Monday, July 27, 2009

Funny People: A Pre-Screening Prediction

It's still very early, but Judd Apatow's newest flick, Funny People, has a perfect score on Rotten Tomatoes (8 out of 8 as of this writing). That score is going to go down, but not enough to make me skip it. Like every other twenty-something, I'm a huge Judd Apatow fan. 40 Year Old Virgin and Knocked Up were both fantastic.

What I can't figure out is why this man is already hearing whispers of award nominations for his performance in Funny People. The closest Adam Sandler has come to generating nomination buzz was for his unforgettable portrayal of Schecky Moskowitz in Going Overboard (aka Babes Ahoy - thanks, IMDB).

No, it was actually for his role as Barry Egan in Punch Drunk Love, which had everything you'd want in an award-worthy film: it was dramatic, heartfelt, and boring to the max. Funny People is already being called "The funniest movie of the year," and we all know how awards committees feel about comedies. So how in the name of Longfellow Deeds is Adam Sandler's performance worthy of an award? If I had seen the movie already, this is where I'd type ***!!!SPOILER ALERT!!!*** but since I haven't, this is just an educated guess that I'm putting forth. It's not much of a reach.

The facts:
  • Funny People is a Judd Apatow comedy. Great movies, not typically award-worthy.
  • Adam Sandler's character has cancer in Funny People.
  • It's safe to say that, up until this point, Sandler is not widely considered to be a great actor.
  • Adam "Little Nicky" Sandler apparently gives a performance worthy of recognition.


The obvious conclusion:
  • Sandler's character makes like Marley, Old Yeller and the dog in "I Am Legend" and dies in Funny People.


The signs are all there. Funny People is an Apatow effort that is "more mature," "brave," and "personal." In other words, somebody's gonna die. If an actor's character dies during a movie, that actor is roughly eleventy billion times more likely to receive an award for the performance. Sandler's performance in Funny People is getting the most attention. His character has cancer. Like I said, not much of a reach.

Get ready for a Judd Apatow tearjerker, everybody.

1 comment:

  1. Are you kidding me? Adam Sandler is a phenomenal actor. Didn't you see 50 First Dates?

    All joking aside - He may not be a great actor, but he makes me laugh. So "green jacket, gold jacket, who gives a shit?"

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