REVIEW: Movie about life, not love
From the very beginning I was completely intrigued by “It’s Kind of a Funny Story.” Honestly, you can’t go wrong with Zach Galifianakis and Lauren Graham, but the story wasn’t about them.
It was about a 16-year-old boy, Craig (Keir Gilchrist), who suffers from the many stresses of the average teenage life. After being depressed and having thoughts of suicide, “Cool Craig” admits himself to the adult psychiatric ward in hopes for a quick fix. While the teenage ward is under renovations, all the other teens are with the adults, too. That is where Craig meets Noelle (Emma Roberts).
Noelle, with problems of her own, has been there for a couple of weeks. Craig is to stay at least five days. It seems like a short time, but within that week, his life takes a turn for the better.
Boy meets girl, the rest is history right? Wrong. It’s not a love story, it’s a life story; a story about fresh starts and new beginnings. I know you are all thinking, “He’s 16, the prime ‘fun’ age, what does he have to worry about?” I remember when I was 16. High school is stressful. Can you blame him?
He discovers that he enjoys the arts and would much rather pursue that than worry about the prestigious business high school he currently attends. His dad disagrees.
In the midst of finding himself, Cool Craig unintentionally helps influence the lives of other patients. From his bed-ridden-by-choice roommate to a lost and confused father to Noelle, Craig never fails to have an impact.
Keir Gilchrist was introduced to me in this movie. I have never seen him before but I liked him. For a not-so-experienced actor he did a great job portraying the chaotic mess of a brain inside an adolescent head. It was a little exaggerated, but aren’t all high school students overdramatic? From nervous vomiting to the terrifying first conversation with a member of the opposite sex, you got yourself one heck of a story.
Emma Roberts, who I would say is most famous for just being Julia Robert’s niece, proved herself. She, like her aunt, can act. She played a sort of mysterious character with spunk.
The on-screen chemistry between Noelle and Cool Craig was quite delightful. Playing “the question game” and drawing each other pictures, teen innocence is discovered. But like I said, it isn’t a love story.
Craig becomes a sort of idol within the hospital. A performance of “Under Pressure” is one of the reasons everybody becomes a fan.
Through the eye opening speech delivered by Zach Galifianakis’ character, Bobby, Craig has an epiphany. Bobby says if he were Craig he would “just live.” Craig realizes that there is something bigger than the next application to a summer school program. His friends in turn see that, too.
The use of animation further enhanced the depiction of this boy’s complicated mind. He draws what he calls “mind maps.” These so-called maps are a creative way to describe a person, like the one on the cover of the book on which the movie is based.
Props to Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck for taking Ned Vizzini’s novel and creating a superb screenplay. I haven’t heard of Vizzini’s novel, “It’s Kind of a Funny Story,” but because I liked the movie so much and books are usually better than their films, I feel compelled to read it.
Either way, I am completely pleased with this film.
– anike.pullens@aggiemail.usu.edu