I’m dying to see: It’s Kind of a Funny Story (IKOAFS) the new film from Park Slope filmmakers Ryan Fleck Anna Boden, is based on a young adult book by the same name authored by Brooklyn author, Ned Vizzini, a semi-autobiographical account of his stay at a Brooklyn mental hospital. The movie, which was shot inside a hospital in Sunset Park, stars Zach Galifianakis and newbie Keir Gilchrist.
Vizzini says on the Focus Features website: “The book is from my own life. I’ve always been able to remember what it was like to be in high school, because I feel it was a very primal social arena. Real emotions come to the forefront in high school. When I write, I just try and not filter any of that, which I think readers appreciate. I also try very hard to have something funny on every page. If you keep people laughing, they will stick around.”
Ryan Fleck and Anna Boden are the filmmakers behind the acclaimed Half Nelson, the story of a drug-addicted school teacher, which I loved and Sugar, about a Cuban baseball player.
I’m dying to see IKOAFS. It’s at the Pavilion in Park Slope. Let me know what you thought of it.
Saw it Sunday – quite a departure from Half Nelson and Sugar but that’s what made it so much fun. Inventive editing, perfect music placement and some really fun fantasy and even a bit of animated (as in animation) moments. Everyone was really good in this. Had not seen Keir or Emma in anything so came with blank slate. There is a scene where Keir has to change his expression from freeze frame to freeze frame and convey what his narration tells us he’s thinking – great moment there for him! There are some off-the-wall characters but that’s what’s the story is about too – again – everyone does a terrific job – secondary, background characters and I’m ever in this situation I’m going to want Viola Davis as my counselor.
and for the poster above: I don’t think this is intended as an out-and-out comedy. Suicide is never hysterical. This was the title of the semi-autobiographical book. Ned has expressed real support for this film version.
Saw it on Friday evening. I’m a big fan of Keir Gilchrist from his work on “United States of Tara” so I have been looking forward to the film for quite some time. I enjoyed it and there were laughs here and there but it certainly wasn’t a straight up comedy, by any means. I suppose though, it depends how close the viewer is to the subject matter; mental illness and suicide, whether or not one would find certain scenes funny. The screenplay was rather bare bones, overall, leaving it up to the cast to make their characters more dimensional than the page presented them. For the most part, they delivered. Keir was excellent as was Zach Galifianakis. Viola Davis was terrific in a very small role as Craig’s empathetic doctor and I thought Jeremy Davies (Smitty) Adrian Martinez (Johnny) and Thomas Mann (Aaron) were standouts amongst a large supporting cast. Emma Roberts was good but her character really needed just a bit more backstory, imo, for her to resonate. Good music, some clever editing sequences and the performances are what sells this film.
Someone told me that bedbugs were found in the Pavilion. Is this true?