Funny Farm
PLOT (spoiler alert!!!):
Andy Farmer (Chevy Chase), a New York sports writer who moves with his wife, Elizabeth (Madolyn Smith) to the seemingly charming town of Redbud, Vermont, so he can write a novel. They do not get along well with the residents, and other quirks arise such as the Farmers being given funeral bills for a long-dead man buried on their land long before they acquired the house. Marital troubles soon arise from the quirkiness of Redbud as well as the fact that Elizabeth was critical of Andy’s manuscript, while secretly getting her ideas for children’s books published. They soon decide to divorce, and entice the town’s residents with a $15,000 donation to Redbud, as well as a $50 cash bonus to whoever would appear as a friendly small town person in the presence of prospective home buyers visiting the area, which causes everyone in Redbud to join in on the charade of remaking their quirky town into a Rockwellesque small town. The townspeople’s charade dazzles a pair of prospective buyers, who make the Farmers an offer on the house; however, Andy declines to sell, realizing that he genuinely enjoys small-town living. He and Elizabeth decide to stay together and stay in Redbud, much to the chagrin of the locals, who are now angry that they lost their promised money. Ultimately, the mayor does not hold the Farmers liable for the $15,000, as the sale of their house did not occur, which had been the deal that the donation would occur after sale. However, because the people did do their part of appearing like friendly small-town folk, Andy decides to pay everyone in Redbud their $50, which helps to significantly improve his standing among the townspeople. The film ends with Andy taking a job as a sports writer for the Redbud newspaper, and Elizabeth, now pregnant with their first child, has written multiple children’s stories.
REVIEW:
Don’t we all know at least one person who we believe should be sent to the funny farm? Well, if they were being to sent to the one here in Funny Farm, then they most definitely would be on the verge of having to go the real one.
This film deals with Chase’s character, Andy Farmer, who has just retired from sports journalism, bought a house in the country, and is supposed to be writing a novel. If you’re familiar with Chase’s work before he became the old guy we see on Community these days, then you are more than aware that he is the master of physical comedy. This is no exception.
As with his exploits in National Lampoon’s Vacation franchise, Chase is next to oblivious as to his surroundings, or at the very least, doesn’t care about injuring himself. He also has a unbelievaly hot wife, though this one doesn’t compare to Beverly D’Angelo.
The thing that makes this film enjoyable is that the townspeople are just as colorful as Chase’s character. Those of us that grew up in small towns know that there are some colorful folk to be met. well, this film just takes that to the extreme, if you will.
I mean, seriously, a sherif that hasn’t passed his driving test and a mailman that gets drunk and throws the mail…ok, the mailman part is more believable, but you get the idea.
While I thoroughly laughed for most of this film, it suddenly got all serious and lost my attention when they brought in the whole drama of Chase lying to his publisher about his wife’s book being his, which led to her wanting a divorce. Sure, that was a way to really tap into the comedic talents of the townspeople, but it just didn’t really fit in there for me. I’m for some, it may have been a perfect break, bt not I.
What is my final verdict of Funny Farm? Well, it is no National Lampoon’s Vacation (or any of the others in the franchise), but it does have the same sense of hilarity and Chevy Chase acting like a big buffoon. I don’t highly recommend this, but I do say that it is worth watching if you get the chance.
3 1/2 out of 5 stars
