Funny Farm (1988)

"What's going on, Andy? You're sinking into a pit of self-pity, defeatism, and alcohol... and you're enjoying it!"

Director

George Roy Hill

Cast

Chevy Chase - Andy Farmer

Madolyn Smith - Elizabeth Farmer

Kevin O'Morrison - Sheriff Ledbetter
Alice Drummond - Ethel Dinges
Bill Fagerbakke - Lon Criterion
Nicholas Wyman - Dirk Criterion
Glenn Plummer - Mickey
Joseph Maher - Michael Sinclair


The movie "Funny Farm" is an eighties comedy that doesn't seem to be as nostalgically remembered as other comedies from the same decade.
That's a bit strange as the movie is one of comedian Chevy Chase's best. However, that's kind of understandable as it had some heavy competition upon its release back in June of 1988. 

"Friday the 13th VII: The New Blood," "Crocodile Dundee II," "Willow" and "Rambo III" came out in theaters the month before, just in time for summer. 

"Who Framed Roger Rabbit?" "Coming to America" and "Big" came out in June. And then "Die Hard" was released the following month. Stiff summer competition, indeed, leaving "Funny Farm" with all the qualifications to be a "cult classic."

I knew about "Funny Farm" for a long time. I remember seeing copies of it at my local video rental store back in the early 1990s. However, I've never seen it until now. Even so, I've been curious why it's not talked about like other comedies of the 1980s.

Chase plays sportswriter, Andy Farmer, who's leaving New York City and the paper business to move into the nice, quiet rural town of Redbud, Vermont with his wife, Elizabeth (Madolyn Smith).

He plans to embrace the small quiet atmosphere so he can focus on writing a novel. 

As soon as they move into their new country home, all the less-than-charming peculiarities of rural community life intrude on their expectations just as soon as they breath in the open country air. The local mailman is drunk by the time he reaches their home. They can't even enjoy the fresh air itself as there's buzzing, stinging bugs sharing that the same air. It only takes one annoying and intrusive hornet to destroy one's tranquility. 

Andy's publisher paid him in advance to write a novel, which he gets to work on right away once they're all moved in. 

Little does he know that Elizabeth, inspired by the open space, is also writing a story though she's not a writer. 

Andy manages to finish the first chapter and presents the manuscript to Elizabeth as a gift while they're on a romantic getaway at a nearby cabin. 

After reading it, her reaction is less than favorable. In fact, her thoughts are completely critical. It even brings her to tears. This critique pushes Andy into a despair which hurts their marriage. 

Later, his publisher drops in to see his manuscript after letters from the publishers informing Andy about his deadline go unanswered. 

Desperate not to lose his advance payment, Andy gives the publisher Elizabeth's manuscript, claiming it's his own.

Elizabeth gets a call days later from the publisher who loves the "children's book." Realizing what Andy had done, Elizabeth packs up and leaves the moping Andy, and wants a divorce. 

Chevy Chase and Madolyn Smith in "Funny Farm."

So, the dream of a quiet country life - a nice place to write a book - is now down the toilet for Andy. 

He and Elizabeth decide to sell the house. To make the process speedy and give potential homebuyers a good impression on the community, they ask Redbud residents during a town meeting to help by turning the entire town into a Norman Rockwell-esque community just in time for Christmas. Elizabeth even passes out old copies of the "Saturday Evening Post" with Rockwell images on the covers to give townspeople ideas on how to pull this off. 

In return, the Farmers offer to donate $15,000 to the entire town, plus $50 to each resident who helps. 

So, the town agrees. And when another couple take interest in their home, the whole town puts on the facade of a quiet, comfy hometown that only Norman Rockwell could love. And they really put themselves into the sham, even the drunk mailman. 

Lest I forget, as a "Ghostbusters" fanboy, I need to mention Elmer Bernstein composed the musical score for "Funny Farm." Bernstein also composed the score for "Ghostbusters." 

Also, actress Alice Drummond, who plays the librarian at the beginning of "Ghostbusters," plays Redbud's antique dealer, Ethel Dinges.

The "Funny Farm" plot seems like a mix of the 1975 Neil Simon movie "The Prisoner of Second Avenue" with Jack Lemmon and Anne Bancroft, with a slight tinge of the 1986 Tom Hanks and Shelley Long comedy "The Money Pit."

