What Is Campy?

From what I understand, it defines a situation portrayed in a exagerated and ironic manner.

Like when in the TV Show, Batman goes to a bar and this exchange happens:

Bartender: Batman! Do you want a table?
Batman: No, thanks. I will be at the bar, I want to keep a low profile.

The Village People are camp. The Hell's Angels are definitely not camp

Campy is, like... cheesy.
It's something that is- often unintentionally- comical, because of its cheesiness.

Batman TV series is camp.

Like pornography, I can't define it but I know it when I see it

Campy often equals something being very flamboyant and over the top. The old Batman series that starred Adam West is a good example of camp.

backslashbaby said:

The Village People are camp. The Hell's Angels are definitely not camp

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Tiny Tim was high camp of the highest order.

Mrs. Miller was camp.

Beverly Sills wasn't.

No, Showgirls is a guilty pleasure of about 55% of the world's population. I like to think that at least. Now the movie Top Secret!? That was camp. And so totally 80s. Sigh.

There's a thin line between camp and trash, and Showgirls regularly fell off the line and into the trash category.

Now the Buffy movie was camp.

Definition of camp: John Inman.

Both the Buffy movie and the show were camp. Top Secret falls into the tongue in cheek category. In order for it to be campy, they had to be taking themselves seriously to begin with. Perfect example of the difference is the original Brady Bunch show and the movies sending the show up.

I believe if you look up the definition in the dictionary, it says "see: Cabin Fever."

PrincessofPersia said:

I believe if you look up the definition in the dictionary, it says "see: Cabin Fever."

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Hey, I liked that movie.

Victoria said:

Hey, I liked that movie.

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So did I. I've seen it 5 or 6 times. Eli Roth is the man. Just because it's campy doesn't mean you can't love it.

PANCAAAKKEEESSS!!!

third person said:

No, Showgirls is a guilty pleasure of about 55% of the world's population. I like to think that at least.

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No way. I love bad movies, but that one was like torture. And not in a good way.

druid12000 said:

In order for it to be campy, they had to be taking themselves seriously to begin with.

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I thought campy was usually not taking itself seriously, but rather overplaying some aspect(s) of the genre to the point that it becomes self-satire.

ETA: I also think TV & movies can be either intentionally or unintentionally campy - usually the latter is the insult. Buffy is campy, but on purpose. You either like that style of humor or you don't, but it is thoroughly intentional. Movies that are so bad they are *almost* funny are often unintentionally campy.

If a film is described as 'campy', it normally means that it is very exaggerated, becoming almost self-parody. Almost 'so bad it's good'.

Wherever there's camp, I always expect another thing: a large ham, intentional or not.

PrincessofPersia said:

So did I. I've seen it 5 or 6 times. Eli Roth is the man. Just because it's campy doesn't mean you can't love it.

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Hell yes! I found myself laughing just as much as scared at some parts. Roth is great.

druid12000 said:

In order for it to be campy, they had to be taking themselves seriously to begin with.

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Not true at all.

Originally Posted by druid12000
In order for it to be campy, they had to be taking themselves seriously to begin with.

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NOPE. THat is the opposite of Campy, and it quite sad really.

The movie, Flash Gordon, is a good example.