Directed by: George Roy Hill
Starring: Chevy Chase, Madolyn Smith Osborne, Kevin Conway, Kevin O'Morrison, Joseph Maher
I recall the trailers for this film when it was released. Holiday Road, the theme for Chase's Vacation movies, played throughout and audiences likely expected another Vacation-style comedy. Funny Farm is an altogether different comedy. It is quieter, more insightful into human nature, and creates its own clearly realized people. It is also very funny, with minimal slapstick and plenty of smart verbal humor. I don't even think Chevy Chase trips over anything.
I was surprised how much care went into Funny Farm. It is unique. The fish-out-of-water plot is not new, but how screenwriter Jeffrey Boam and director George Roy Hill (The Sting) make it fresh. As the movie opens, sportswriter Andy Farmer (Chase) and his wife Elizabeth (Smith-Osborne) are leaving their lives in the big city and moving to rural Vermont. Andy wants to complete his novel, "The Big Heist", which is apparently so bad it inspires his wife to advise, "Burn it." Life in the country is not as simple as expected: The movers are lost and are late with the furniture. There is no telephone service in the house, only a pay phone. A corpse is buried in the yard and will cost thousands of dollars to bury properly. Andy alienates fellow townsfolk in many ways, including accidentally catching a fishing rod hook into another man's mouth. And Elizabeth writes a children's novel which is immediately sold, while Andy languishes in mediocrity, writer's block, and drinking himself silly with envy. Oh, and don't forget the new family dog, which is so lazy it can't even be bothered to remove its own tail from the fireplace.
A lesser comedy would milk the slapstick for all it is worth or move from one situation to the next with unseemly haste. Funny Farm takes its time and enjoys its moments. The humor is based on people and not just situations, so we find it funnier. Chase does not have to carry the load by himself. It is refreshing to see him play someone unlike Chevy Chase. His Andy is as bewildered by small-town life as anyone else. Imagine his surprise when he sets the record for eating the most lamb fries in one sitting; only to discover what "lamb fries" actually are. Smith-Osborne is every bit Chase's comic equal in her own intelligent, understated way. She made a strong impression in Urban Cowboy (1980) and here we see her considerable comic ability.
Funny Farm peppers in other memorable characters with small comic touches. The sheriff who can't drive and keeps failing his driving test. A drunken mailman who flies by in his truck, throwing Andy's mail out the window while Andy tries daily to stop him. An antique shop with stuffed squirrels. And ducks which never seem to fly south for the winter because they fear being shot. It is difficult not to be charmed by Funny Farm, which takes a seemingly routine plot and makes magic with it.
No comments:
Post a Comment