-music producer dies, his kids organize a tribute concert. The washed-up Folksmen are good to go, as are The New Main Street Singers, a revamped "neuftet" with only one member of its original 1960s lineup. Reuniting legendary duo Mitch and Mickey is more problematic, because the one-time couple have been split for decades and Mitch is a reclusive mental case who can barely bring himself to face his former lover, let alone sing with her onstage. The concert comes together, highlighting the enduring irrelevance of 1960s folk music and the geriatric baby-boomers who still remember it.

    michaelbrent
    • +3
  2. Spinal Tap goes unplugged and Eugene Levy is a folk musician with a soul patch. Your roommate won't shut up about how much funnier this was before the Office. That doesn't stop him from playing Kiss at the End of the Rainbow on his xylophone.

    thl88
    • +2
  3. It's part "ficticious enjoyable romp through the shitty part of your hippy parent's record collection" and part "stories about music history from your crazy burned-out uncle".

    MrEmptyPants
    • +1

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