Funny People (Judd Apatow, 2009)

Funny People

Funny People - Directed by Judd Apatow, starring Adam Sandler, Seth Rogen, and Leslie Mann - Rated R

The evil Kurgan would've rather watched a comedy, but he'll settle for this dramedy.



Funny People, marketed as an Adam Sandler comedy "from the same director that brought you Knocked Up and The Forty-Year Old Virgin, is more of a drama than knee slapping comedy. That doesn't mean it's a bad movie. It just means that if you are going into this film expecting to laugh throughout the 146-minute runtime, then you are going to be very disappointed (as a few audience members at the showing I went to were). I can't really fault the movie for taking a serious tone, but I can fault the movie studio for trying to sell this as a complete comedy. Once I got past the idea that I was not supposed to laughing, I started to enjoy this heartfelt film.

The movie is about George Simmons (Sandler), a lonely comedian/movie star who finds out he is dying. George decides to start doing stand up comedy before he dies and he comes across a young talent, Ira (Seth Rogen), who he hires to write jokes, fetch Diet Cokes, drive him around, and talk him to sleep. Usually dying people does not equal comedy, and that doesn't change with this film. There are some depressing moments in this film as we see George undergo treatments and tests while trying to keep his disease a secret.

It's not all misery and death, though. This is still a movie about comedians. I'm particular about stand up comedy and I usually don't enjoy it, but some of the routines are quite funny in this. But fair warning: this film is rated R for a reason and all of the stand up jokes and pretty much every comedic element in the film is extremely dirty stuff. This is what makes the film a bit strange. One second you have a touching moment between George and his long lost love (Leslie Mann), the next there's a comedic bit about male reproductive organs (which is the movie's go to subject for comedy). I suppose this combination of R-rated comedy and straight forward drama worked for me, but I think it works only because of the characters and the actors.

Every character in this film is surprisingly realistic. George is not exactly a likable guy, but he's not over the top in his selfishness. Sandler does an excellent job of conveying misery in this film and he really proves that he's capable of being a dramatic actor (which I completely support, if Zohan is his idea of being funny). Seth Rogen continues to impress and it's great to see him play a character like Ira, who is gullible, friendly, and easily impressed, which is much different than Rogen's usually sarcastic and cynical characters. The supporting cast provides plenty of laughs. Jonah Hill is on familiar ground, but he's still funny. Jason Schwartzman is funny as a slightly famous sitcom star. Eric Bana has a few moments as an excitable Australian. And the celebrity cameos provide plenty of laughs from the likes of Andy Dick, Eminem, Ray Romano, Sarah Silverman, etc.

The laughs provided from the supporting cast are few and far between. But I think that the interactions between Sandler and Rogen make up for it. I was interested in how things would end up for everyone involved. If that interest isn't there, however, then you're going to find yourself yawning. This is quite a lengthy movie and even though it held my interest, I still felt that it was about twenty minutes too long. I've had this problem with other Apatow films as well. The man needs to learn how to trim the fat in the editing room.

Funny People isn't always funny (which is the ironic joke of the title), but it has realistic characters in serious, dramatic situations. That might not sound like what's expected in an Apatow movie, but if you can get past your expectations, and have a bit of patience, then you should enjoy this.



*I want to get into a SPOILER element that has been bothering me ever since I saw the first full trailer for this film. The trailer reveals that Adam Sandler's character gets better. At the time, I read that that wasn't exactly a spoiler and it happens relatively early in the film. While it's certainly not something that happens at the end of the film, I still think it was a bit ridiculous that they would put that plot element in the previews. I didn't check my watch or anything, but it seemed like Sandler's character didn't get better until the second half of the movie. But I watched for an hour or so just waiting for him to get better. I think that the dying plot element would have worked much better if I had gone into the movie thinking the entire film was about his struggle, then be surprised when he gets better and the movie keeps going. Maybe it's not a big deal, but I thought it was a mistake to give so much away in the preview for this.


I wanted to write a bit more about Sandler's character, well, his character's career, anyway. George makes idiotic movies like Merman, Re-do, My Best Friend Is a Robot, etc. I thought the posters were kind of funny, but I expected the clips they show in the movie to be funnier, but they all fell a little flat. Maybe it's because they all look like films that Sandler might actually
make. I expected bigger laughs from the fake movies, though.


Oh, and I forgot to mention the other supporting stars of this film: T-shirts. It seems like every character in this film has an extensive collection of T-shirts referencing comedy, music, film, etc. and each shirt is featured prominently. Not a complaint or anything, it's just something that stuck out to me. Maybe it was because each T-shirt looked brand new. I don't know.

Eric Harris - www.canneltoncritic.com

Last updated: 2010-05-10 11:05:33 by user06

Booze Revooze: A Drinker’s Skewed Review of Funny People

Drink:½ shot

• Ray Romano
• Paul Reiser
• Sarah Silverman (doing her vagina mouth)
• Eminem (who’s hilarious!)

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Al K Hall<br />
Functional Alcoholic Slurperson<br />
(No, REALLY. Google &amp;quot;Slurperson&amp;quot; if you don't believe me.)

Last updated: 2010-04-04 21:22:05 by user08

Quick Review: Funny People

Funny People – 2009
Directed by Judd Apatow
Starring Adam Sandler, and Seth Rogan Okay, I’m a freaks and geeks fan… I’m also a Seth Rogan fan.  Bug for  whatever reason, I didn’t run out and see this movie in the theatre.  I  thought the concept was intriguing, I thought that it looked great… I  dont’ know maybe I had higher things on my list then then.  Anyway, I  finally got to see this… and I have to say, I think this is Judd  Apatow’s best work.  It’s a perfect example of life imitating art, or  art imitating life… I always forget how that phrase goes.  What I’m  saying is, it was almost as if Adam Sandler the stand up comic, was the  main character, not George Simmons.  And it was neat to see Seth Rogan  play the protege, as he was Judd Apatow’s protege in a sense.
The only two negative things I’d have to say is, first it was a  little long… I don’t even think the story really got going until about  45 minutes in.  Second… is that if Apatow removed 85% of the adult  humor, the dick and fart jokes… he could seriously have an Oscar  contender movie.  Don’t get me wrong… I love adult humor, I got a potty  mouth just like the rest of them.  But sometimes I think he crosses the  line.  So if you can just ignore that, and take this movie for what it  is… it’s a good movie, and a good story.
And there was a nice tribute to Warren Zevon in there as well… it was  subtle, but well played.

Christian Kocinski<br />
Filmmaker.Animator.Photographer<br />
www.ChristianKocinski.com<br />
www.IncoherentAstronomy.com<br />
www.SweetmintTheatre.com<br />
www.Cine-Rama.com

Funny People

Terms of Endickment! Laughter, death, anger, crying and then another dick joke and then another…

One Word Review: GOOD

Funny People starts with a video of Adam Sandler making prank phone calls, “I have no legs and I want to speak to the manager!”  Sandler plays successful comic/movie star George Simmons who has a fabulous beach house, a booming career in movies and a terminal disease, some kind of rare leukemia called AML. He looks tired but troops on with his life, laps in his pool, on to the airport, posing with fans, hanging out at comedy clubs.  An experimental treatment holds some hope, around 8%, and so he takes his medicine like a man because comics are all about who has the biggest dick.

