Not So Funny

Funny People, which opened weak last weekend, plummeted this weekend. For its cost, I'd call it a flop. It certainly won't gross anything near the poorly-reviewed and much cheaper Katherine Heigl R-rated comedy The Ugly Truth. No big surprise--audiences found Funny People too long and not funny enough. (That it's not meant to be a complete comedy doesn't matter.)

I don't believe in kicking something when it's down, but let me add it has an awful poster. It features Adam Sandler, smiling somewhat sadly, with Seth Rogen (in an ugly pose) leaning on one shoulder and Leslie Mann on the other.

Sure, if you've got Adam Sandler, you want him to be front and center. And Seth Rogen is enough of a star he should be there, too. But if Leslie Mann weren't the director's wife, would she be up there?

Worse, the film is called Funny People, but I see nothing that promises anything funny. I don't see any promise of anything, actually. I guess they figured the film would sell itself, but a poster should promise something more than two hours plus of not-very-exciting moments.