REELGUYS REEL REVIEW:
"Funny People" is funny but way-too long
Maine Connection: The Bedford, New Hampshire native, stand-up comedian and television personality Sarah Silverman makes a cameo in the movie along with several other stand-up comedians. Bedford, NH is approximately 53 miles from the Maine border and less than an hour's drive.
"Funny People" is a melodramatic comedy about the lives of stand-up comedians starring Adam Sandler and Seth Rogan. This is the third directorial effort for Judd Apatow (after "40-Year Old Virgin" and "Knocked Up") but his impact on the comedy world is much more far-reaching. Apatow revitalized the R-rated comedy, mixing profanity, social commentary, and focused storytelling to appeal to a wider audience than the rating would normally attract. His writing, production credits, and proteges, like Rogan, Paul Rudd ("Role Models"), and Jason Segel ("Forgetting Sarah Marshall") have dominated the Hollywood comedy machine for the last half decade. In "Funny People" Apatow tries for a more serious take on his material, exposing the empty life of a star who's been diagnosed with a terminal illness. Mixing drama and comedy, Apatow creates a protracted film that, while humorous, loses that special Apatow spark two-thirds of the way through.
Sandler stars as George Simmons, a movie star and celebrated comedian. When he is diagnosed with an incurable ailment, he doubts his frivolous life of stardom. Simmons decides to return to stand-up comedy, hiring an assistant to write his jokes. Ira (Rogan), a struggling comedian, is hired as the assistant after Simmons watches him mock the rather morbid act of the star. Working for the top name in comedy becomes more complex when Ira becomes friend and moral compass to Simmons. George's interest in his ex-fiance, Laura (Leslie Mann; "17 Again"), causes a chain of events which leads Ira to question his career's future.
Ira's roommates, played by Apatow regular Jonah Hill and character actor Jason Schwartzman, add important moments of levity and playfulness to an otherwise dark tale. Hill continues to be funny with his reliable delivery and Schwartzman creates another unique character, who's subtle humor works well against the more bombastic jokes of his co-stars. Mann is one of the few women in Apatow comedies that can comically spar with the best male comedians, however her role is more serious and limited in this outing. Several comedians make cameos in the film, creating the sub-culture in which George Simmons lives.
Sandler plays a much different character than normal; he is depressed and somber until he is asked to perform his schtick. The moments of more cerebral and thoughtful humor work better for Sandler in this movie than his occasional childish antics. I was more impressed, ultimately, with Rogan's performance as the friend and assistant. Rogan tones down his more insensitive behaviors to be the wide-eyed apprentice of the master comedian. Rogan still manages to be the most consistently funny person in the movie but doesn't let the jokes override his role as moral indicator.
While "Funny People" avoids a few common Hollywood cliches, it does allow the story and characters to linger too long. Trying to bridge the dramatic and comedic gaps, there is just too much story to tell, creating a two and a half hour marathon instead of a sprint or leisurely jog. It does not measure up to Apatow's two previous times behind the camera, perhaps because those stories were more sensibly paced and did not try to attain so much. I liked "Funny People" but it felt too dense to be re-watch friendly like his prior efforts.
Rated R for language and crude sexual humor throughout, and some sexuality.
