Written and Directed by Judd Apatow
Synopsis (taken from IMDB.com)
George Simmons (Adam Sandler) is a very successful yet self-involved stand-up comedian who learns that he has an incurable blood disorder and is given less than a year to live. Ira Wright (Weiner is his actual last name) (Seth Rogen) is a struggling up-and-coming stand-up comedian who works at a deli and has yet to figure out his onstage persona. One thing these different men have in common is that neither of them have any close friends. One night, George takes notice of Ira when they perform at the same club and he hires him to be his semi-personal assistant and opening act at his performances. George and Ira form a close bond as George teaches Ira how to win the crowd and Ira helps the dying George find closure in his legacy. However, when George learns that his disease has gone into remission and an old flame (Leslie Mann) reenters his life, his recent near death experience inspires him to reevaluate what is important to him and what truly gives meaning to his life.
George Simmons (Adam Sandler) is a very successful yet self-involved stand-up comedian who learns that he has an incurable blood disorder and is given less than a year to live. Ira Wright (Weiner is his actual last name) (Seth Rogen) is a struggling up-and-coming stand-up comedian who works at a deli and has yet to figure out his onstage persona. One thing these different men have in common is that neither of them have any close friends. One night, George takes notice of Ira when they perform at the same club and he hires him to be his semi-personal assistant and opening act at his performances. George and Ira form a close bond as George teaches Ira how to win the crowd and Ira helps the dying George find closure in his legacy. However, when George learns that his disease has gone into remission and an old flame (Leslie Mann) reenters his life, his recent near death experience inspires him to reevaluate what is important to him and what truly gives meaning to his life.
Take One! (Chris)
Funny People defiantly lives up to it's name because it does in fact feature a ton of funny people, they just aren't being as funny as they should be. Granted it is a dramedy but come on. With a cast that includes Adam Sandler, Seth Rogan, and a cameo from just about every relevant comedian in the past ten years you would think they could come up with a wider array of jokes. Don't get me wrong I love a good dick joke every now and again but literally eighty five percent of the jokes involved balls or man on man cock sucking, oh and Seth Rogan is still jewish just in case you forgot.
You will get double your investment on your ticket seeing as the plot plays out like a double feature. One and a half hours of a young comedian's shot of a life time to befriend a comedy icon and another hour and a half of Seth Rogan and Adam Sandler yelling at each other via dick jokes in Sandler's ex's house.
Don't get me wrong I know I sound like I'm ripping this movie a new asshole but it is actually pretty good just don't expect to laugh your ass off or feel any real emotions for the characters during the serious parts. It does have some funny jokes when they are not about dicks and the acting is actually pretty good, not that it's really a stretch for anyone but I have to say something nice.
Over all I say wait until it's available at Wal-Mart sharing a three pack with “Going Overboard” and “The Longest Yard”.
-Chris
You will get double your investment on your ticket seeing as the plot plays out like a double feature. One and a half hours of a young comedian's shot of a life time to befriend a comedy icon and another hour and a half of Seth Rogan and Adam Sandler yelling at each other via dick jokes in Sandler's ex's house.
Don't get me wrong I know I sound like I'm ripping this movie a new asshole but it is actually pretty good just don't expect to laugh your ass off or feel any real emotions for the characters during the serious parts. It does have some funny jokes when they are not about dicks and the acting is actually pretty good, not that it's really a stretch for anyone but I have to say something nice.
Over all I say wait until it's available at Wal-Mart sharing a three pack with “Going Overboard” and “The Longest Yard”.
-Chris
Take Two! (Jon)
Judd freaking Apatow. When he busted onto the movie scene in 2005 after a critically (but often canceled) TV career, I doubt anyone expected his name to pop up everywhere. In addition to his two previous films, 40 Year Old Virgin and Knocked Up, he has produced or co-wrote seemingly every decent (and not so decent) comedy to come out in the past four years. The simple fact is, he is everywhere, like a gnat but a gnat with a sense of humor. His third film as a director, Funny People, has a great cast and a pretty decent plot, with enough heart to break him out of the dirty comedy realm and bring him to a more mainstream, maybe even award winning area in his career. However, when it comes to the actual movie, it falls apart.
First off, it’s too long. While the case can be made that his previous two efforts were also lengthy, they did not feel that way. With Funny People, you feel it about twenty minutes in. The film feels like it is lacking direction, like it wants to be a serious film, but at the same time make crude jokes. While there may be a mix somewhere, this is not it. Because of this, it is hard to get invested in the story, because for every dramatic breakthrough, there is a horribly tacked on dick joke or sex joke thrown in. The jokes, usually the bright parts, become distracting.
The cast is top-notch for the most part: Adam Sandler, Seth Rogen, and even Mrs. Apatow do really well in this movie. However, Jason Schwartzman sticks out like a sore thumb. Sure, he is supposed to be the dick (he plays the only comedian in the group with a steady job on TV), but he feels so out of place in the group. I think the audience as a whole has grown too accustomed to the Apatow group of actors that anyone else feels wedged in.
The worst problem of the film is the fact that it feels like two movies. In the beginning, George (Adam Sandler) is dying and the film revolves around he and Seth’s character Ira getting close and him making the most of his days. Then, all of a sudden he is almost cured (not a spoiler, it’s in the trailer) and it becomes George trying to get his old fiancé back (Mrs. Apatow, with the mini-Apatows getting the benefit of nepotism). It does not connect and the second half drags down any of the good that the first half had.
All in all, do not see this if you’re expecting another 40 Year Old Virgin or Knocked Up. It is nothing like it. It is a drama that wants to be funny and a comedy that wants to be taken seriously and because of it, it never finds its true footing. However, there may be enough to either see it in a matinee or a rental. Regardless, Apatow has set the bar low for his fourth directorial stint, so maybe this was a good thing. Too bad he didn’t use any of his good on such a wonderful cast and idea.
-Jon
First off, it’s too long. While the case can be made that his previous two efforts were also lengthy, they did not feel that way. With Funny People, you feel it about twenty minutes in. The film feels like it is lacking direction, like it wants to be a serious film, but at the same time make crude jokes. While there may be a mix somewhere, this is not it. Because of this, it is hard to get invested in the story, because for every dramatic breakthrough, there is a horribly tacked on dick joke or sex joke thrown in. The jokes, usually the bright parts, become distracting.
The cast is top-notch for the most part: Adam Sandler, Seth Rogen, and even Mrs. Apatow do really well in this movie. However, Jason Schwartzman sticks out like a sore thumb. Sure, he is supposed to be the dick (he plays the only comedian in the group with a steady job on TV), but he feels so out of place in the group. I think the audience as a whole has grown too accustomed to the Apatow group of actors that anyone else feels wedged in.
The worst problem of the film is the fact that it feels like two movies. In the beginning, George (Adam Sandler) is dying and the film revolves around he and Seth’s character Ira getting close and him making the most of his days. Then, all of a sudden he is almost cured (not a spoiler, it’s in the trailer) and it becomes George trying to get his old fiancé back (Mrs. Apatow, with the mini-Apatows getting the benefit of nepotism). It does not connect and the second half drags down any of the good that the first half had.
All in all, do not see this if you’re expecting another 40 Year Old Virgin or Knocked Up. It is nothing like it. It is a drama that wants to be funny and a comedy that wants to be taken seriously and because of it, it never finds its true footing. However, there may be enough to either see it in a matinee or a rental. Regardless, Apatow has set the bar low for his fourth directorial stint, so maybe this was a good thing. Too bad he didn’t use any of his good on such a wonderful cast and idea.
-Jon
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