People thought Will Ferrell's parodic parade commentary was real

'Then we had to listen to his tale of depression in 2007 while eating raw salmon, because they supposedly didn't know their mikes were hot'

The Rose Parade is a seasoned American tradition.

Held in Pasadena, California each year on New Year's Day, it includes a large array of colourful flower-drenched floats, marching bands, and equestrian groups, all preceding the Rose Bowl college football game.

For this year's parade, Amazon Prime and Funny or Die decided to have a little fun with the event, hiring comedian Will Ferrell and Molly Shannon to host live coverage of the show, providing commentary in character as Cord Hosenbeck and Tish Cattigan.

Both season professionals, it seems as if their performances were a little too convincing for some, with Amazon Prime flooded by negative reviews by viewers completely befuddled by the pair's awkward banter.

At the moment, a full 40% of reviews are 1 star; thankfully, 52% of viewers seem to have gotten the joke and awarded the show 5 stars - it's been a divisive choice, to say the least.

"We haven't been able to listen to a single marching band because Dumb and Dumber talk right through it," one viewer wrote. "Then we had to listen to his tale of depression in 2007 while eating raw salmon, because they supposedly didn't know their mikes were hot."

"If you can even call their inane, ignorant, vacuous prattle 'talk'... Completely amateur production. I expected much more from Amazon." It's probably exactly the reaction they were hoping for.

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