Honestly, movies this summer haven’t been too hot. Of course, there have been a few gems (Up, Star Trek). But overall, it’s been a flood of mediocrity or worse since May (I’m looking @ you Michael Mann). Despite this, I had really high hopes for Judd Apatow’s third directorial effort, Funny People. Considering how much I loved The 40 Year Old Virgin and Knocked Up, I had little reason to doubt that Apatow would pull off the hat-trick.
First things first: The film’s somewhat misleading marketing campaign. Universal is priming people for a balls-out comedy ala Superbad while Apatow has delivered something that delves further into drama than any of his previous works. But don’t be scared away! The film still delivers the zingers and one-liners that will have you rolling with laughter. It’s a testament to Apatow’s abilities that he’s able to effectively juggle these opposing tones. I’m a little perplexed reading other reviews that complain about it’s overly serious tone. I personally thought the film succeeded as much as a comedy as it did as a drama.
Like Apatow’s two previous films, the film has heart. The characters are fleshed out and feel like real people, flaws and all. The cast is solid all-around. Adam Sandler has been getting positive critical notices for portraying a bizarro version of himself, but I was more impressed w/ Seth Rogen. While he usually aces the slacker/comedic part, Rogen here is very much the straight man and comes across as very warm and likable. He and Sandler share excellent chemistry which proves to be the backbone of the film’s first 2/3. We may be getting into nepotism territory w/ Leslie Mann, but she does a good enough job. However, she was much stronger in Knocked Up. Another bright spot is Eric Bana, who finally gets to use his real Australian accent and have some fun, instead of brooding all the time. I was dying to see Bana on screen and when he finally showed up, I relished every one of his lines.
A lot of people have reacted negatively to the film’s last 45 minutes. While I agree that it doesn’t live up to the first 2/3, I didn’t have a major problem with it. True, I would have rather stuck with Sandler/Rogen’s relationship, but what we got was interesting in it’s own right. One thing I did appreciate about the film is how it rejected the traditional three act structure. It seems more of an amalgam of two stories joined relatively well. I applaud Apatow for taking things in a different direction, but it may not have been executed as perfectly as he planned. Another complaint is the long running time of 146 minutes. No doubt, this long for a dramedy, and Apatow should have shown more restraint by cutting 20 or so minutes. But funnily enough, despite the long run-time, the ending still seemed too abrupt and rushed for my liking.
Despite some flaws, Funny People is ultimately a very strong film that exemplifies the evolution of Judd Apatow as a filmmaker. Not only is the film technically well-made (the cinematography by Spielberg’s DP Janusz Kaminski elevates the look of this one above Apatow’s previous), but it is definitely Apatow’s most personal and mature work to date. While currently have it below Virgin and Knocked Up because it’s more problematic, I have a feeling that future repeat viewings will improve my opinion of the film even more. In the end, I appreciate the fact that Apatow didn’t play it safe and make the same movie again. In a time where awful movies like Transformers 2 makes an obscene amount of undeserving money, films like Funny People help cheer me up by showcasing smart writing and real characters worth watching. Definitely one of the better movies of this summer.
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