The parallel story concerns Ira (Ima) Weiner, a sad name which drove him into comedy to ease the pain of being called a wiener/whiner (depending on pronunciation) all his life. He meets Terminal George at a club where both perform, with Ira following George after he bombs on stage with an act about dying. This chance meeting ends up with these two “funny people” sharing the tale of how George recovers, connects with his ex-girlfriend, screws up her life and then Ira’s life and his own and we end up at the same spot we started the movie. Ira’s working a deli, George alone and looking for a friend.

Along this circular journey, there are laughs and cameos from lots of comics and endless streams of dick, balls and asshole jokes.  Takeaways are simple: comedy is all about how big you dick is (and you need a big one to get on stage with only a penis-shaped microphone) and being alone, because you’re all alone on stage and in your daily life. As Ira sums up near the end of the movie, “George, you’re the only guy I know who’s learned nothing from a neardeath experience!”

The audience also learns nothing, other than what it’s like to be a mega-star comic (looks pretty great to me) and how comedy is all in the delivery, not the joke. The scenes where characters are writing comedy are the dullest in the movie, with no joy at all in thinking of a great joke, just the nod of recognition (yeah, that’s a good one, I can use it) and move on.  The same can be said of this movie, yeah, that’s a good one, and move on.

The Story

The story starts slowly, with George’s medical scenes and lame living-on-a-sofa Ira struggling to make it as a comic. His friend at work sums up Ira best when he says, “How can you be in show business if you’ve got no business?” Ira’s two roommates are more successful, so Ira hoards his connection to George all to himself, because comics are competitive. Once George hires Ira to be his companion/writer, the story gets interesting in so many absurd moments.  Ira joins George on a corporate gig for MySpace where they follow James Taylor in entertaining the company staff. Ira and James stand together to discuss performing with Ira asking, “Don’t you get tired singing the same songs every night?” James replies, “Don you get tired talking about your dick every night?”

They take two girls back to George’s house, where he beds them both and then has Ira talk him to sleep (gosh, two rolls in the hay aren’t enough to get your tired?). George gets Ira to agree to whack him for $50,000, then reveals it was a prank, like the calls at the start of the movie. Maybe this whole movie is a prank? A big “in” joke for comics? Don’t forget, dying on stage is another comic mantra, like dicks and being alone.

Ira, not having made it yet, has real feelings and convinces George to re-connect with his family and “friends”. As George says later, “let the awkwardness begin!” as comics try to express real feelings. From here, the movie either goes into the “Terms of Endearment” plot of actual death or the route Judd Apatow, the writer/director chose, to recover from terminal cancer and try and re-connect with the only love of his life, the beautiful Laura.  She is married, with two daughters but a husband who’s away a lot and she suspects of cheating on her. That, of course, is why she left George, because of his cheating.

The rest of the story is George and Laura seducing each other, the husband complication, Ira’s dilemma of loyalty to his boss or doing the right thing and we end up with the husband discovering the karma of the moments, embracing his family after pounding the hell out of George. Ira loses his job and ends up back at the deli and the movie ends with the last reversal, George writing jokes for Ira. The full circle theme of the movie is reinforced as the camera pulls back from the two main characters writing on a deli table in the supermarket while John Lennon’s “Watching the Wheels” rises in the background, “sitting here watching the wheels go round and round”.

The Genre

The R-rated comedy is hot now, with Apatow’s string of hits (Knocked Up, The 40-Year-Old Virgin as director) and his producing and writing credits with Seth Rogan (an Apatow discovery) and Adam Sandler (Zohan). In short, the R-Rated comedy factory has come together in this one movie. Other than The Hangover and Bruno, Apatow’s fingers are everywhere (or his dick, if you believe this movie’s theme).

You have to give Apatow credit in his attempt to stretch the genre with some emotional weight rather than just a string of gross-out situations. However, the first half is truly funny as George deals with his impending death.  Once he recovers, the movie deflates as we really don’t care if George finds happiness. He should be happy to be alive, let alone reassembling his perfect love life regardless of who he destroys in the process. The low point of the movie is watching, for much too long, a  recording of Laura’s daughter’s school production of Cats with her singing “Memory”.  In real life, it is Apatow’s daughter Maude doing the singing and playing the daughter, but spare us the extended version of her belting out show tunes, please. Just because you have all the comedy power in Hollywood, don’t abuse it.

The Overall Quality

Funny People is a good movie, most of the time. Eric Bana acts the rest of the cast off the screen with his Australian macho husband role. There are bits of business that are wonderful, like the ribbing of the tall, blond, Euro-Doctor, “Are you finished torturing James Bond?” Seth Rogan’s weight loss is a comic disaster akin to Samson cutting his locks. You were funnier when you were fat, man.

The boomer soundtrack starts with McCartney’s “Great Day” used ironically in reference to Terminal George and ends with Lennon’s “Watching the Wheels”. There is a choice scene where Ira tries to cheer up George with a special playlist of songs, starting with Bob Marley (died of cancer) and moving to Warren Zevon’s goodbye song, “Keep me In Your Heart”. There is a link between comics and music, as Sandler performs a few songs in his George character.

The fake movie posters and George’s career is a rich source of jokes, between the posters and clips shown on TV screens throughout the movie, an inside joke on an inside joke, saying look at all the crappy comedies we make.  George is a star and when he recovers, what will he do with his life? Yes, he’s doing the sequel to his smash baby movie when he’s a man who gets transformed into a baby so he can learn how to be a real man! Oh joy to all his fans. The circle once again.

The movie is long, over two hours and feels slow going for the last half-hour. Crisper editing would have helped out a great deal.  The dynamic between Ira and his roommates is tiresome, as is his reluctance to connect with a nearby girl he “likes” but won’t talk to. The movie is best when George and Ira are together.

Movie/Market Analysis

MarketBOB’s sentiment indicators, the GQS (Genre, Quality, Story) smile at the jokes but frown at the story and sentiment making this movie a BEAR! Anyone who dreams of making it big should reconsider because it’s not what you want, really. Big house, no friends, no one to love. Life is just one big circle with no escape; whether you’re in your cubicle every day sorting spreadsheets or on stage telling dick jokes or singing “Fire and Rain” for the millionth time.

For comparison, the two previous movies Judd Apatow directed did poorly as market indicators. The 40-Year-Old Virgin was a negative influence and Knocked Up didn’t make # 1 in 2007 against The Pirates of the Caribbean franchise. Adam Sandler’s last flick, You Don’t Mess With the Zohan, lost out to Kung Fu Panda for the #1 spot in June 2008.

