Wednesday, April 4, 2012

It's Kind of a Funny Story (2010)

There are a few shining moments in this movie, but overall it suffers from all the typical symptoms of the "quirky indie movie." The characters are all a little too cute, the dialogue a little too snappy, the situations a little too eccentric. Setting the movie in the mental illness ward of a hospital just means it feels a little uncomfortable to see these tropes applied to people who aren't just "quirky," they have genuine issues that they need medical help to get through. However, there are a few *really* nice moments that redeem the movie and let me know that it could have been great. 3 stars.

Best Part: Zach Galifianakis does kind of a beautiful job here. I like his comedic work, but I really hope he does some more semi-dramatic work. He always has this air of... oblivious desperation, and it translates really well into his portrayal of an extremely depressed man here.
Worst Part: The sneaking out sequences were very jarring for me. I kept thinking, "But... but they shouldn't be able to do that. It's not cute, it's kind of disturbing. What if other people did that? People who really shouldn't be sneaking out?"
Flickchart: #411, below The Graduate and above Borstal Boy. Way too high. I think I need to rerank some of the other movies in the 400s and 500s. For example, Borstal Boy.

No comments: