Rogen's just not a fan of greens, Adam, stop trying to make him eat them

Cast: Adam Sandler, Leslie Mann, Seth Rogen, Eric Bana
Director: Judd Apatow
Screenwriter: Judd Apatow

Apatow (40 Year Old Virgin, Knocked Up) returns with a film branded more ‘serious’ than his usual slapstick comedies, albeit about stand-up comedians. Adam Sandler stars as George Simmons, a famous comedian who contracts a fatal disease, forcing him to realise how empty and meaningless his life has become.

He recruits Ira Wright (Rogen), a rookie stand-up who idolises him, as his assistant, and as his health degenerates begins to realise that Ira is the only one that really cares – and that’s because he’s a super fan. Desperate and alone, he attempts to win back the heart of his ex-wife Laura (Mann), despite the fact that she’s married to an obtuse Australian, played by Bana.

It’s interesting the way Apatow’s films, despite being comedies, are always laced with an issue he clearly, at some point of his life, has feared. Where the 40 Year Old Virgin was about having sex, and Knocked Up concentrated on the worries of having kids, Funny People is laced with fear about death. The various points in the film in which Sandler’s character’s lonliness is amplified to a sad extent are seemingly neverending, and the jokes fall a little flat when you’ve got such a sad subject to work with.

The star and director ”roomed” together in college and have consequently been good friends for years, which shows in the way Sandler has allowed Apatow to take creative control of the character; Sandler’s trademark approach to comedy is barely seen here. Instead you are left with a not-quite-believable, down in the dumps guy that was previously a bit of a dick and has now been forced to realise the error of his ways, all a bit too late. (Oh wait, isn’t this a bit like Big Daddy?)

It’s not a bad film by any means, or even a bad comedy (if you can call it that), but with a huge cast – which also includes Jason Schwartzman, Jonah Hill and, er, cameos from Eminem and Ray Romano – that are all brilliant in different ways, it’s a shame they didn’t get more creative freedom to explore their characters. Seth is delightfully dappy as Ira, Schwartzman retains his off-kilter weirdness as Ira’s flatmate Mark, but Leslie Mann is just irritating and empty as the girl who can’t decide who to love. But the only bits I found myself laughing at were when the stars did their scripted stand-up.

Funny People is in cinemas on 28th August via Universal Pictures

By Cathy Reay