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The Sad World of Funny People

There have been quite a few bitter, cynical and sarcastic movies out about the nature of the stars and celebrities in the Los Angeles area. This one is about the "funny" celebrities: the comedians, and one in particular (Adam Sandler) who finds out that he's got a terminal disease.
I'm not going to wrap up the story for you. I'm just going to tell you that there's a lot of honest truth in this movie about human nature at the top of the world.
A lot of ugly truth. But the nice difference about this one is that you've got a glimpse of hope here, that of a few souls actually learn something out of all the sh*t that's happening to them, so, while it is nearly as painful to watch as all the other ugly truth flicks, this one doesn't leave you hanging there with an ending that makes you go, "Tell me something new, darnit!"
So, if you're expecting to see Adam Sandler being funny, you might be disappointed. If you don't mind some raw truth about "funny people" shoved right in your face for you to find out what you don't want to be, then this might be for you...

Recommendations: The Matrix , Fratello sole, sorella luna , The Visual Bible: The Gospel of John

There IS no spoon!

Last updated: 2010-03-25 02:34:54 by McDozer

Funny People

Veteran Comedian and star of mediocre children’s films George Simmons finds out he has a rare blood disease, He hires a deli worker/struggling comedian to be his personal assistant and help him write new material for his stand up act. At the same time George tries to reconnect with the love of his life Laura.

Funny people is neither a straight drama nor a straight comedy but a clever mix of the two genres. Adam Sandler stars as George Simmons a successful star of kid friendly flicks with titles like Merman that made him a lot of money but failed to provide any happiness or loving relationships. Sandler who has a history of playing immature child men is perfectly cast as George; Sandler gives the performance of his career as the jaded George able to convey the vulnerability of finding out he is sick all the while building a friendship with his assistant Ira Wright (Seth Rogan). Gone are the stupid voices and one dimensional characters that Sandler is known for playing and in its place is a three dimensional man that you empathize and relate to. The role of George is not a character that Sandler would have been able to play had it not been for the parallels in the character of George and Sandler in real life both making a lot of money off of low brow comedies.  Seth Rogan is very good as Ira the struggling comedian who lives with his two roommates and works at a deli while trying to make it big in the world of standup. Watching the relationship grow with George we get some genuinely funny and heartwarming scenes.  When Ira flies to San Francisco with George for a standup gig and then hangs out with George as he tries to rekindle his relationship with Laura (Leslie Mann) we see Ira transition from star struck assistant to true friend.

The entire cast is great with some real funny moments from both Jonah Hill and Jason Schwartzman as Ira’s roommates as well as from Eric Bana the Australian husband of Laura who loves “Footie”.  I can’t stress it enough Sandler gives the performance of his career and Apatow delivers another quality film. Although the trailers deliver mixed messages on the type of film it is, Funny People is a serious movie that is seriously funny.

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‘Funny People’ is Classic Apatow, No Matter What People Are Saying

I've been waiting forFunny People, comedic god Judd Apatow's third directorial, since last summer. I've seenKnocked Up, The 40-Year Old Virgin, Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story and most of the other movies that he has produced. Going into Funny People, I had heard mixed reviews on it. I had heard that it was "depressing", "dull" and "long". I didn't listen to these critics (Roger Moore, ahem), and neither should you. Funny People shattered my expectations. It's a perfect follow up to Apatow's cult hits that exploded him to fame in 2005 (Virgin) and in 2007 (Up). Judd Apatow is an indescribable genius; the touch he puts on his movies, whether he's writing, directing or producing (he does all three in People) is classic. No matter how many times movie studios have tried to copy him with films like The Hangover and I Love You, Man, they can't top it; they're all good movies, however Apatow is the undisputed R-rated king of comedy.

Funny People tells the story of George Simmons (Adam Sandler, his best performance in years), a world-famous actor in crud flicks like Re-Do and Mer-Man (watch the posters carefully; you'll see a funny cameo by a certain star pfVirgin). Now dying of leukemia, he makes friends with Ira (Seth Rogen, hilarious), a stand-up comic trying to make it big time. He hires Ira to write stand-up for him after seeing his bit at a comedy club. Along the way, we meet Ira's roommates: Mark (Jason Schwartzman, a riot), the star of a low-rated sitcom called Yo Teach! and Leo (Jonah Hill), with a back-story similar to that of Ira's. In an attempt to woo his old girlfriend back, George tells Laura (Leslie Mann, great as usual) of his illness. He wants to get back together, but he soon discovers of Laura's husband (Eric Bana, a fresh face) and two kids Mable and Ingrid (Mann and Apatow's own kids Maude and Iris, showing serious potential as actresses with a bigger role than in Knocked Up in Funny People). Cameos fill People, from Aziz Ansari (a spin-off mockumentary is already planned) and Sarah Silverman to Norm McDonald and Andy Dick.

Funny People is classic Judd Apatow, no matter what critics or audience members are saying. The only difference between this movie and his previous accomplishments is that you have to know a bit about every character in this. Sandler's prank phone calls in the beginning trace back to when him and Apatow were roommates and the relationship between Sandler and Budd Friedman to really appreciate People. Sure, nobody reading this can relate to George Simmons' problem of being too rich and famous, although we can understand how it feels to be rejected and going nowhere in your life. If you look at it from this point of view, that can be pretty funny.

4.5/5 stars

-Nick

funny people

not really all that funny.  you’d think with all those funny people in it, it would have been more funny.  maybe if it had been less long, the funny parts in it would have stood out more.  but you just had to sit through so much crap.

it wasnt that bad for me as i watched it in pieces while i was on the clock at the movie theater…but i’m pretty sure i would not sit through it anywhere all in one sitting.  prob wouldnt watch it again at all.  unless i had some little hottie wanted to go see it.  then i could be pursuaded.

i respect adam sandler for trying to make real movies.  not just slapstick funny movies.  although i’m ready for another adam sandler slapstick funny movie.  maybe billy madison 2 or something.

anywho, i guess this film is worth seeing if you are a a big adam sander fan, or seth rogan, or judd apatow.  but not worth a second look.

one crappy stand up comedian out of five.

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Cal Reed

Funny People

In the end Judd Apatow's "Funny People" starring Adam Sandler, Seth Rogen, Leslie Mann, Jonah Hill, and Eric Bana, doesn't really live up to it's title. The movie is drawn out and gets boring towards the end. The same jokes are reused throughout, making for a lot of redundancy.

Adam Sandler plays George Simmons, a famous stand-up comedian who has been diagnosed with leukemia. Ira Wright (Seth Rogan) wants to become a famous stand-up comedian and does stand-up at various clubs. He ends up getting a job writing jokes for George Simmons and becomes the first person to learn about Simmons' leukemia. There's a subplot involving George Simmons and the girl he almost married, Laura (Leslie Mann), who now has a husband (Eric Bana) and 2 kids. See the movie, or read the in-depth wikipedia synopsis if you want a better plot recap, or watch the trailer. All would be legitimate.

