"It's Kind of a Funny Story" tells the story of Craig (Keir Gilchrist), a teenager whose life is just an utter disaster. His family drives him crazy with his mother being an over-emotional mess and his father wanting him to follow in his footsteps. To top of it off, his best friend is dating the girl that he has been obsessing over for 3 years. About ready to give up on life, Craig checks himself into an adult psychiatric ward, where he experiences a whole new way of thinking as well as a new appreciation of life. A well crafted dramedy ensues...
I am officially marking "It's Kind of a Funny Story" as one of the most underrated films of 2010. This film had very little marketing and was in and out of theaters within a few weeks time. I don't even think the film got a major release. It's kind of funny (no pun intended) because with all the attention that Zach Galifianakis has gotten since the release of "The Hangover" one would think they would try to get this film off the ground as his first major dramatic role. With that being said, lets get into the real meat and potatoes of the film.
First off, I wanted to see this movie as soon as I saw the trailer for it. It looked like a great mix of comedy and drama with an interesting premise. A film about a teenager checking himself into a psychiatric ward because he is depressed not only makes for an interesting story, but is also a topical subject with all the ongoing teenage depression talk going on in our society. Keir Gilchrist, who you may recognize from "The United States of Tara" plays the perfect candidate for the lead role in a movie of this topic. Not only because he fits the look and bill to play the role but because he is not a huge known actor. I don't know if I could see someone big in the lead role. I think that's what made the film feel so authentic. He seemed like an everyday teenager. He's not overly attractive, his problems seems believable, and his explanations about life seemed like something a regular teen would say. He was just a perfect fit for the role.
Along with Gilchrist, the movie co-starred a few bigger names in showbiz including Emma Roberts and Zach Galifianakis, just to name a few. I have to give Zach Galifianakis some props with this film. We all know he can play the plucky comic relief but it was nice to see him play a character with some depth to it with a bit of comedy mixed in. There were some great scenes featuring Zach's character Bobby, including an emotional breakdown scene and a more comedic scene where Bobby gives Craig some advice on how to talk to a girl. Another great performance in the film was Emma Roberts, who played Noelle in the film. Roberts was very well suited for this film like Gilchrist because she just fit the overall look and fit of the character she was portraying. I also thought she had great chemistry with Gilchrist and definitely proved here that she deserves to do more stand out work like this rather than lackluster teen films like "Aquamarine" and "Nancy Drew."
While the acting was solid across the board, I think the best part of this movie was the film was the overall story and message. It was nice to see a film about life and how sometimes it takes the weirdest scenarios to make you see life for what it was. A movie about people in a psychiatric ward doesn't seem like it would have a feel good message but this film does. It's not even overly sappy or anything like that. It's purely a film about learning how to live and appreciate what you have in life. I think almost everyone goes through a period in their life where they just feel depressed or want to toss in the towel. That's what this film is about and how you should always try to look past that feeling and see what good you have in your life. It has a funny way of showing it but "It's Kind of a Funny Story" makes you feel alive and makes it's audience really want to go out there and live everyday to the fullest.
A the end of the day, I was actually very sad that I didn't get to catch this film in theaters and that it didn't get the kind of attention it deserved. "It's Kind of a Funny Story" was a well acted and well written film that featured a good mix of drama and comedy but also managed to stay realistic. I think that's probably the best part of the film that it felt like these were real people with real problems. I have to give the directors/writers Ryan Fleck and Anna Boden credit for picking who they picked for these characters and really knowing how to set up the scenes. I think more people should check out this film because not only will you enjoy the film as a whole but you will feel good about life after seeing it, at least that's how I felt when it ended. This film is without a doubt one of the most underrated and overlooked films of 2010! MovieManMenzel's final rating for "It's Kind of A Funny Story" is an 8 out of 10. This is oddly enough, the feel good film of 2010
I am officially marking "It's Kind of a Funny Story" as one of the most underrated films of 2010. This film had very little marketing and was in and out of theaters within a few weeks time. I don't even think the film got a major release. It's kind of funny (no pun intended) because with all the attention that Zach Galifianakis has gotten since the release of "The Hangover" one would think they would try to get this film off the ground as his first major dramatic role. With that being said, lets get into the real meat and potatoes of the film.
First off, I wanted to see this movie as soon as I saw the trailer for it. It looked like a great mix of comedy and drama with an interesting premise. A film about a teenager checking himself into a psychiatric ward because he is depressed not only makes for an interesting story, but is also a topical subject with all the ongoing teenage depression talk going on in our society. Keir Gilchrist, who you may recognize from "The United States of Tara" plays the perfect candidate for the lead role in a movie of this topic. Not only because he fits the look and bill to play the role but because he is not a huge known actor. I don't know if I could see someone big in the lead role. I think that's what made the film feel so authentic. He seemed like an everyday teenager. He's not overly attractive, his problems seems believable, and his explanations about life seemed like something a regular teen would say. He was just a perfect fit for the role.
Along with Gilchrist, the movie co-starred a few bigger names in showbiz including Emma Roberts and Zach Galifianakis, just to name a few. I have to give Zach Galifianakis some props with this film. We all know he can play the plucky comic relief but it was nice to see him play a character with some depth to it with a bit of comedy mixed in. There were some great scenes featuring Zach's character Bobby, including an emotional breakdown scene and a more comedic scene where Bobby gives Craig some advice on how to talk to a girl. Another great performance in the film was Emma Roberts, who played Noelle in the film. Roberts was very well suited for this film like Gilchrist because she just fit the overall look and fit of the character she was portraying. I also thought she had great chemistry with Gilchrist and definitely proved here that she deserves to do more stand out work like this rather than lackluster teen films like "Aquamarine" and "Nancy Drew."
While the acting was solid across the board, I think the best part of this movie was the film was the overall story and message. It was nice to see a film about life and how sometimes it takes the weirdest scenarios to make you see life for what it was. A movie about people in a psychiatric ward doesn't seem like it would have a feel good message but this film does. It's not even overly sappy or anything like that. It's purely a film about learning how to live and appreciate what you have in life. I think almost everyone goes through a period in their life where they just feel depressed or want to toss in the towel. That's what this film is about and how you should always try to look past that feeling and see what good you have in your life. It has a funny way of showing it but "It's Kind of a Funny Story" makes you feel alive and makes it's audience really want to go out there and live everyday to the fullest.
A the end of the day, I was actually very sad that I didn't get to catch this film in theaters and that it didn't get the kind of attention it deserved. "It's Kind of a Funny Story" was a well acted and well written film that featured a good mix of drama and comedy but also managed to stay realistic. I think that's probably the best part of the film that it felt like these were real people with real problems. I have to give the directors/writers Ryan Fleck and Anna Boden credit for picking who they picked for these characters and really knowing how to set up the scenes. I think more people should check out this film because not only will you enjoy the film as a whole but you will feel good about life after seeing it, at least that's how I felt when it ended. This film is without a doubt one of the most underrated and overlooked films of 2010! MovieManMenzel's final rating for "It's Kind of A Funny Story" is an 8 out of 10. This is oddly enough, the feel good film of 2010