Death At a Funeral Review:
This may come as no surprise, but Neil Labute’s Death at a Funeral is an American rehash of the 2007 British film of the same name that made little lasting impression before it quickly got pulled from the public’s radar. The big difference this time around is that the story has been treated with a predominantly African-American cast, with a splashing of a couple of easily digestible “big named” Caucasians actors and an obvious choice of veteran from the original thrown in for good measure.
The ensemble is quite impressive, with a list consisting of who’s hot in Hollywood right now - Zoe Saldana and James Marsden - to the always enjoyable - Chris Rock, Keith David and Martin Lawrence - to the talent on their way up - Regina Hall, Tracy Morgan, Columbus Short - and the old school that can still give the young’ens a run for their money - Danny Glover.
Considering the size of the cast, each key player holds their own on screen, with Rock being just that for his eccentric extended family. He is the film’s lead, heavily sedated compared to his usual hyperactive self but easily likeable as the unacknowledged talented older brother trying to hold this unstable unit together long enough for his late father to be put to rest. Although Rock is the lead its actually Glover, Morgan and in particular, Marsden that steal the show purely because they produce the most laughs out of the group. This is a comedy after all. The only cast member who doesn’t really seem to have a place in the film is poor Luke Wilson. It’s sad that his presence seems to be more of a tactical move to entice the film’s key demographic who are aware of his previous comedies instead of the filmmakers having any real intention to use him in the film. If this theory is grossly untrue then his sole contribution to the narrative is to instigate a partial nudity scene in which Marsden and Short steal the limelight once more.
The biggest problem that Death At A Funeral faces is that it just isn’t funny enough considering the amount of talent on display. There is only so much that can be added through perfect comedic timing over a stale script that inspires more smirks that outright belly laughs; and when these laughs do eventually surface, the entire narrative is so predictable it somewhat taints the feeling you get from spewing these chuckles out. If you want to know which is better out of the original British version or the American remake, they’re almost identical it terms of the story so its purely down to personal taste. The remake doesn’t lose anything crucial from the original and has a much bigger and brasher cast that will surely appeal to a greater audience. Considering this is a comedy surrounding an event of great mourning, here was us hoping they would build on the first by adding more black humour. Who knew Neil LaBute would miss the point entirely by applying this literally.
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Review by Adinkra Films Critic George Sandilands "3 Stars"