One of the best parts of the movie was the cinematography, thanks to Janusz Kaminski who also did the cinematography for "Schindler's List" and "Saving Private Ryan." The composition of the scenes and the camera angles and such were very successful. The music that was chosen for the movie also added some enjoyment. Several cameos from stand-up comedians, playing themselves, including Ray Romano and Paul Reiser were also welcome additions to "Funny People." Of all the people in the movie, Adam Sandler and Seth Rogen had the best chemistry, which works out nicely since they are, in fact, the stars of the movie. Scenes with Leslie Mann mocking Eric Bana's Australian accent and scenes between George and his doctor with the thick accent are some of the films most successfully executed funny scenes. And the first half hour is the funniest part of the movie, which is kind of sad since the movie is well over 2 hours long.

Now for the not so great parts of the movie. George Simmons is essentially only concerned with himself and taking advantage of his fame which makes him not a very simpathetic character. The chemistry between the characters is not believable. The jokes get unbelievably redundant and most of the time feel like cheap laughs instead of well, thought-out, clever comedy. There are so many jokes about genitalia and vulgar language that it gets obnoxious. It's hard to believe how many Judd Apatow crammed into 146 minutes, but that is typical of him so it really is no surprise. And no, that is not a typo. The movie is actually just shy of 2 and a half hours long. No one should even consider making a comedy that is longer than 2 hours. The genre just does not call for it and "Funny People" is no exception. The last half of the movie when George tries to break up Laura's family and get back together with her is so drawn out that it gets boring. I'm pretty sure we could have done without the scenes with the family dog and their two daughters. It's unnecessary, borderline embarrassing at times, and takes up way to much valuable screen-time. The movie tries to be laugh-out-loud funny as well as incredibly serious and I think they only half succeed.

The movie could have been so much better had it been edited down about a half hour and had the script been edited a little to improve the pacing and the joke quality as well as chemistry between the different characters. 2 stars...I am really harsh when it comes to watching comedies. There definitely were some hilarious parts, but honestly for me, anyway, seeing this this once was enough. All of the stars have done better work elsewhere.

Funny People = Apatow’s Finest Work to Date

When I first read about Judd Apatow’s next project after the release of  PINEAPPLE EXPRESS last summer, I learned that the film was about the  world of stand-up comedy and it would be starring Adam Sandler.  My  initial reaction to this news was sort of a mix of excitement and a  general feeling of, ”How the fuck is Apatow going to pull THIS one off?”

Judd Apatow has long been known to flex his muscles of morality  within his “cock and balls,” dirty joke frameworks that are rampant in  his movies.  THE 40 YEAR OLD VIRGIN and KNOCKED UP (both directed by  Apatow) are heavily influenced by subtexts of responsibility, manhood,  abstinence, and friendship–Themes that are fairly uncommon in most  modern Hollywood comedies.

Yes, FUNNY PEOPLE is a far cry from the blockbuster comedies that  were being produced en masse in the late 90’s.   My generation  can literally sum our collective comedic experience into the exploits of  one character whose name still brings a chill to my bones. Stifler. God  I fucking hate that piece of shit character. I’ve never been known strictly as a nerd or geek because my friendly personality and interests in  fairly common social trends has hidden my inner-nerd from the outside  world, but Stifler bothered me to my inner nerd core and made me weep  openly for anyone who has ever been given a wedgie or for any girl who  has ever had their tits grabbed followed by a honking sound.

(NOTE: My distaste for Stifler casts no shame upon Sean William  Scott, who is actually a normal guy and has made up for his casting as  Stifler with great performances in THE RUNDOWN, ROLE MODELS etc.  I  remember MTV did a special on Scott sometime in after AMERICAN PIE was  released and behind the scenes he was actually a kind of boring dude who  didn’t say much and preferred to be the quiet one in a room. How  ironic.)

Seriously, I can remember thinking that AMERICAN PIE was the crème de  la crème of comedies.  Granted, I was 13 years old and extremely  unconcerned about the aspects of what made a movie “good, ” but the  mental image of Jason Biggs prematurely ejaculating on Shannon Elizabeth  and having sex with a pie just barely scratches the surface on  everything I now detest from the “gross out” comedy romps of the late  90’s and early 21^st century, a time when I was impressionable  and vulnerable to the absolute garbage that big movie studios produce  annually.  The financial strength of the AMERICAN PIE name has brought  on SIX FUCKING SEQUALS (4 of which have been of the “straight to DVD”  variety).

I have nightmares that my first born son will live long enough to see  the DVD release of AMERICAN PIE: IM GOING TO GIVE YOUR MOM A SHOCKER  WHILE YOUR DAD WATCHES AND YOU”RE CRYING UNDER THE BED starring the cast  of HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL.

NOTE: Im not saying that semen/bodily fluids can’t produce an  epically funny joke; Ben Stiller and Cameron Diaz proved this in THERE’S  SOMETHING ABOUT MARY.  Todd Phillips is also a master of gross out  humor done right.  THE HANGOVER was an instant classic and is currently  engaged in an all out battle in my mind for best comedy of 2009 thus  far.

My point is, it amazes me how sophisticated the genre of comedy has  become over the past few years thanks to the Apatow comedy crew that he  frequently associates himself with: Seth Rogan, Paul Rudd, Jason Segel,  Jay Baruchel, Jonah Hill, James Franco, etc.  Its amazing to see the  young cast of FREEKS AND GEEKS mature into the talented actors that all  of them have become.  I think we are all witnessing a very important  stage of comedy that has yet to reveal its true importance.
Sophisticated might be the last adjective you think of when analyzing  a dick joke, but Apatow’s strength as a director is to let his casts  chemistry overwhelm the simplicities of dick based humor by developing  his films characters to the point where what you perceive on screen is  actually a group of real friends dealing with real issues. (Apatow is famous for letting his cast improvise scenes over and  over again until a take comes out perfect—some scenes are shot between  20-25 times)

Comedy is the result of escape.  Good comedians use comedy in order  to cope with the horrible things that have somehow affected their  lives—and Apatow’s films are chock full of these themes:

There is nothing funny about knocking up a chick you just met at a  club when you are a broke stoner with no direction in life, in fact,  that’s a nightmare that no one I know personally ever wants to  experience.

Who the fuck wants to wake up at 40 years old with no friends, no  family, and no dirty tales to share at your employee poker game?

Who ACTUALLY wants to lie to their coworkers while describing a tit  as having the consistency of a bag of sand?

FUNNY  PEOPLE takes this formula that Apatow has been tweaking ever  so slightly over the past few years and delivers a mind blowing film  that is both hysterically funny and extremely heart breaking at the same  time. I’ve only seen the film once, but I can say that this is by far  Apatow’s best OVERALL film and one that needs further viewing to really  appreciate what is going on for the duration of the film.

