This is our category for dialogue so smart, so witty, that every line seems written either as a punchline, or a setup to a punchline. Given all the writers in our Clan, this is a category dear to our hearts. In fact, when we hear an especially good line in a movie we’re liable to put the scene on pause and re-wind, making funny little badda-bing noises and gestures, like Doc Severinson underscoring a Johnny Carson one-liner.
A perfect example is Julian Fellowes’ brilliant (and Emmy-winning) screenwriting for Downton Abbey. Fellowes gives all our favorite characters multiple opportunities for carrying off scenes with admirable one-liners, but he clearly has special affection for the incomparable Maggie Smith, who manages to steal just about every scene she’s in.
Here’s a perfect example, from one of the first episodes, a scene in which Dowager Lady Grantham (Smith), who has already been shown in assorted contretemps with Modernity (not to mention her American daughter-in-law, Cora), has a misunderstanding with a newfangled swivel chair:
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