Funny People (2009, Judd Apatow)

It's unfortunate that the critical reaction to Judd Apatow's Funny People has been mixed at best thus far -- I'd hoped that the Oscar buzz that surrounded the movie prior to release would translate into actual awards gold for Apatow, striking a blow for real comedy in the stuffy world of statuette-baiting event pictures. Unfortunately, Funny People -- somewhat of a work of flawed brilliance in the ever-so-indifferent genre of disease dramas -- has eluded the critical praise that Apatow's previous efforts (Knocked Up and the 40-Year-Old Virgin, both uproarious comedic tours-de-force tempered with winning geniality and sweetness) have earned him.

Understandable, to be sure. Funny People is a difficult movie at times -- Apatow's tale of a leukemia-stricken comedy star taking on a protege is absolutely all over the place, in both narrative and tone. Still, there's a lot of good to be found here. Lead Adam Sandler, whose George Simmons is a faintly-veiled version of himself (horrible gimmick flicks and all), lays bare his comedic persona in what may be his most fully-realized performance to date; Sandler proves, like Jim Carrey and Robin Williams before him, that he's much more potent as a real person than as an overgrown, arrested-development retard onscreen, and here, he bravely makes his character intensely unlikable. Seth Rogen, meanwhile, continues his can't-lose streak, not quite topping his brilliant turn in Jody Hill's Observe and Report, but inspiring winning notices as the film's comedic center. Naive up-and-comer Ira Wright may be Rogen's most complicated role to date - he succeeds where richer George fails, morally speaking, takes a lot of crap from his would-be mentor, and even manages to give the not-so-funny moments a swig of wincing, true-to-life comedy to chase its potent pathos (watch Ira bomb on-stage -- being unfunny has rarely been so hilarious -- or watch Ira blubber uncontrollably about George's sickness. It's all uncomfortable, touching, and rewardingly funny, all at once).

But what Apatow has always needed is an objective editor -- althought his first features sustained momentum, despite epic-level runtimes for funny pictures -- and Funny People kind of stumbles around in its final act, dispensing with its other stories to concentrate on Sandler's romance with old flame Leslie Mann. (Mann is terrific, by the way -- a scene-stealer in those first two movies, she's actually a valuable member of Apatow's troupe, regardless of her real-life marriage to the director. Her appreciation for both comedic AND dramatic detail can be awe-inspiring.) A wonderfully hammy Eric Bana shows up to liven things, but it stagnates a bit -- and, theatrically, this thing is an unwieldy 2 hours 40, so eyelids may droop near the end there.

Still, there's a lot to like here: the performances are uniformly terrific, and when the comedy trots out, it's usually very funny. And I haven't even mentioned Jason Schwartzmann, who's chintzy sitcom needs to be seen to be believed. Despite a lot of pacing issues, this is a bit of a fractured masterpiece. Squeezing sentimentality out of hilarity is Apatow's bread and butter as a director, so I'm not really sure what people would have expected from this flick -- still, all told, this really shouldn't derail the Apatow train. And I wouldn't want it to -- these sort of far-from-perfect tours de force are a necessity in today's stagnant comic world.

Rating: **** (out of five)

Drillbit Taylor (2008, Steven Brill)

Aaaand the Apatow comedy brand barrels full-steam ahead. This time around, three put-upon kids hire Owen Wilson-- a vagrant conman masquerading as a troubled veteran with a master's in ass-kicking-- to ward off their high-school intimidator, a wild-eyed, legally emancipated ("he's above the law!") neo-bully named Filkins. It's a PG-13 high school comedy-- you'd be right to be skeptical.

But Drillbit Taylor isn't nearly as bad as the general public would have you believe. While certain scenes may remind you of an edited-for-tv Superbad-- that's right, the gangly awkward kid and the chubby motormouth even have their own McLovin-- there's startling enjoyment to be found here. Sure, the best gags aren't up to even the throwaways in Pineapple Express or older sib Superbad, but of the recent litany of flicks with Judd Apatow's inimitable fingerprints on it, it's right up there with Walk Hard in the category of "not a classic, but better than Zohan."

This movie hinges on the kids. Owen tries-- he's always fun to watch, isn't he? well, except for I Spy-- but he's not really the star of this particular show. The kids are the surprising element here-- engaging, full of heart, and funny. Very funny, in fact. Jonah Hill-in-training Troy Gentile is the show-stealer here-- one part foul (PG-13 foul, at least) know-it-all, one part gangsta posturing-- but Nate Hartley has a few fantastic moments as Gentile's gawky partner-in-crime. He's the movie's soul when it's all over with-- his performance is the most heartfelt, the most real. Also, the Junior McLovin here is the creepy son from The Ring. Even Alex Frost is great as the bully. He gets this scary look in his eyes like someone told him he was the villain in the new X-Men movie, but the contrast kinda works here. His bad guy is one who earns his inevitable comeuppance. He has this great standoff with Hartley, mid-movie, that actually warrants some excitement, and it's cool.

It's ashame, kind of, that the adults are so forgettable. The greener thespians here run rings around their seasoned counterparts. Wilson fares the best, but he's hardly at the top of his game, and elsewhere, lots of exciting names show up in pretty flat minor roles. Stephen Root gets a few chuckles as an oblivious principal, but Leslie Mann, so memorable in Knocked Up and 40-Year-Old Virgin, here disappoints as Wilson's drooling galpal, disappointingly expendable. Even Danny McBride, a scene-stealer in high-profile comedies like Pineapple Express and Tropic Thunder, fails to land a good laugh. Actually, it's Frank Whaley, of all people, in a fleeting cameo as an auditioning bodyguard, who makes the biggest impression, but after his twitchy turn as a creepster motel owner in Vacancy, I'm lobbying for more roles for that dude anyway.

The script begs some inevitable questions. Drillbit's substitute teacher charade becomes even more preposterous when some of his homeless buddies show up for work, and even the film's central conceit is suspect: what's more emasculating, taking your knocks from a bully, or having to call in the adult cavalry to stave him off? Still, the movie's a lot more charming than I would've anticipated, and as lesser Apatow (weird how we still call them Apatow movies when he's only directed two features, huh? dude's got the comedic world under his thumb right now), it works in that dialed-down, reduced-raunch Superbad sorta way.

Plus, flick gets major props for: 1.) avoiding the obvious, mawkish, "violence solves nothing" sentiment that similar movies would've taken, and 2.) featuring a rap battle as a central turning point. If more movies had rap battles, cinema would flourish a little bit more, I think. Might've even liked The Happening if it'd had a rap battle.

Rating: *** (out of five)