The running time IS a tad long (140 min) for a conventional comedy  but I never found myself kicking in my seat or rearranging my position  every 1.5 minutes which is a good sign.  ADHD + Uncomfortable movie  seats = disaster for anyone sitting near me.

NOTE: This is the first review I have ever written for a blog, so I  am still experimenting with content, analysis, and my overall  presentation.  I am currently thinking that less plot breakdown = better  analysis. I also want to come up with a scoring system, but all of that  is under development. I would also like to restrain from using spoilers  as much as possible.  Hopefully with my reviews you will get a sense of  what’s good and/or bad about the movie without too much exploration of  plot details. And as always, if you have suggestions or comments, don’t  be shy. I am a rapper self promoting my music.  Criticism/suggestions  are essential at this stage.

On to the REVIEW:

The main strengths of FUNNY PEOPLE revolve around the relationships  that Ira Wright (Seth Rogen) establishes throughout the film.

The first act highlights Ira’s non-spectacular life by showing us the  daily interactions between Ira and his best friends/roommates Mark  (played by wonder-douche Jason Schwartzman who doubled his acting duties  by also scoring the film—which is wonderfully done) and Leo (Jonah  Hill, seriously, can someone give this guy a more substantial role then  the “fat friend?”  Jonah Hill always steals the show and we haven’t seen  him in much of worth since SUPERBAD, when he single handedly carried  Michael Cera’s honest, but brutally boring performance)

These opening scenes provide ample laughs throughout the beginning of  film and the dynamic trio never fails to entertain.  These are 3 guys  trying to make it in the cut throat world of comedy in LA and Apatow  perfectly emulates common real life situations throughout the film where  these friendships are tested.

The second act begins after George Simmons (Adam Sandler) is  diagnosed with a blood disease that is potentially fatal.  Simmons  catches Ira’s short but potentially lucrative stand up set and decides  to offer him a position as an assistant in order to help him transition  back into performing at standup gigs while simultaneously providing him  with someone he can air our his stresses to without worrying about a  potential backlash, because 1) Ira doesn’t know Simmons that well and,  2) He can fire him at will.

Apatow uses the relationship between Simmons and Ira to assert his  main theme that Funny People = Unhappy People.
The sharp contrast between Simmons and Ira’s stage in life leads to a  sort of odd couple/opposites attract type of relationship.  Ira is  unsuccessful, “unfunny,” terrible with women, and hates his day job.   Simmons is successful, funny, promiscuous, and lives the life that Ira  is chasing. But Simmons is FAR from happy.  The friendship that develops  between Ira and George is both hilarious and compelling to watch.  The  pair also echoes the sentimental values that Apatow often places within  his narratives.  The shared experiences of misery/jealousy/failure/and  impending death bring Ira and Simmons into “Bro” like bond that creates  both humor and sentiment.

The third act of the film shifts the focus onto the relationship  between Simmons and his ex girlfriend/true love (the one that got away)  Laura (played by Apatow mainstay Leslie Mann, more thoughts on this  later) and in my mind, this is where the film falters, if only briefly,  the most.

Apatow works hard for the first 2/3rds of the film developing Rogens  character Ira and then drops the ball when the focus
shifts to Sandler’s  character George Simmons.  While the idea of Simmons attempting to tie  up loose ends in his life is a fitting place to take the story arc, Ira  Wright’s character suffers greatly from this distraction.
Apatow has been harshly criticized for his portrayals of women in his  films.  Katherine Hegel famously declared her hatred for the film KNOCKED UP due  to its misogynistic nature, and I must say, in FUNNY PEOPLE, there  isn’t much of a thematic change here. [EDIT--I am JUST realizing how  Hegel's comments should be completely discredited based on her starring  role in this summers THE UGLY TRUTH.  I have not seen this movie yet and  don't intend to anytime soon, but by all accounts, Hegel should have  saved her distasteful comments for THIS movie instead.  If Hegel is  truly concerned about misogyny, stereotypes, and or feminism she would  not have accepted a role in a film that has her publicly orgasming a la  Meg Ryan while asserting to the world that the ugly truth about  relationships is that men are ONLY concerned about sex.  This is quite a  contradiction from her relatively harmless role in KNOCKED UP, no?]

I don’t know anything about Judd Apatow’s history with women, but if  my logic about comedians dealing with emotional scar tissue through  escapist tactics of comedy holds firm, then some she bitch REALLY did a  number on Mr. Apatow and his most likely Adolescent heart.  This film  reeks of anger towards women.

2 Women come to my mind after seeing this film, BOTH are love  interests for the two main characters, Simmons, and Ira, and BOTH of  them draw despise for different reasons from the Male perspective.   Based on MY personal experiences with relationships with women a  particular scene in the movie made me cringe with disgust.  I believe  that this was calculated and intentional on Apatow’s part and while I  don’t think one can go as far to call Apatow’s portrayal of women as  misogynistic, surely, his personal ideologies in regards to women and  their effect on men is one with strong skepticism and mistrust

The bro’s before ho’s mantra.

FUNNY PEOPLE is by far Apatow’s strongest film to date, yes, it does  have its flaws, but I believe that these flaws are justified by the main  themes of the film: Funny People are by nature, flawed.
In order to truly gain satisfaction or personal happiness in life,  one must realize that friendships/relationships are based upon  recognizing and placing value among the flaws that we all bear as  humans.

The resulting film is a two hour+ masterpiece on human connection and  the power of friendship filled with hilarious anecdotes about dicks,  cocks, balls, masturbation, oral sex, and the many things you will  expect from an Apatow film.  The frat boy who admired Stifler in high  school will hate this film, pretty much anyone else should enjoy the  experience.
NOTE: I have come up with a list of questions to answer for each film  that I review that will become a staple for the “Hypothesis Spits Movie  Review.” The Questions will come at the end of each review and will be  the same every time, so
without further ado, here is what most of you  will skip to before reading my long winded, verbose movie reviews.

How does the movie compare to other films from the director?

Effectively combines all of the elements of previous Apatow films  into one masterpiece of comedic filmmaking that most will enjoy  immensely.

Is the movie effective?

Yes, the movie reaches past simple elements of comedy into real  issues of what makes a true friend and what makes one happy.  These are  extremely deep metaphysical questions that are answered strongly, even  if objectively, by Judd Apatow.

Would I watch the film again?

Yes, I can’t wait to view this film again.

Best aspect of the film?

Seth Rogens performance here, along with OBSERVE AND REPORT, really  show off his talents as an actor.  I am consistently surprised by the  range of Seth Rogens characters.  I also fucking loved the multiple  cameos in the film.  They are magical.  Aziz Ansari was by far the best.  Be ready for that one.

Worst aspect of the film?

Eric Bana’s character disappointed me.  I also think the film does  little to separate Apatow from his critics who suggest that his films  are misogynistic.  Still, I disagree.

