Product: Death At A Funeral [Blu-ray] (2007)
Rating: 3.0
"Death at a Funeral": a British Farce
I don't exactly know what makes (some, if not all) British comedies so attractive, but to me the biggest reason is talented actors and witty script. I don't know Frank Oz-directed "Death at a Funeral" should be really called "British" comedy, but it certainly has an impressive list of actors including Matthew Macfadyen and Keeley Hawes. Interestingly, the film's script (penned by Dean Craig) looks as if heavily revised by the directors of "There's Something About Mary." Not exactly a bad thing, though."Death at a Funeral" opens with one embarrassing (and funny) mistake done to the body of recently deceased father of Daniel (Matthew Macfadyen) Through the slow and rather talky opening chapters, the film introduces a group of characters gathering for the funeral of Daniel's father. But among the people there is one person no one seems to know, and one of the family members suddenly starts to act strangely after taking a pill. Daniel has many things to worry about and one of them is about the "death at his father's funeral."Don't expect Andrew Davies or Richard Curtis here. Or "The Trouble with Harry," either. "Death at a Funeral" is more like a farce and it delivers the goods. As the film's story goes on, it becomes more and more ridiculous and absurd. The comedy is mostly about toilet jokes (literally), nude jokes, jokes about hallucinogenic drug and so on. Just keep in mind that the director is responsible for "In & Out" and Kevin Kline was so brilliant in the otherwise ordinary comedy.And so are the actors in "Death at a Funeral." The film relies on old materials, but the gifted actors barely make it watchable. Perhaps whether you like it or depends on the mood you are in.