Spoofs extremify the tropes of what’s being satired. 

Usually, ratcheted up to 11. 

But Maddie’s Secret dials up the comedy by…mere degrees? If the cast played it straight, everything else about this new movie could land like a throwback melodrama set in the here and now, exemplified by John Early’s performance. 

His cross-dressing would be a typical over-the-top tactic deployed by a spoof….but transfer Early’s performance into the body of a woman, and it wouldn’t register as comedic.

And then the tonal slipperiness of Maddie’s Secret becomes a potential tsunami when the humor starts treading into the territory of…eating disorders?!

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There are two types of comedian actors. 

Most build their careers off performing amusing, consistent personas that shine through from role to role. 

And then there’s the rare breed like John Early, where the bit is in their commitment to enacting totally different personas.

How many comedians could pull off four hours of a Wallace Shawn monologue?