Final grade + viewing suggestion?

92/100. A- Go see this film.

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Last updated: 2010-02-22 10:11:07 by hypothesisspits

Funny People

Well surprise, surprise. The master of sexploitation comedy Judd Apatow can make a serious movie after all.



Funny People opens with George Simmons played by Adam Sandler, a comedian superstar who learns that he is dying from a rare blood disease. Suddenly his life is not so funny anymore. Simmons begin to examine his life which is really sad. He has tonnes of cash but no friends and family. At his last chance to make his life worth while, he takes Ira Wright played by Seth Rogen, a budding comedian under his wing and becomes sort of a mentor to him.



Adam Sandler was great in the movie. I like this formula he's got going where he makes one movie that's completely shitty but comes back and stuns with a really fantastic one. Like remember Click and how I'm sure everyone just went "Whoaaaa" at the you-know-what scene? Yeah. This has got to be one of the most deep roles he has ever done and I thought he pulled it off quite nicely.



Kudos to Seth Rogen to who proves that he can act after all. His character resonates with Anna Kendrick's character from Up In The Air. Did he do a really good job? Not really. But I was quite surprise at how serious he can be. He and Sandler work really well together, it's always fun watching the movie when their both kinda arguing with each other.



Let me be clear right now, this is not a comedy. It's a drama about comedy. It's a look at the lives of people who make a living by being funny and discovering that these people aren't really that happy after all. This is by no means any of the Apatow films you've seen before.



There are a lot of side stories in this movie, one being Adam Sandler's old flame, the girl he was suppose to marry but he screwed it up with her. He tries to reconcile things with this lady played by Leslie Mann, who is now married to Eric Bana but they end up falling in love again at the risk of breaking up her entire family.



I just gotta say one more time that this is a very very well written script. It's got great depth, it has mad plot and character development and it does have some great humor. I'm really quite shocked that the guy behind exploitation films like Superbad and Forgetting Sarah Marshall could do a really god serious drama. I clap for you Judd Apatow!



If you're looking for a really funny film to chill with you're friends.. Funny People is not it. It's a 2 and a half hour long film that humanizes comedians as real, broken people. You will enjoy this film but not in the way you enjoy the other Apatow movies. I think Funny People would have been a perfect film if it dropped about 20 minutes from the 3rd act of the movie. But still.. give this a watch ya'll!

I predict Oscar nod for Best Original Screenplay.

RATING: 7/10

NicholasC

Funny People

Writer and Director: Judd Apatow
Starring: Adam Sandler, Leslie Mann, Seth Rogen, Eric Bana

This movie is a little overlong but there are so many great actors, characters and heartfelt moments. Judd Apatow gives us a more grown up and deeper comedy than he usually gives. This movie is a seamless blend of drama and comedy. Adam Sandler is very good and Leslie Mann is a treasure again. She is an actress that makes me laugh every time I see her and she can make any movie better.

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Vincent Snavely

Funny People

Plot: Popular and succussful comedian George Simmons (Adam Sandler) is dying.  He goes back to his roots and performs stand-up again.  He befriends a struggling comedian named Ira (Seth Rogen) to help write his jokes.  Ira gets more than he bargained for though as he has to deal with George’s dysfunctional life and relationships.

When I go see a movie called Funny People with Adam Sandler, I expect to laugh.  Despite a few chuckles early on, this movie really pissed me off.  It’s boring.  The characters are all assholes.  It can’t decide if it wants to be a comedy or a family drama.  Oh yea, and did I mention it was boring.  And it was almost 2 ½ hours long, come on!  Now this was made by writer/director Judd Apatow, who everyone is just in love with right now.  The only movie I’ve seen from him was 40 Year Old Virgin, which I liked quite a bit.  I thought this was going to be a nice little story about comedians.  Boy was I wrong.

The absolute worst part are the little obnoxious inside jokes.  I really hate this crap.  The same thing happened in Ocean’s 12.  Oh look at us, we’re having so much fun and laughing at each other’s jokes that only we can understand.  I didn’t pay 7 bucks so I could watch you entertain yourselves.  Entertain me please!  Let me explain what I mean.  So there are all these jokes about how Seth Rogen’s character Ira (a struggling comedian) loses too much weight because his only charm as a comedian was looking fat and funny.  Oh haha.  Get it?  Just like Seth Rogen in real life.  I couldn’t help but feel this was put in because Apatow and Rogen probably joke about it a lot and find it hilarious.  Well good for them.  I don’t think it’s funny.  And I don’t need it shoved down my throat throughout the movie.

Another thing I found mildly annoying was Apatow casting his own children as the only 2 kids in the movie.  Now to be fair, they were very cute, and even talented.  There was this one scene though that irritated me to no end.  Everyone is watching a tape of one of the daughters performing a song from Cats in a school play.  I don’t know if the performance was real or just done specifically for the movie, but it felt like I was watching Judd Apatow’s home movies.  I mean come on!  I want to watch a movie here, not your damn home videos.  This is ridiculous.  Not only that, but Leslie Mann who is Apatow’s real wife was also the mother of the children in the film, and she can’t stop talking about how great the performance is just like a real mother would.  The problem is she is not just telling a few relatives and close friends, she is telling thousands of moviegoers!  It just felt shallow.  Give me a break.  The moviegoer is unfulfilled.

But let’s take a look at the real issue – The movie can’t decide on its genre.  It tries to be both comedy and drama.  This works great sometimes such as movies like The Royal Tenenbaums.  The problem here is that it’s a half ass comedy and a half ass drama, so what do you get…a half-assed movie.  Now the first half was okay.  I got some laughs and it was mildly entertaining.  I especially like the interplay between Seth Rogen, Jonah Hill, and Jason Schwartzman trying to make it as actors and comedians.  They were great together, but this completely disappears in the second half.  What we get instead is an awkward, unfunny, poorly written family drama.  It’s dreadful to watch and it drags on forever.  Adam Sandler’s character George Simmons is trying to selfishly break up this family.  And the sad part is that you don’t like or want to root for any of these characters.  Maybe that’s what they were going for, but I’m sorry, it’s just uncomfortable to watch, and not in a good way.  If the tension was eased with some jokes, then okay, but there are none worth laughing at.  It goes from a mediocre story about comedians to a boring and awkward family drama.  And this is the entire second half of the movie.  It’s just a completely uneven film.

