Funny Ha Ha (2002)

A movie that not only functions as a solid scarefest but a razor-sharp satire.

The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

There are moments in this movie where the great movie it could've been peek out... They're fleeting, here, but they're worth savoring, and they happen often enough to make it worth your while.

The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

An ultra-low budget film about aimless twenty-somethings wasting their lives brings to mind Richard Lindlater's 'Slacker'; and while Andrew Bujalski's film lacks that movie's experimental formlessness, it does share something of the same mood. The cinematography has the feel of a super-eight home movie; but the piece is acutely observed and feels real throughout. Unfortuantly, it's just not that interesting, in part because its characters just aren't that interesting, and in a sense this isn't accidental; their directionless existence owes much to the fact that they simply haven't lived enough to have anything to care about, anything to say. And while there should be a profound sadness underpinning this, and some sociological analysis, the film never seems to scrape below its surface of whiny, unhappy people. You wouldn't dislike these people in real life, but if they have any notable attributes, they're not on display, and you wouldn't go out of your way to spend time in their company. But what's true of the characters is sadly also true of the film that contains them.

If this film really won an Independent Film award it doesn't say much for our directing talent out there. There is not point to the movie and hence no point watching it. I guess one can read some significance into the meaninglessness of post-college life in the US but this would be doing the director an undeserved favour.Even if one were to accept that he was shooting a low budget movie with no plot and no script what I cannot understand is why the directing was so poor, why create an impression that we were watching a home movie with shaky hands and bad background lighting? Surely, even secondary school students' work is better than this. It appears that this was simply a private joke and someone released it publicly by mistake. However, it still doesn't explain the award.

Looking like a documentary, this movie captures well life at the age of the characters, that I remember when I was that age: direction-less and insecure. The problem is, a glimpse into people's personal lives aren't necessarily interesting, and I wanted more to happen or for the story to be more interesting. I also wondered why characters we saw a lot of in the beginning of the movie, simply disappeared with no explanation. Alex's unexpected marriage was never explained, nor did Marnie seem to try to find out how this marriage came about. In keeping with the theme of a segment of someone's life snipped out randomly and put on film, the ending provided no resolution to anything, but I felt it could have been less abrupt and arbitrary.

This was the worst movie I've seen in a long time. Fair enough it was filmed on a tiny budget which explains the lack of polish and style. But a little substance, a good story would have made up for the rough edges. Unfortunately this 90 minute movie dragged on for 60 minutes too long. It's a story about Marnie and her friends. How relationships change after people leave college. But these people don't have any chemistry. They look like they're straining to remember their lines rather than a group of friends who are comfortable with each other. I guess thats the point. All the characters are awkward and unsure of themselves. Maybe the writer/director/actor Andrew Bujalski was trying to make a story that would resonate with other 20-somethings just out of college, trying to figure themselves out. I'm sorry but he failed miserably. I didn't feel any empathy for these characters. If I met these losers I'd run in the opposite direction.