Death at a Funeral

Director: Frank Oz

Starring: Matthew Macfadyen, Keeley Hawes, Andy Nyman, Ewen Bremner

When jealousy, gossip and appearances are what define a family, only one thing can bring all its enemy members under one roof: the death of the patriarch. At the funeral, newcomers like the niece's new fiancé, are desperate to make a good impression - and thus fail miserably when they mistakenly ingest hallucinogenic drugs. The delirious comedy delivers even more when a mysterious guest arrives with a shocking claim.

Death at a Funeral is the story of a funeral where everything goes wrong. And when you think it can't get worse, you find out just how wrong you are. The film draws deeply from British comedy classics and is refreshingly not afraid of going overboard and multiplying the number of things going ridiculously wrong. This alone would lead to quite a few laugh-out-loud moments; but what makes Death at a Funeral truly unique and worthy to be compared to the best Monty Python features, is the discrepancy between the exaggerated situation, and the calm look the protagonists try to keep. Through this bias, a genuine sympathy can be felt towards the patriarch's son trying to hold things together when problems just keep coming. And we get great acting from all figurehead talents, like Keeley Hawes (A Cock and Bull Story), Alan Tudik (Monty Python's Spamalot, Firefly), and Matthew Macfayden (Pride and Prejudice), to name but a few.

Even though Death at a Funeral is mainly a comedy - and is meant to be one - it is also a satire of our appearances-led modern society. Interestingly, it manages to de-dramatise another pivotal aspect of the western world (death), by making it the premise for a hilarious comedy, and showing the deceased under a far more lively light than when he was alive.

Paradoxically enough, Death at a Funeral is thus a very much alive film, moving at times, deep in its implications, but first and foremost thoroughly enjoyable.

Pierre Schramm