What I like about this example is that the transition is instant. Quirky, low-key comedy to slightly menacing drama and it all happens during a perfectly placed musical piece with one uttered line. It is really artfully done - IMO it is actually the single strongest moment in the whole film.
ETA:
No, it was “Loveless Love” by The Feelies :).
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest. Started out as a relatively light-hearted comedy about a guy rebelling against the system. Ended up as a tragedy when the system fought back and won.
Hart’s War - War movie, court room drama, prison escape.
The Frighteners - Comedy, horror, comedy, horror, comedy, horror.
OK. “Total Control” was the soundtrack for the first serious crime. (The film’s on Netflix Streaming–time to watch it again! As is The Ruling Class, mentioned above. And Dean Spanley, also starring Peter O’Toole–from a Lord Dunsany story, it begins as gentle whimsy & ends with a tear or two; or, it did for me.)
I would not say In Bruges is all that violent, but people do get shot and killed. But it isn’t super violent movie at all.
Life is Beautiful is an excellent example of this. It’s all giggles and romantic quirkiness in the early parts and then slowly turns into a film about the Holocaust and a family that gets caught up in it.
From the Hip is a laugh-a-minute comedy until John Hurt appears on the screen, then gets progressively darker, somberer and seriouser.
I assume you mean J.K. Simmons? Because otherwise that would be really, really strange!
Art School Confidential starts off as kind of funny, quirky look at stereotypical art school types and then takes on a much darker tone.
In Bruges is a good movie that is both a comedy and drama, but I don’t think it counts as “gradually changing tone”. From the beginning its about two hitmen hiding out after shooting a kid. It starts dark and stays that way.
Wes Anderson likes to make these types of films.
For example, Rushmore starts out as a quirky character comedy, especially considering the strange love triangle at the heart of the story. But by the end of the film the tone changes enough to reveal that the characters are all having serious emotional breakdowns and are deserving of real sympathy and consideration.
The Royal Tenenbaums is an even better example. The film starts out as a quirky comedy about a collection of truly strange misfits. The point of the film seems to be to watch these great actors go to town with this mishmash of strange characters. Suddenly, Richie attempts suicide and the audience is forced to realize that the weirdness of the characters and the strange ways they live their lives is inconsequential in the face of their humanity. Their pain, heartbreak, and longing is just as real as anybody’s. The film starts out a quirky-funny comedy and ends up a great drama exploring grace and redemption.
Red (the 2010 movie) went the opposite path as most of the movies mentioned in this thread. It started out as a serious thriller and gradually became lighter as the film progressed and ended up as a comedy.
The Great Waldo Pepper starts out as a comedy and two-thirds of the way through the movie in an instant turns into a tragic drama.
Atonement.
Starts as comedy basically, then gets sad/melodramatic.
A lot of Korean movies exhibit wild shifts in tone; much of the time there is nothing gradual about it. For example, **Sex Is Zero **starts off a raunchy Porky’s-style comedy and all of a sudden–here’s a whole heaping of heavy drama!
**Love Phobia **starts off cute and sweet and funny (with kids!) and then turn into weepy melodrama.
**A Millionaire’s First Love **is a “meet cute” comedy romance film with the guy and gal in a love/hate fiesty flirty thing going on–for the first half. Then out of nowhere you have to get out the hankies.
The Belgian film Man Bites Dog. Started off a light hearted mockumtary about a serial killer. I wanted to vomit by the time the film ended.
I am not a fan of “sneak attack” movies like many of these. I went to see both Life is Beautiful and Marley and Me without knowing they would take a tragic turn.
Fierce People Fierce People (2005) - IMDb seemed like a typical coming of age movie until something very very nasty happens.
How does Brazil fit into this?
I was surprised at the sadder/more dramatic parts of Click.
Adam Sandler is a better actor than most people give him credit for.
My next door neighbor loaned me a DVD of The Star Maker. An Italian movie about a guy with some camera equipment that travels around Italy after WW II. I think he stole the equipment during the war. He goes around telling people that he’s filming auditions for a big movie and charges them a fee to film them with the understanding that he will present the auditions to the studio. It’s a con. While not a comedy exactly, it’s a pretty light hearted film until he’s severely beaten by some Mafia guys that catch on to the scam, then arrested and jailed. When he gets out of jail he tracks down his girlfriend and finds her mentally ill in an asylum.
An entertaining movie but one that really stood out to me for it’s change in tone.