Now I want to talk about Adam Sandler.  Sandler is trying to make an effort to be a more serious actor.  He’s shown he’s got talent like in Punch Drunk Love.  The difference between Punch Drunk Love and Funny People though is that Punch Drunk Love is actually funny, so it makes Sandler’s performance stronger because he is in a better film.  He’s perfectly fine in Funny People, but the character just isn’t there.  The guy is supposed to be this wildly popular comedian, but he’s just flat out boring and uninteresting.  I don’t get it.  I think Sandler’s best stuff was Happy Gilmore and The Wedding Singer.  Maybe the stuffy critics will disagree with me, but that’s how I feel.  Those movies were gut bustlingly hilarious, whereas now Sandler does these half comedies/half dramas like Spanglish and to a lesser extent Click.  These movies blow bags as does Funny People.  I know he’s trying to grow up, but I guess part of me is selfish and wants him to go make Happy Gilmore 2.  I prefer him fighting Bob Barker and talking to invisible penguins rather than playing some dick head comedian who’s on death’s door.  But that’s me.

So if you are expecting a few good laughs at the movies, don’t see Funny People.  You’ll be bored to tears.  Maybe I wanted something different, but this one just annoyed the shit out of me with its pretentious inside jokes and lackluster characters.  If Judd Apatow is having a good time and laughing it up with his family and buddies then good for him…but as a moviegoer, it turns me off.  It feels like this – “Hey, look how much fun we are having in our little world and you’re only invited until the credits come on.”  I think comedies are suffering right now.  We either get an atrocious Will Ferrell piece of shit or these half-ass dramedies.  I miss the days of Dumb and Dumber, Wayne’s World, and Kingpin.  Clever writing, downright hysterical, and never took themselves too seriously.  The Seth Rogens and Will Ferrells just don’t compare to the talents in those movies.  Although I feel I might be alone on this…so be it.

Rating: 4.0 out of 10.

Last updated: 2010-02-01 18:35:12 by danjewish

funny people

so i like to think i’m a bit funny; you might even say, a funny person. but after seeing this movie, i realized being a funny person also involves being an asshole. and having sex with women while making mermaid sounds. that isn’t me, unless i was actually having sex with a mermaid. then the noise might be appropriate, and i may relent.

funny people is a drama that mixes in humor. i say drama first, because there are long lulls where there’s no laughing. not even a chuckle. that said, sometimes they put in some humor, in the drama, and the juxtaposition makes it awesome. the periods of humor in the movie, when they do come, are also quite enjoyable. i laughed at lot at those points.

this movie runs 2 hours and 30 minutes long. you’re probably thinking, how could they produce so much funny? the answer is: they didn’t. it was too long, and that was a bad thing. the parts that were funny were pretty good, though i didn’t like that seth rogan defaulted to sex jokes a lot, which to me is a bit like shooting fish in a barrel. sure, you can do it, but then your fish have lead in them and you can’t eat them. also, barrels don’t stop bullets. where does that expression even come from?

i have seen all but two of judd apatow’s movies; i’m not going to tell you which two i missed. i will say, out of all i’ve seen, i loved superbad. that was it. i kind of, sort of, liked a few others, but there was no love. i also have not been a big fan of seth rogan. all in all i tend to summarize apatow et al. as “meh.” however, in this movie i liked seth rogan. i also liked this apatow movie the most next to superbad, which is untouchable. you can’t touch it.

jonah hill being in this movie was also a pleasant surprise. his performance was excellent. i enjoy him and his humor.

i give this movie a 4.8/7. if they cut it down to 1 and a half hours, i think they’d have a real winner.

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Movie Review: Funny People (2009)

Judd Apatow is a name that gets thrown around a lot these days when it comes to comedies (as writer and producer), but in reality, there have only been three films where he has been the director – The 40-Year-Old Virgin, Knocked Up, and his latest, Funny People, starring his former flatmate Adam Sandler and a mid-weight-loss Seth Rogen (I believe he’s lost more since).
Very loosely based on some of Apatow’s experiences as a struggling comedian, Funny People is about stand-up comedians and, basically, their lives, from those battling at the bottom, to those living it up at the top.  I don’t want to reveal much more than that.  If you haven’t seen the previews, then good for you, because as usual, it reveals some of the best parts and spoils the surprises.

You hear the names Judd Apatow, Adam Sandler and Seth Rogen, and you may be thinking ultra-hilarious, stupid, vulgar comedy, but Funny People is more accurately classified as a drama-comedy.  Put it this way – it’s more Spanglish and Punch Drunk Love than Happy Gilmore and Pineapple Express.  That said, the film has plenty of laugh-out-loud moments, often coming from unsuspecting cameos, of which there are many.  The film did a splendid job of combining people acting as other characters and people playing themselves (or at least public versions of themselves).  Things such as fictional movies and movie posters (some just in the background) mixed in with real-life archive footage added an extra layer of comedic complexity to the film.

The stand-up routines were also apparently written by the actors themselves, performed and shot in front of live audiences and then edited for the movie.  I suspect there must have quite a bit of improvisation too.  It makes me wonder how many of the actual lines were ad-libbed, because some sounded too spontaneously brilliant to have been scripted.
However, it is the dramatic elements of Funny People that set it apart from Apatow’s earlier films.  There are some pretty emotional scenes in there, and I was surprised how well Apatow pulled them off.  Not all of them scenes may have worked, but enough did to make Funny People an engaging drama as well as a clever adult comedy.

As for the cast, Apatow employs the usual suspects to support Sandler and Rogen – Jonah Hill, Jason Schwartzman, Leslie Mann (his wife in real life) and even  his two daughters Maude and Iris Apatow.  The addition that may seem out of the blue to some is of course Eric Bana, who demonstrates his comedic talents to the world (outside of Australia) for the first time.  To fellow Aussies, his hilarity comes as no surprise (as he was a comedian before he turned serious), but I think those who only know him from Hulk and Troy are going to be pleasantly surprised.  Oh, and I must say, I usually find Jonah Hill rather irritating, but he’s actually funny here.  Jason Schwartzman was excellent too.  I knew Adam Sandler was capable of being a great dramatic actor, but was pleasantly surprised by Seth Rogen.  He was very very good.

My main complaint with Funny People is its running time, which at 136 minutes is far too long, even for a drama-comedy.  The ending was also a bit ‘meh’.  Nevertheless, overall this is still a quality film, definitely worth your time.

4 stars out of 5!

PJM

Last updated: 2010-01-05 22:19:10 by user04

Funny People — 1

So here I thought that this movie would at least be decent, holy crap was I wrong. I really never saw this coming. It was sooo terrible that I don’t even know where to begin.

First off this had an all star cast. I was expecting at least a comedy out of this, but it turns out that it is way more of a drama than anything. This must be what I call the comedians one ‘other’ movie. Adam Sandler has a streak of making hilarious movies. He has had a few exceptions, but the trailers for these movies were not nearly as misleading as this trailer was. I’ll get to the trailer in a bit. And I knew going into this movie that it would not be as funny as I was expecting it to be. However I thought with the help of Seth Rogan at his side that there would be several gut-busting scenes. Frankly there was nothing. I laughed maybe twice during the time I was awake.

That’s right, I fell asleep. It was soo boring that I could not keep my eyes open. I literally fell asleep and the only thing that woke me up was the sound of nothingness because the movie was over. I really don’t know at what point I passed out, but any time a movie makes me fall asleep it pretty much the same effect as me walking out or turning it off.

