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List Price: $9.99 | | Label: Walt Disney Video
Salesrank: 24785
Released: September 2, 2003 |
| Our Price: $3.45 |
| Used Price: $2.87 |
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MPAA Rating: R (Restricted)
Media: DVD |
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| Features:
Closed-captioned Color DVD NTSC | |
Editorial Review:
Acclaimed by critics everywhere for its zany comedy and terrific cast, FUNNY BONES is big laughs for everyone! Struggling in the shadow of his famous comedian father (world-renowned entertainer Jerry Lewis), a young comic (Oliver Platt -- THE THREE MUSKETEERS, GUN SHY) retreats to his old hometown when his act bombs in Las Vegas. Ready to try anything for inspiration, he's in for more than a few surprises before learning that his own eccentric family is the best material for a perfect act! You'll want to discover for yourself this uncommon comedy treat that's packed with unforgettable fun!
Description of Funny Bones:
Funny Bones, directed by Peter Chelsom (Hear My Song), is a weird but intriguing comedy with a particularly dark edge. Oliver Platt plays a would-be comedian, the son of a major comedy star (Jerry Lewis); Dad's reputation even overshadows his son's Las Vegas debut. After that flop the son tries to go back to his roots and heads for his father's launch pad in Blackpool, England. There, he meets his previously unknown half-brother (Lee Evans), a bizarre comedy savant who teaches him a thing or two about taking risks to get laughs, and discovers a secret about how his father got started. Platt is likably lost and Lewis is perfectly overbearing, but the real find here is Evans, a rubber-faced, protean comic with always-surprising material. --Marshall Fine
Funny Bones Reviews:
To anyone who doesn't 'get' FUNNY BONES 
2009-10-28 - If FUNNY BONES (1995) left you puzzled or disappointed, this is offered as an attempt to clarify what may be one of the greatest "overlooked" movies of all times.
First, you either love or hate this film; there's no middle ground. That's clear just from the dozens of posted reviews on it. Here's what I take from this picture beyond the basic plot.
We the audience are given a chance to visit for two hours with entertainers of all variety. We're all special in our own way, have our talents, and the folks in this movie are no different, for they are blessed with a unique ability to take the stage and hold our attention. And I don't just mean George Fawkes, the Parker brothers or Katy Parker, but also that crowd of oddbll performers we see during the auditions, and a staccato jazz guitarist at a British cafe talent show. These people have the same gift as George Fawkes or Jack Parker, but perhaps in different measure.
Tommy Fawkes has that inherited drive of his father too, but he's unable to connect to a necessary talent. After bombing terribly in a Las Vegas stand-up debut, off to Blackpool Tommy goes to discover his roots and try to learn the secret of being funny.
But the universe doesn't revolve around any single person. As Tommy is lost, so is Jack Parker, who killed his stepfather in front of an audience! Jack's Uncle Bruno was so traumatized by this horrific event that he stopped talking altogether and for twelve years. Bruno's brother Thomas, obviously the anchor of this family, steadfastly endures a wife who was unfaithful, the stigma of a murderous son who isn't even his, a friend who betrayed and abandoned him (George Fawkes) and the loss of that which he loves most dearly: entertaining, yet somehow Thomas perseveres in his own eccentric way.
Just a mention here of the 'fountain of youth powder' subplot which seems an excuse to shoehorn Oliver Reed and some colorful Frenchmen into the story. Nuff said.
So, Tommy discovers the amazingly talented young man (Jack) is his half brother and that his father ran to America when he impregnated Thomas Parker's wife (note that the story's main character Tommy Fawkes is CLEARLY named for Mr. Parker) and when he left Blackpool, George stole the Parker brothers act and used it as a steppingstone to American superstardom and enormous wealth.
Meanwhile, the Parker family is in shambles wth young Jack a public pariah and Uncle Bruno withdrawn and silent. Thomas and Katie got divorced and she married another entertainer, a bald-headed tyrant who abused teenaged Jack so much that the boy bashed his head in on-stage.
Years after the tragic event, Tommy Fawkes stumbles into this dysfunctional situation, despondent himself and ready to commit suicide but still willing to look for answers. He bonds with his half brother, confronts his father over George's wrongdoing, and together the Fawkes (father and son) help put the broken Parkers back together. The brothers (fueled by youth powder) have a triumphant return to the stage, as does Katie who is brilliant as "Cleopatra, Queen of the Nile." Then, Jack appears from nowhere and proves as Thomas admiringly tells best friend George, that "he is funnier than all of us."
Even Tommy "takes it to the edge" and finds a way to get an audience to like him. It's a superb, exhilarating ending to a great story.
If you've read this far, I thank you.
I'll leave with one final point: FUNNY BONES is NOT a comedy. There are elements of comedy in it but in large part this is both a psychological study of dysfunctional families and a look into the souls of that special breed of people: entertainers.
World's Funniest Man
2009-06-13 - That involuntary shudder one experiences when "Jerry Lewis" is mentioned in the Gallic pantheon of cinematic greatness? We've all experienced it.
However, in the most unexpected of surprises, the director Peter Chelsom has set the stage in his home town of Blackpool, England for what must be considered one of the funniest movies ever made.
Making an extraordinary comedy required the direction of extraordinary comedic talent. In "Funny Bones," three of the world's funniest older men (George Carl, Freddie Davies, Jerry Lewis) are woven into the backstory of someone even funnier than themselves (Lee Evans), via the pretext that Oliver Platt (Lewis' son and comedic flop) flees to Blackpool. The set-up takes patient attention, but it's well worth it.
A primer on what's funny and what's not.
In search of true funny...
2009-02-10 - There is nothing I don't like about this movie, where buffoonery, pain, laughter, hard work and life itself come together and make magic.
In search for "true funny", main character - a tired-of-it-all comedic flop from Las Vegas - revisits his childhood home, Blackpool. He finds the true funny, and along with it, some truth about his father, some tragic secrets of the funny trade, with a dollop of reality.
To me, it's the ultimate truth about art as way of life - being good at what you do requires sacrifice and real life experience, no matter how weird. Even the wildest whimsical acts can't match the reality sometimes, and in some cases, the weirdest and darkest comedy seems like the only normal way of self-expression when compared with real life.
I highly recommend this movie also because it features phenomenal music, and when combined with the visuals it is absolutely out of this world.
Actors' performances are superb, Lee Evans topping the list on so many levels.
Awfull,Awfull,YUCK......BLAH... 
2008-08-09 - I don't like to use the word hate but if I did this would be where I'd use it,I struggled through the entire thing & the only even interesting parts were a magic act & mabey a few bits & pieces that I can't even remember and I just watched it alittle while ago.Between the Rave Reviews & Jerry Lewis being in it I thought it had to be at least Good,but I was Disapointed at best,I felt it was more like a Woody Allen humor & I'm so not into his type of humor,but that's just My Opion...
Fabulous But Not Funny 
2008-04-01 - One of the problems with categorizing movies is the expectation invariably set-up by the choice of category. I rented this on a VHS tape years ago, out of the comedy section. This is NOT a comedy - it's a very serious film about funny people. It's wonderful and well-worth watching, but if you expect it to be 'funny' you'll probably be disappointed.
This is not to say that there aren't many brilliant comedic routines in the film (Lee Evans is fabulous--), but the storyline itself is serious. I wholeheartedly recommend this film to anyone who likes physical comedy and enjoys movies that grapple with life and relationships and doesn't mind a little shadow on the smiling face.
