Why Cant I Watch Its Kind of a Funny Story Anywhere
"It's Kind of a Funny Story" is, indeed, kind of funny -- emphasis on the "kind of."
It's not extraordinarily funny, despite the presence of everybody's favorite bearded "Hangover" imbecile, Zack Galifianakis. And it's not unfunny either, despite the fact that it's about a suicidal teenager locked up in adult psychiatric ward.
It's just kind of funny. It's kind of moving, too, which is kind of surprising -- given that the idea of a dramatic comedy set in the mental hospital is hardly a new one. But writing and directing partners Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck ("Half Nelson, " "Sugar") have come up with a smart little film, a gentle drama with both an embraceable tone and a refreshing optimism.
Think "Cuckoo's Nest Lite."
Less of a dramatic comedy than an amusing drama, it's also a great vehicle for teen actor Keir Gilchrist. Unless you watch the Showtime series "United States of Tara, " you've probably never seen him before. But he's so at ease in front of the camera, so convincing as an overwhelmed everyteen, that it probably won't be long before you start seeing him everywhere.
His character in "It's Kind of a Funny Story" is named Craig, a smart 16-year-old who, as the movie opens, is being crushed under the pressures of modern teenagerdom. There are parents to please. There are school applications to file. Perhaps most important, there is a girl to impress.
(That girl: the lovely Nia, played by the lovely Zoe Kravitz, the 21-year-old daughter of actress Lisa Bonet and part-time New Orleanian Lenny Kravitz.)
Craig's stress-vomiting is one thing, but when he finds himself fantasizing about jumping off the Brooklyn Bridge, he wisely checks himself into a psychiatric hospital. Only problem: The teen psych ward is being renovated. So Craig finds himself spending his five-day observation period on the adult floor. (And, for some reason, his parents have no problem with this.)
Fortunately his ward-mates are funny, quirky Hollywood-style wingnuts, the kind who work their way back to mental health by playing pingpong and painting pictures.
There's a tricky balance to strike there -- there's very little that's funny about real mental illness or even pretend teen suicide. But Boden and Fleck strike that balance nicely, creating characters that are troubled without ever being condescending.
Led by the appealing Galifianakis -- and with an assist from Emma Roberts ("Nancy Drew"), playing another angst-ridden teen on the psych ward -- Craig's new friends have lessons to impart, naturally. He's got lessons for them, too -- and for the audience. This is just that kind of movie.
It's also the kind of movie that, for all of its smarts and huggability, stumbles every so often. Usually that happens when it's trying just a bit too hard to be cute, such as in its occasional surrealist, animation-assisted segments.
Even more annoying: a musical interlude in which Craig and company lip-sync to Queen's "Under Pressure, " a scene that is as gratuitous as it is pointless. It's a great song, and pitch-perfect selection for this movie's underlying themes, but the execution of the scene feels all wrong.
Those are quibbles, though. You shouldn't let them get in the way of your enjoyment of "It's Kind of a Funny Story, " or from taking its universally life-affirming message to heart.
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IT'S KIND OF A FUNNY STORY
3 stars, out of 4
Snapshot: A dramatic comedy about an overwhelmed teen who finds himself spending five days in an adult mental-health facility.
What works: Relative newcomer Kier Gilchrist shines in a movie that boasts a big heart and a universal message.
What doesn't: At times, it tries too hard to be cute.
Starring: Keir Gilchrist, Zack Galifianakis, Emma Roberts, Zoe Kravitz, Jeremy Davies, Viola Davis. Directors: Anna Boden, Ryan Fleck. Rating: PG-13 for mature thematic issues, sexual content, drug material and language. Running time: 1 hour 51 minutes. Where: See movie listings.
- Find New Orleans-area showtimes
Source: https://www.nola.com/entertainment_life/movies_tv/article_43a6ac83-75a3-590b-984c-dc20e5735eee.html
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