The other thing that was massively misleading about this movie was the fact that Judd Apatow both wrote and directed this movie. And as he always does mentions his most successful movies. I really was expecting way more out of Apatow. He disappointed the shit out of me in this film and I don’t think that I will go out of my way any time soon to watch another Apatow movie, especially in theatres after this shitfest.

The other thing that mislead the shit out of me was the godamned trailer. It looked incredibly funny that I had a strong desire to see it. But after hearing what my friends said about it I decided to wait until it was released on DVD/BR. The thing about the trailer is that it takes the movie out of context. The funny scenes in the trailer were very serious in the movie. It’s like what was supposed to be funny was actually an intense moment where 2 of the characters were fighting and it was not at all a funny moment, yet the trailer played it off like it was.

After waking up I also decided to see how long the movie was. I was amazed. It was 153 minutes. IT WAS ALMOST 2.5 HOURS LONG!! Seriously WTF! There was absolutely no need to have the movie be this long at all. I thought the movie was dragging on for the part that I was actually awake for. I can’t imagine how it would be to actually have stayed awake for the part that I was asleep for. Seriously, fuck how long this movie was.

I honestly will never see this movie ever again. If someone says this movie is good, hold up a finger to basically say hold on, run to the kitchen and find a cast iron skillet, grab it, go back to the person who is waiting for you, and then murder the shit out of them with the cast iron skillet.

Base Score = 1
+0 I fell asleep
= 1/10

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Last updated: 2010-01-12 01:47:06 by Tolll

FUNNY PEOPLE

As the official movie poster reads, Funny People is the third film from the writer and director of The 40-Year Old Virgin and Knocked up.  Those are two of the best comedies made in the last five years.  That’s the reason why this is one of the few films I’ve been looking forward to seeing this summer.  The director is Judd Apatow who just happened to be Adam Sandler’s real-life roommate some twenty years ago.  The movie actually begins with old footage of Sandler in his college days making prank phone calls; Apatow can be heard in the background.  In fact, there is quite a bit of old footage from Sandler’s past incorporated into the film which adds a nice touch of genuity.
The title is appropriate because much of the film is about comedians and how they live their lives.  Unfortunately, that doesn’t mean they’re naturally happy or fulfilled people.  Sandler plays George Simmons who, though quite funny on stage, is actually a rather unhappy and lonely individual.  His comedy has led to movie roles which have garnered him wealth and fame.  But he has no true friends.  After watching a fellow comedian named Ira Wright perform at a stand-up comedy club with him, he decides to hire Ira as a personal joke writer/assistant for him.  He’s played by Seth Rogen who shows much more range here than in his previous work.
The reason George hires him is that he has recently found out he has a disease and could be dying.  This revelation has affected his stand-up act obviously, but he also seems to be reaching out for an actual friend before his time is up.  Funny People has been marketed as a comedy, and people expecting just that will surely be disappointed.  Yet if the movie had been marketed as a more of a serious coming-of-age story, people might be pleasantly surprised at how funny it is also.  It really is a mix of both.  There are plenty of laughs throughout the film (many of which come from penis jokes) while there is a great deal of male-bonding between the two stars.  In fact, it reminded me a bit of I Love You, Man from earlier this year but with much more sentimentality.
The third act of the film veers into romance territory as George tries to re-kindle a relationship from the past.  He once dated a woman named Laura who is now married with children.  She is played by Judd Apatow’s real-life wife Leslie Mann.  They have a lot of chemistry together but it may just be too late at this stage of their lives.  The movie does manage to mix some actual romance in with all the “bromance”. It’s nice though to see Ira care so much about what happens with George as he struggles to help him be happy through the entire film.  There’s also good work from a strong supporting cast along with many cameos ranging from James Taylor to Eminem.  But be warned, the movie is about two and a half hours which is extremely lengthy for a comedy.  It’s worth checking out though.

Recommendations: The Shawshank Redemption (1994), Se7en , 25th Hour

http://www.examiner.com/movie-in-philadelphia/danny-porcaro

Funny People (Judd Apatow, 2009)

In one of my previous reviews (can’t remember which), I said that Judd Apatow is one of this decade’s most influential Hollywood filmmakers. But after watching Funny People, I have some reservations about reiterating that statement here. Following his sensational first two hits, The 40-Year Old Virgin (2005) and Knocked Up (2007), Apatow has produced as well as inspired many more popular ‘adult comedies’ and ‘bro-mance comedies’ such as Forgetting Sarah Marhsall (2008), Superbad (2007), and I Love You, Man (2009). However, the anticipated release of Funny People seems to suggest that Apatow has lost his Midas touch.
 
Funny People brings funnymen Adam Sandler and Seth Rogen together in the film’s two leading roles as George Simmons and Ira Wright respectively, with a decent supporting cast including Leslie Mann, Eric Bana, Jason Schwartzman, and Jonah Hill. Unfortunately, the result is less than flattering. Sandler and Rogen have not-so-interesting characters and do not seem to click well. In fact, the supporting cast outshines the leads for most parts and this creates an uneven balance because even though the focal point of the film lies in the telling of George’s story, viewers tend to be more engaged by the sub-plots involving the supporting roles.
 
Worse, this imbalance even extends to the tonal quality of the film. It seems like Apatow suddenly lost his ability to delicately mix heartfelt drama and crude comedy in a potent formula which he so successfully perfected in Knocked Up. In Funny People, it is neither downright hilarious nor does it heavily tug our heartstrings. When the film finally ends after a mostly drab two-and-a-half hours, there is almost nothing to feel except that of disappointment.
 
Most of the genuine chuckles come sporadically from movie references such as Die Hard and James Bond which fans would enjoy. But most of the other jokes fall flat; when Apatow writes something that goes “F*** Facebook in the face!” and intends it to be uproariously funny, you know the film is going to be a struggle to sit through. The story also meanders like a tepid river; there is no clear indication as to where the narrative is heading to. Is this a story about George and his new friendship with Ira? Or is it about him revisiting and renewing his troubled relationship with Laura (Mann), the love of his life?  
 
Funny People features some good song selections which are somewhat of a consolation. Apatow, to his credit, knows how to accentuate his scenes with aural accompaniment. There are moments in the film when one might feel that something of promise may develop, that Apatow, for all the flaws of his film, could just maybe pull out half a rabbit from his hat. Alas, there is none. Funny People is a setback for Apatow, and although some critics find it to be his most mature work to date, I cannot help but hope that he finds his magic wand back real soon.

SCORE: 6/10
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Recommendations: Toy Story 3 (Lee Unkrich, 2010), To Kill a Mockingbird (Robert Mulligan, 1962), The Visitor

Singapore's Most Prolific Film Blogger @ www.filmnomenon.blogspot.com

Last updated: 2009-10-04 09:11:17 by eternality_tan