Funny People (2009)

Director:

Judd Apatow

Writer (WGA):

Judd Apatow (written by)

Release Date:

31 July 2009 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama

Plot:

When seasoned comedian George Simmons learns of his terminal, inoperable health condition, his desire to form a genuine friendship cause him to take a relatively green performer under his wing as his opening act.

Plot Keywords:

Stand Up Comedian | Male Bonding | Peanut Butter | Reference To Robin Williams | Cheating

Awards:

2 nominations

Cast

Adam Sandler	...	George Simmons
Seth Rogen	...	Ira Wright
Leslie Mann	...	Laura
Eric Bana	...	Clarke
Jonah Hill	...	Leo Koenig
Jason Schwartzman	...	Mark Taylor Jackson
Aubrey Plaza	...	Daisy
Maude Apatow	...	Mable
Iris Apatow	...	Ingrid
RZA	...	Chuck
Aziz Ansari	...	Randy
Torsten Voges	...	Dr. Lars
Allan Wasserman	...	Dr. Stevens
Rod Man	...	Himself
Wayne Federman	...	Comedy & Magic Manager

Also Known As:

Untitled Judd Apatow/Adam Sandler Project (USA) (working title)

MPAA:

Rated R for language and crude sexual humor throughout, and some sexuality.

Runtime:

146 min | 153 min (unrated version)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

USA:R (certificate #45381) | Canada:18A (British Columbia) | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:14A (Manitoba/Ontario) | Canada:18A (Alberta/British Columbia) | UK:15 | Australia:MA | Ireland:16 | Singapore:M18 | New Zealand:R16 | Switzerland:14 (canton of Vaud) | Switzerland:14 (canton of Geneva) | Finland:K-13 | Ireland:15 (video rating) | Sweden:7 | Mexico:B15

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles International Airport - 1 World Way, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Universal Pictures

Trivia:

Leslie Mann plays mother to her real-life daughters (with director Judd Apatow) Maude Apatow and Iris Apatow, just as she did in Knocked Up (2007).

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible: When Ira is talking to George while he is trying to fall asleep, you can see equipment in the background.

Quotes:

Leo: You son of a bitch! Why didn't you tell me George Simmons wanted us to write jokes for him?

Movie Connections:

References The Last Detail (1973)

Soundtrack:

Keep Me In Your Heart

Flawed and Meandering Yet Still a Worthwhile Look Inside a Stand-Up Comic's Mind

The psyche of the stand-up comedian is the subject of Judd Apatow's third and most ambitious directorial effort, but the elliptical, rather skewed characters that inhabit this serious-minded 2009 comedy obscure the personal revelations that he ironically attempts to mine. In certain ways, it's a dramatically audacious film, yet in others, Apatow comes back to the comfortably off-kilter humor of his previous ensemble efforts, "The 40-Year-Old Virgin" and "Knocked Up". Sometimes the balance feels very off here, primarily because the protagonist is so hard to read from the outside. It was inevitable that the director cast his former roommate Adam Sandler as George Simmons, a comic who has become a major movie star based on the type of juvenilia he constantly ridicules. Sandler accurately captures both the demented comedy mind and the innate cruelty that keeps everyone at arm's length. It's a tricky part that has quite a few autobiographical elements for both director and star, but he plays it with melancholic deftness.

The meandering plot begins with George receiving bad news. He finds out he's dying of a rare blood disease and recognizes a need to reassess his priorities. George spots a struggling young comic, Ira Wright, at a local comedy club and hires him to write material and become his gopher. They bond quickly, and Ira becomes George's confidant, the only one who knows of his fatal diagnosis. Ira also has two roommates, another stand-up comic and an actor who has already caught his break starring as a teacher in a high school-set sitcom. Both become envious of Ira's budding relationship with George. Meanwhile, an old flame reenters George's life, Laura, a former actress who has turned into a suburbanite married to an Aussie exporter and raising two daughters in Marin County. Sparks are rekindled, and relationships start to get messy all around. As both writer and director, Apatow handles the situations dexterously but excessively. The film runs on far too long at a marathon 153 minutes and then simply trails off.

Newly trimmed down, Apatow protégé Seth Rogen plays his familiar dweebish persona as Ira, although he brings more depth to his submissive character with each humiliating act. Leslie Mann, Apatow's wife, has been promoted to leading lady this time as Laura, and she excels with her endearingly brittle style. In another justified act of nepotism, the director recruited their children to play the two precocious daughters. Jonah Hill and Jason Schwartzman play the roommates with their usual deadpan aplomb. The film's biggest surprise is the usually dour Eric Bana ("Munich") lightening up quite a bit as Laura's suspicious husband. Cameos from well-known comics (Ray Romano, Andy Dick, Paul Reiser, Sarah Silverman, etc.) and even comic turns from the likes of Eminem and James Taylor are sprinkled throughout to give the film an air of Hollywood-style realism. The esteemed cinematographer Janusz Kaminski ("Saving Private Ryan", "Schindler's List") provides the film a bright, sharp look throughout.

The two-disc 2009 DVD set smacks of overkill, but there are highlights to consider, chief among them the amusing commentary from Apatow, Sandler, and Rogen, in which they hilariously separate fact from fiction. The first disc also contains a four-minute gag reel. Disc Two contains 21 minutes of deleted scenes; six extended and alternate scenes; another gag reel; and a line-o-rama, a standard extra on Apatow's DVDs where the actors riff on the same lines for maximum comic effect. A lengthy, one-hour-plus video diary from the director is the centerpiece of Disc Two. Other featurettes center on Aziz Ansari's obnoxious stand-up comic; archival footage of Sandler and a thirteen-year-old Rogen; and a faux-documentary on George Simmons' film career. There are also music clips from Taylor, as well as Sandler performing with musician Jon Brion.