The Funny Thing About "Funny People"

Whether you're a fan or hater of the brand of comedy Judd Apatow breathes out nearly every year, you've gotta admit a summer feels empty without seeing one of his "boy-man" stars awkwardly grace the poster in the theater, basking in a glow that suggests they're either an aging virgin or a scraggly loser who forgets to wear protection. After familiarizing myself with "The 40-Year Old Virgin," "Knocked Up," "Superbad," "Forgetting Sarah Marshall," and "Pineapple Express," I seemed kind of intrigued by Apatow's latest edition to his gang of misfit adults that dealt more with the implications of dying and the sudden second chance of "making things right with those in your life." That, and with the frankness of the stand-up comedic lifestyle as the template seemed like the perfect balance to make this movie a success.
Now, with that introduction out of the way, comes my thoughts: "Funny People" was not a bad movie. It wasn't great, but the little charming moments of Seth Rogen talking Adam Sandler to sleep with humorous insights and the rugged Sandler carrying lines under his eyes and a gray tint in his hair (kind of the comedian version of Mickey Rourke in "The Wrestler) really separted this film from Apatow's other sharp, screwball comedies without deviating too far from his raunchy, yet clever style of humour.
My beef with it was that the film felt like it was split into two parts: one, an almost "cinema verite" look behind the scenes of stand-up comedy where Sandler plays giant George Simmons who hires Ira Wright (Seth Rogen) to write him comedy pieces, and two, a romantic comedy turn with Sandler lodged at the bottom of Laura's (Leslie Mann) and Clarke's (Eric Bana's) love triangle with Rogen as the moral side-kick along for the ride. It's this second half I didn't really care for. Where I was sympathetic towards Laura (Sandler's ex-girlfriend whom he regrettably cheated on) for her willingness to renew a friendship with Sandler, the second half of the movie turned her into a indecisive manipulator who was lacking the integrity she had at the beginning. Apatow seems to struggle quite a bit in the "strong female leads" department (I'm not saying that he needs to make all the women smart and the men their dubious inferior, but at least give these girls a steady head on their shoulders). He needs to learn how to pin down the "method to a woman's madness" rather than letting his female characters go on a dramatic tirade without any logical motive.
While the first half had a steady hook and rise as Rogen becomes the unassuming assistant to Sandler's comedy routines as he battles his uncertain leukemia, the second act lacked the depth of the stand-up world Apatow had set up and instead kind of washed up on the shallow end where Sandler's progressive reconciliation with Laura concludes apathetically. The final ending (possible SPOILER) did bring the film "full circle," as they say, when Sandler meets Rogen at his deli job and offers to shape up his comedy routine where before he had resisted with, "Why should I help you? No one helped me when I started out." To add a little cheese, I think that was the "moral of the story": Sandler realizes how much help he really needed, and in return, decides to help those he had once turned away.

Bottom Line: While the movie had its ups and downs, I think the ups are enough to make this movie worth seeing.

PROS:
1. Seth Rogen minus 20 pounds & beard -- Okay, I'm not saying that everyone needs to be super-Hollywood-Skeletor-skinny, but it was kind of a nice change to see Rogen not as the pathetic, bush-hair, father-to-be but as a sincere, average guy who doesn't act like a teenage boy.
2. Eminem and Ray Ramona -- SPOILER ALERT! Sort of. While Sandler is trying to remain low key while celebrating his winning battle against death, Eminem goes off on Ray Ramona for watching him across the room. You just have to see it.
3. Comedy montages and Sandler's cinematic history -- The stand-up bits were witty and hilarious (if not, very coarse), and the references to George Simmon's movies ("Re-Do" and "Merman") added a nice touch, as they didn't seem too far off from some of the real-life films Adam Sandler has made.
4. Leslie Mann's impersonation of Eric Bana's Australian accent -- Need I say more? Plus, I think this is one of Eric Bana's more likeable roles.
5. The two little girls -- There seems to be the same two little girls in every Apatow-directed movie, am I right? Well, I don't care. They were cute.
6. James Taylor's brief cursing -- I'll spoil it if I say it here, but if you saw the movie, you'll know what I mean.

CONS:
1. "I will always love you." -- Gahhh! I absolutely HATED it when Laura said that to George right after choosing her husband over him. Look, I know women can be indecisive, but come on! At least create some bit of closure.
2. Laura and George's little affair -- I don't know, this just annoyed me, mainly because of the after affects.


RATING:
OUT OF 5