'Signs' of Influence on SNL?

TOO SOON? BWE.tv (top); SNL (bottom) Last season, Saturday Night Live came under some minor criticism on the Web for similarities between one of the show's signature SNL Digital Shorts and a stunt by the New York video-comedy troupe Improv Everywhere. At the time, consensus seemed to fall under parallel writing or the classic "great minds think alike" defense.

How to explain, then, this week's re-cutting of the trailer for Mel Gibson's Apocalypto and a similar comedic video treatment for Gibson's Signs from VH1's bestweekever.tv this past August? Sure, they're different films and Gibson's anti-Semitic ranting has become its own comedy cliché, but look for the M. Night Shyamalan-ian kicker in SNL's trailer and decide for yourself.

• Apocalypto

• Signs of Intolerance

UPDATE: Eat the Press was all over this idea as early as Friday!