The Funny People

Funny People relies on its well equipped cast and crew to pull laughs out of a dark and depressing plot-line. It’s hard to describe a laugh-a-minute comedy as a story that centers around a home-wrecking, lonely man who is dying from a terminal illness. But somehow Apatow’s ever present penis jokes and traditional cast pull it off. I’m a fan of the Apatow crowd and Funny People does a great job expanding the stable and letting a few new comediennes into the group of familiar faces. Adam Sander fits right in and adds his distinctive flavor to the movie. Its not old toll-booth-Willie-Sandler and it’s not Punch-Drunk-Love Sandler either- it’s a believable mix of aged comedian and it fits the tone of the film perfectly.

The movie’s direction and tone take a few interesting turns, but it starts out as an homage to Sandler and his past efforts through his career, thinly veiled as a tribute to his character who is all but Sandler in name. The use of real-life clips from past efforts really adds to the realism of the character. As well as cameos and bit-parts that make it feel like the audience is being let into the secret world of comedy that only ‘funny people’ know about. The support from Rogan and co. is top-notch and the whole movie feels as real as one can expect. A far cry from the Will Ferrell ‘scream-comedy-romps’ that are all too common these days. I did tire of the cameos after a point however, primarily because they weren’t that funny.

There are a few scenes where we see a bunch of comedians from across the board like Sarah Silverman and Dave Attell to Andy Dick and Paul Reiser just sitting around being ‘hilarious’. Unfortunately it feels like an inside joke and little more than validating the comedians implied humor supremacy.

That said its a small taint on a otherwise very enjoyable film. I was expecting something less demanding and more situational as far as the comedy goes, but I am honestly glad that Funny People is as weighty as it is. Hardly an emotional roller coaster by any means, but enough drama mixed into the hilarious jokes and charming cast to pull out a win.