Plot Details: This opinion reveals minor details about the movie's plot.

Frank Oz, perhaps more famed for his puppets and a few successful movies, embarks on a wild and farcical journey with his quirky British comedy “Death at a Funeral”.

As we enter the movie, with the undertakers bringing the wrong body to the son of an ‘exceptional man’ we begin to feel that something strange is about to happen. Starting off slowly we are introduced to the cast all heading to a family funeral filled with your typical British middle class extended family members.

Daniel (Matthew Macfadyen) is the dutiful son, living at home with his fiancé, helping his mother arrange the funeral of his father. Robert (Rupert Graves), his selfish, self loving brother, a very successful writer jets in from New York to attend the funeral – Daniel an aspiring writer himself is worried about the eulogy he is writing, as he always feels under the shadow of his brother.

The reverend (Thomas Wheatley) whose timetable is full, is keen to get the funeral started, but the brothers insist that they must wait for their uncle to arrive (The uncle is perhaps one of the funnier characters in the movie, being in a wheelchair, he is foul mouthed – and also provides some ‘slapstick’ humor in the bathroom.).

Then there’s my favorite character (my namesake too!) Simon. Simon (played brilliantly by Alan Tudyk) is engaged to the daughter of the brother of the wife (Jane Asher) of the dead man (still following). He insists that his future father-in-law hates him. Now, he is getting worked up so his future wife gets a valium that she finds in here brother’s kitchen - unfortunately her brother Troy (Kris Marshall) has 'hidden' some hallucinogenic drugs. In perhaps the best performance of the movie, Simon does many things that you would expect of someone high including seeing the 'coffin' move during the ceremony.

To further complicate things, a dwarf named Peter (Peter Dinklage) appears and begins to blackmail the sons.

As you can see the movie is a cornucopia of small interlinked plots – and if I write more on the plots I really give the whole movie away. Suffice to say that the plot is wide ranging and a little convoluted, but overall it fits together well.

While the movie will not appeal to some, the combination of quirky British Humor, some decidedly dirty toilet humor, and quite a lot of visually humor works surprisingly well. While the cast may not be familiar to the US audience, most will recognize a few characters, and most British people will recognize most of the actors from traditional Brit Coms, and in many cases traditional British Drama.

The movie has many laugh-out-loud moments, as well as quite a few cringe-worthy moments. While some of it is predictable, you still find yourself laughing as events unfold. The interplay between the characters, and the way in which you learn about all the multitude of characters is exceptional.

The plot is thin, and revolves around four or five main characters, but that doesn’t really matter as it is more about the actions of the characters than the actual plot. It’s hard to put the movie in a genre; in a way it goes back to some of the 70s British movies (Carry On movies – without the smut), with the comedy being direct and unsubtle mostly. The anticipation of situations in itself is funny, as you find yourself knowing what is going to happen, and laughing before the event!

This movie is not for everyone – it’s the kind of movie you will either love or hate. Those that hate it will not understand how anyone can laugh at all, let alone enjoy the whole movie – so in a way it may become a cult classic. I would suspect that it will appeal to a teenage audience more than a sophisticated adult audience (hmmm where does that leave me!).

Worth watching once at least, even if only to see a couple of very memorable scenes…..


The DVD comes in dual format - one side with Full Screen, the other with Wide Screen. There are some 'Extras' but these are not very extensive - the only noteworthy ones being the 'errors' - which essentially is a long line of mis-spoken lines, and a lot of giggling. Don't buy the DVD is you are expecting great extras!





Recommended: Yes

Viewing Format: DVD
Video Occasion: Good for a Rainy Day
Suitability For Children: Suitable for Children Age 13 and Older