Funny People

2 hours, 26 minutes

Starring: Adam Sandler, Seth Rogan, Leslie Mann, Eric Bana, Jonah Hill, and Jason Schwartzman.

The man himself, Judd Apatow is back. Funny People tells the story of comedian George Simmons who finds himself afflicted with a terrible and ultimately life threatening disease. As a result, he turns to amature comedian Ira Wright to help him with his stand-up. We follow George and his journey navigating through death showing us the true sorrow and comedy of it all.

I did enjoy this movie, overall. However, the story and structure is extremely disjointed. There is a large cast of characters that are followed beyond George Simmons. Ira Wright learns and grows a lot as a comedian and a person throughout his experience working for George. Some of the most entertaining moments came from Ira’s roommates, played by Jonah Hill and Jason Schwartzman, who are also aspiring actors. Even more complications arise when George’s former girlfriend comes back into his life. She’s married with children and perhaps they are getting a little too close.

The movie is split down into two very separate films. The first half is George, Ira, and the roommates going through life and figuring it all out. Some of the profound moments ever caught on films comes from the portrait painted of George, an extremely funny and tortured man. Suddenly a shift takes place and the film is all about George winning his girl back. The tones feel completely different. When the shift occurred, I felt myself sitting there wondering what this movie is really about. The message seemed so loud a clear going into it, but by the time the credits were rolling I had no idea what I was supposed to walk away with.

The comedy is top notch. Although the movie feels like a collection of moments rather than having a single cohesive story, the moments are feel worth the ticket. Not to mention the many celebrity cameos are wonderful.

Eric Bana is the best thing about the entire movie. Granted he doesn’t even show up until half way through, but you won’t be disappointed.

The thing is, we are used to seeing a very specific kind of movie from Judd Apatow and this one is a little different. I think that had the movie continued on the path and tone of the first half of the movie, completely ditching the full ex-girlfriend story-line, this film would’ve been something very special.

3 out of 5

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