Director: Judd Apatow
Notable Cast: Adam Sandler, Seth Rogen, Leslie Mann, Eric Bana, Jonah Hill and Jason Schwartzman, Aubrey Plaza
Comedians are king when it comes to self-deprecation. They have to be; it’s like their calling card. From making jokes about family members, some of which are probably 50-50 truthful, to the usual brevity of sex and other vices, stand-up comedy is a tough racket. Judd Apatow knows from experience, having tried to make people laugh ever since childhood. Funny People, his third feature as a director (following The 40-Year-Old Virgin and Knocked Up), is semi-autobiographical in a sense. It’s about his experiences as a struggling comic in L.A. Apatow doesn’t strain for laughs as if he were sweating through five minutes at the Improv. He hits the funny bone hard while mixing in morality.
Adam Sandler plays George Simmons, a comic who became a smashing success on the stand-up circuit and because of a number of big, dumb, formulaic comedies. Call it the “Eddie Murphy effect.” But when he finds out he has a rare blood disease that could be terminal, the invisible clown make-up flakes away to reveal sadness. He’s had a fun life, just not a fulfilling one. He lives alone. Excommunicated his family. (It is mentioned briefly that George spent his life trying to win the affection of his father through comedy.) The friends he has are fellow comedians who he screws around with; no one he would call close.
The success that George Simmons has cannot be said of Ira Wright (Seth Rogen), an up-and-comer on the comedy circuit that works a grocery deli counter and shares an apartment with two friends. All three are comedians: Leo (Jonah Hill) performs stand-up at the Improv; Mark (Jason Schwartzman) flaunts the $25,000 checks he gets from starring in the fictional NBC sitcom, Yo Teach! Both Leo and Mark are climbing the ladder of success. Ira is stuck on the bottom rung, sleeping on a pullout couch.
Ira’s luck changes when he performs after George crashes and burns with a dour little comedy routine. The stand-up comedy rust was showing in George, who had just started performing again for the feel of it. George stays around long enough to see Ira mocking him in his set. It was good, but George sees potential for a better act. As encouragement he gives Ira the opportunity of a lifetime: to be his personal assistant and joke writer. Ira has no problems being George’s errand boy and sounding board.
The first two acts is the bonding relationship between the two comedians. Feeling he doesn’t have much time to live, George makes the best of his remaining days. Isolated in opulence, George shows Ira how fame can get you almost anything. Fame also makes you do crazy things, like push the love of your life away. Her name was Laura (Leslie Mann). She’s moved on – married to an Aussie named Clarke (Eric Bana) and the mother of two girls. Once his confidante, George believes that broken embraces can still be fixed. There’s still enough time.
Funny People is not a perfect comedy, but it doesn’t fall victim of being a formula dramedy either. The trailer spoils the revelation that George’s medical condition might not be life threatening after all. This was Apatow’s intent. Instead of a eureka moment to which George sees that there’s more to life than fame and success, the illness issue is not sentimental. So even with a second chance at life, it doesn’t necessarily mean George Simmons will be a nice guy.
The first two-thirds of the film is documents the inner workings of the comedy club culture. So it makes sense to cast not just actors but comedians to show the interplay and competiveness that goes on. Judd Apatow even pencils in a small scene at the Palm where George Simmons, in celebratory mode after his positive medical news, hangs out with Paul Reiser, Sarah Silverman, Dave Atell, Ray Romano and Eminem. Yes, Eminem. Let’s just say that not everybody loves Raymond.
The last act loses steam as it involves George and Ira traveling up to Marin County to see Laura. And it just stays there for the better part of thirty minutes. Even Ira asks George at one point, “what are we doing here?” Others in the audience will second that motion. Apatow is no stranger when it comes to lengthy comedies. This one clocks in at two hours and twenty-odd minutes.
Regardless of length and a clunky finale, Funny People is loaded with smartly written (if not ad-libbed) dialogue and one-liners – a staple for winning comedies. This is truly Adam Sandler’s best performance in a film where Judd Apatow channels the works of James L. Brooks (Broadcast News, As Good As it Gets) in mixing comedy with drama. It is his first half-serious picture and it is a well-observed piece of stand-up comedy and transgressions. As good as Sandler is at being funny but lacking sympathy, Seth Rogen’s character has the more complete story arc. In the beginning he’s an equal to Sandler, but by the end of the picture he’s regulated to supporting duties. It’s apparent that Apatow wanted to expand Rogen’s character, because he even sets up a romantic relationship between Ira and a female comic named Daisy (Aubrey Plaza). Would have liked to have seen a follow through.
Judd Apatow is smart enough to know that his comedies don’t need conventional wisdom to win us over. Just make us laugh. Funny People does just that.
FINAL RATING (ON A SCALE OF 1-5 BUCKETS):
