Funny Bones | 
| Director: Peter Chelsom
Actors: Jerry Lewis, Oliver Platt, Lee Evans, Leslie Caron, Richard Griffiths
Studio: Walt Disney Video
Category: DVD
List Price: $9.99
Buy New: $4.30
You Save: $5.69 (57%)
New (22) Used (13) from $3.91
Rating:  34 reviews
Sales Rank: 44491
Format: Closed-captioned, Color, Dvd, Ntsc
Language: English (Original Language)
Rating: R (Restricted)
Region: 1
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
Number Of Discs: 1
Running Time: 128 Minutes
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 7.1 x 5.4 x 0.6
MPN: DISD29268D
UPC: 786936209693
EAN: 0786936209693
ASIN: B00008L3TQ
Theatrical Release Date: March 31, 1995
Release Date: September 2, 2003
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Product Description
Tommy fawkes wants to be a successful comedian but his las vegas debut is a failure. Studio: Buena Vista Home Video Release Date: 09/02/2003 Starring: Oliver Platt Lee Evans Run time: 128 minutes Rating: R Director: Peter Chelsom
Amazon.com essential video
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
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| Customer Reviews: Read 29 more reviews...
 Somewhere Beyond the Sea July 30, 2005
Jeremy W. Forstadt (Phoenix, AZ)
11 out of 11 found this review helpful
Whether you label this film as a black comedy or as a dark familial drama with bits of comedy thrown in, FUNNY BONES is a brilliantly dark masterpiece containing first rate acting performances by all of the principals, and especially Lee Evans (There's Something About Mary, Mousehunt). In fact, it is Lee Evans who super-charges this movie with his complex and outrageously funny portrayal of the disturbed comic genius Jack Parker.
The supporting cast, including the brilliant Jerry Lewis, Leslie Caron, George Carl, and Oliver Reed, all offer strong performances as does Oliver Platt, playing the failed comic Tommy Fawkes, who goes back to the Blackpool, England of his early youth in search of the secrets of comedy. He will eventually uncover many of these secrets, as well as some dark family secrets he didn't anticipate finding. Lewis plays a supporting role as Tommy's father, a superstar comic who rules the Las Vegas strip and overshadows his son.
The quirky citizens of Blackpool, including the aforementioned Jack Parker, add charm, comedy, and warmth to this film. At times disturbing, heartbreaking, suspenseful, and hysterical, FUNNY BONES is an odd little film, but one that lends itself to many viewings.
I review very few films, but feel compelled to recommend FUNNY BONES since few people seem to have seen it and because it is one of my favorite films of all time.
Jeremy W. Forstadt
Walk Softly And Carry A Big Shtick February 26, 2006
El Lagarto (Ambler, PA)
8 out of 8 found this review helpful
Funny Bones is a hilarious black comedy that got overlooked because it is too smart and multi-faceted for easy categorization. Admittedly the film has flaws. The Vegas-Blackpool connection is something of a kluge, and the Parker Brothers vaudeville act is a far cry from the Tommy Fawkes - two dogs walk into a bar - style of comedy that begins the movie. The sub-plot of stolen life-preserving powder, corrupt policemen, and French-Egyptians is a distraction at best, although the severed feet do provide a splendid "running" gag. But these criticisms are trivial when compared to what the movie gets right.
First, it totally understands the relationship between humor and pain, and gives an honest and sympathetic view of this bond, a bond that is closer than liver and onions, corned beef and cabbage, wang and chung. Next it features some true comedy genius, primarily thanks to Lee Evans as a semi-autistic virtual mime who is as funny in his interactions with a police psychologist as he is on stage in his one-man radio-riffing manic extravaganza. Those few minutes alone are worth the price of the movie, as is the scene where he and Platt sneak into the mortuary to retrieve the severed feet. Evans, Jack, has cleverly decided to stash the feet in a ski-boot case, and, to complete his disguise, carries a pair of skis with him. Priceless.
Equally inspired are the scenes where assorted Blackpool entertainers audition, (you'll replay this many times), and when we finally get to see the Parker Brothers do their famous act - vaudeville at its very best. That the Parker Brothers live inside a roller coaster and earn their living as human mannequins in a chamber of horrors train-ride is simply par for the course in Funny Bones.
Oliver Platt is very good as a man trying to survive a narcissistic and insufferable father. Leslie Caron still looks good although her contribution is minor, and Oliver Reed makes the most of a small part. The surprise is Jerry Lewis. This is not the obnoxious, pseudo-retarded Jerry Lewis you've come to know and hate through decades of despicable films. This is the Jerry Lewis you saw in King Of Comedy, another movie that looked unflinchingly at the relationship between comedy and pain. He's not on camera much, but every moment he is rings true and affirms the movie's authenticity.
Wonderfully cracked, characters you have to love, extremely funny, well made. Don't miss this one. And the first dog says....
What would you trade for comedic talent? November 21, 2003
8 out of 8 found this review helpful
This movie veers brilliantly between the joy of comedy and the pain that lies just beneath its surface. It gets messy at times, but only because it sets high expectations for itself. It's a movie that will pop into your mind later, both for its humor and its poignancy.Oliver Platt and Lee Evans were new to me in this one, and give dead-on performances. Evans produces two of the best comedic scenes I've ever watched, and the movie has several glorious set pieces. Make no mistake, though: this is not a comedy overall. It is a character-driven drama with soaring moments of slapstick and vaudeville. The grim moments mentioned in other reviews are disturbing, but provide counterpoint to the humor. In tone, this movie is similar to the Coen brothers' movies- eclectic, moving, and funny. At ten bucks it's a fantastic bargain.
An exploration of the line between comedy and tragedy December 17, 1998
7 out of 7 found this review helpful
This film is one of my lifetime top ten. It finds the line between comedy and tragedy and pushes and pulls you back and forth over it. You never know how any scene is going to turn out. be prepared for ANYTHING! Hysterically funny and deeply painful at the same time. An absolutely wonderful movie.
misrepresented film. April 27, 2004
Richard A Schauer (Kent,, WA USA)
8 out of 9 found this review helpful
I found this movie to be quite good. Not a comedy as you might expect but Chaplin's comedies were not alway comedies either. I liked it, especially for Lee Evans.If you saw Mouse Hunt with Nathan Lane you might remember the brother. That was Lee Evans. He does a very unusual, very funny bit, in this movie. Worth the price of the film. Oliver Platt is the son of a famous comedian, played by Jerry Lewis, who fails as he tries to follow in his father's footsteps. To get inspiration he returns to the town his family had left when he was almost too young to remember. Revelations abound. If you approach this movie as a father - son relationship film and not as a comedy you should enjoy it. If you do not enjoy the Lee Evan's bit then you do not have a sense of humor and you should get yourself one.
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