Like "The Prisoner of Second Avenue," this film sees the roles of the protagonists switched thanks to unwanted circumstances that fall in their lap. 

Andy Farmer is the writer who is unable to write a good book while his non-writing wife happens to write a children's novel that quickly gains the approval of Andy's publisher. All the while, the small hometown atmosphere is more problematic than they thought it would. It's similar to Jack Lemmon's character, Mel Edison, losing his job and having to perform house duties while his wife Edna (Anne Bancroft) ends up being the bread winner as she quickly finds gainful employment. Like Mel, Andy is left with his wandering thoughts and obsessions with his less-than-perfect environment. And living in New York City ends up driving him crazy. 

While the Farmers' new home in "Funny Farm" is a beautiful house that's certainly no money pit, it's similar to the film "The Money Pit" in that the couple are met with bizarre house-related obstacles such as finding a casket with human remains buried in the garden. But this scenario of let-downs and burdens extends outside of the house into their new community.

Once they have the casket exhumed and taken to the local cemetery for a proper burial, the Farmers are met with a huge funeral bill they refuse to pay. It leads to the body being put back in their garden. 

In another scene, Andy goes to fish in the pond near the house. However, he ends up catching a live snake that makes its way into the house. 

I love how the film utilizes imagery similar to Normal Rockwell's "Saturday Evening Post" covers. The only other movie I know of that does that is "The Sting" with Robert Redford and Paul Newman.

"Funny Farm" makes a joke out of such small-town charm like that depicted in Rockwell's paintings. As the small town of Redbud ends up lacking such charm, the Farmers pay the residents to at least make it look like it possesses it. 

They even hand out old copies of the "Saturday Evening Post" as visual aids. 

The flow of the story is impressively well paced. The situation comes about naturally as all the plot points fall into place rather than being pushed. Neither the story nor humor feel forced or awkward. 

The comedy is a little more subtle than other comedies of the 1980s. Still, it's clear when it comes about. The story and humor work really well together. The plot lets the comedy work on its own.

Again, nothing feels forced. That's no surprise as director George Roy Hill has made some of the best films in movie history such as "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid" (1969) and "The Sting" (1973) - the latter being one of my top favorite films. "Funny Farm" certainly couldn't have a better director. 

On a side not, I had a dream a few weeks ago in which I couldn't remember the title of "The Sting." When I awoke, I had to think about it. What was that movie with Robert Redford and Paul Newman in which they play con artists, and the theme is a Scott Joplin tune? Weird, right?  

Anyways, Chase is perfect in this role. He taps into that all-American character I recognize when he plays Clark Griswald in the National Lampoon Vacation movies. Here, he adds a hint of his insult comedy he's well known for. He plays his part like a duck on a frozen pond. 

If I want to nit-pick, a small bit of the comedy is a tad slapsticky but not far-fetched. I'm referring namely to a scene in which Andy goes fishing in a local competition with three other locals. When a fishhook gets caught in neck of one of the fishermen, the three other teammates fumble around like the Marx Brothers trying to hold him down and get the hook out. The injured man yells at them to stop. Farmer tries punching him in an attempt to knock him out, but it's not working. So, he punches him a few more times. Then he grabs an oar and accidentally slaps one of the other guys. It's just mishap after mishap. What's hilarious, however, is that the guy he tried to punch as a rescue attempt hates him throughout the rest of the movie, resorting to strangling and punching each time they cross paths. 

My other nitpick is the film title. While Chase and Smith play characters with the last name "Farmer," the title seems like a stretch. It doesn't quite fit the premise, namely because the story doesn't take place on a farm. Farming has nothing to do with the plot. I understand the premise of going crazy, but the title makes the movie seem like it's sillier and cornier than it is. "Funny Farm" sounds more like an early working title that just didn't get change by the time of the film's release. But, again, that's easy to look over.   

"Funny Farm" is an odd-man-out comedy, and one of the best of such comedies I've seen. It's impressive how well the entire story comes together, and how naturally one thing leads to another. The final act with the Farmers paying the community to make Redbud the kind of town they wanted in the first place rings of originality. 

The film proves to be a small wonder that deserves appreciation though it doesn't seem to be the nostalgic flick other films of the decade are. If the label "cult classic" is a term of endearment, "Funny Farm" truly deserves the compliment.