User Reviews

I wasn't quite sure what to expect out of this, even though I had enjoyed the trailer in the theater. There had been some comments about cruel humor, which I just didn't see. The story was well structured, with groundwork laid early on for very funny bits much later in the film that got us laughing hard without hitting us over the head with the joke. The moments of comic tension were good, without that excruciating sense that someone was going to be horribly embarrassed, or hurt, or whatever, that American films seem to have. The situation is very well known to everyone who's been to a family funeral, although in America we would have the service in a funeral home or church, and we've all had moments when we want to laugh at the wrong time, or notice something a little out of the ordinary in the service that seems to cry out for comment. My husband, 14 year old daughter and I enjoyed the film immensely, and we all gave it an 8 out of 10, with some good carryover lines to quote amongst ourselves. Go see it, enjoy, and leave the political correctness at home.

"Death at a Funeral" is a hilarious British black comedy from 2007 starring Matthew MacFadyen, Peter Dinklage, Jane Asher, Alan Tudyk, Kris Marshall, Rupert Graves, and Peter Vaughan.

A family gathers for the patriarch's funeral: his wife (Asher), his son Daniel (MacFadyen) and his wife Jane (Keely Hawes, MacFadyen's real-life wife), and his son Robert (Rupert Graves). Robert is a well-known author living in a New York City penthouse; Daniel and Jane have been looking after his parents but now are planning to get a flat further away. Daniel and Robert are supposed to split the cost of the funeral, but Robert claims to have no money because it's expensive to keep up his lifestyle. He also won't give the eulogy, though everyone who walks in asks him if he's going to. Meanwhile, Daniel practices a eulogy but never seems to get past, "My father was an exceptional man." Meanwhile, the funeral home has brought the wrong body and has to return to get the right one.

Daniel and Robert's cousin Martha (Daisy Donovan) is attending the funeral with her boyfriend Simon (Tudyk). When they go to pick up Troy (Marshall), Martha gives the nervous Simon what she thinks is a Valium. It's a hallucinogenic concocted by Troy, who is a pharmacy student. By the time they get to the wedding, Simon is acting strangely. Not as strangely as he would act later on, but strangely.

Daniel notices a dwarf (Dinklage) at the funeral; the man says he wants to speak with Daniel privately. His name is Peter.

That's all I'll say but the story becomes more and more bizarre and funny, including a hypochondriac with a discoloration on his wrist that he's sure is a dreaded disease, blackmail, nudity, a locked bathroom, and lots of other things.

Very, very entertaining with fine performances, no one going for laughs, just playing the characters. That's really the way to do it. One of my favorite parts occurs when Robert tries to dismiss the problems brought in by Peter, saying, "Oh, no one even noticed him." "No one noticed him?" Daniel asks. "He's 4'5!" A lovely ending puts the cap on this entertaining film.

Don't watch the American remake. This is the version to watch, absolutely hilarious. No spoilers- just watch it and treat yourself to some laughs. 8/10.

Who would expect hallucinogenic drugs, homosexual adultery, human waste (literally), nudity, and much more such unexpected surprises in a funeral? I have always been a fan of Frank Oz's work and this time he directs a black comedy about a dysfunctional family (at a funeral). What I enjoyed about it is the different kinds of humour (slapstick, macabre, toilet, metaphorical...) that all fit together. I do not enjoy the overuse of toilet humour (especially the way it has been done in numerous Hollywood summer movies) but here it is within context and the film itself is full of laugh out loud moments. Oz assembles a host of talented actors that include Keeley Hawes, Andy Nyman, Daisy Donovan, Alan Tudyk, Jane Asher, Kris Marshall, Peter Dinklage and Rupert Graves. I did not expect Matthew Macfadyen to pull off comedy and here he was a funny surprise.

The entire film is set during the funeral and what makes this film different from others of its genre is the comedy and the pace is pretty smooth. Even though some of the comedic situations were over the top (in a good way) none of it looked out of place. It's the kind of film that may not appeal to everyone but those who get it will roll on the floor laughing.

I watched it during a tired evening and I thought I wouldn't be able to sit through it because I was so tired (not because I expected the movie to be bad or anything) but the constant laughing got me energized enough throughout. It's just infectiously hilarious!

This is one of my favourite comedies of all time. The humour is very British, very black and the cast are all superb. Don't watch the American re-make (why??? we speak the same language?) Watch this.

Death at a Funeral. When their father's coffin arrive in first scene, they find out that it's the wrong coffin and officials run back to bring the right coffin, you seem to know that nothing right is going to happen in next 90 minutes. As guests start arriving brining their own problems to the funeral ceremony, characters start clashing into each other intentionally or unintentionally, fun and chaos start to unravel. A crisp story not going beyond the house having funeral, comedy which is not slapstick rather quite situational, characters who are serious but are victim of unlikely surprises thrown at them. Movie never tries to do anything fresh but it is quite coherent and works like a little cracker. I am going with good 7 out of 10 for Death at a Funeral. It has nothing anything great but it is quite recommended if you are looking for some harmless fun on a lazy holiday.

I went to this screening expecting it to be a serious movie -- you don't expect to be laughing at a movie with both "Death" and "Funeral" in the title -- but this film was hilarious! It wasn't just me -- the theater was full of people screaming with laughter and clapping at various moments.

Alan Tudyk is hilarious every moment he is on screen. Finally this underrated actor has gotten a good-sized part where he can show off his comedy skills.

Most of the actors are British and I did not recognize them, but they were excellent.

One I recognized was Jane Asher (she was Paul McCartney's girlfriend in the 60s -- he shoulda married her -- she's still alive and she's not a gold-digger). She plays the very composed widow here. (Oddly she has fewer creases on her face than her middle-aged sons.)

This film reminded me a bit of "Four Weddings and a Funeral", but even more of those British madcap black comedies of the 60s with Alec Guinness or Peter Sellers.

Death at a Funeral is a British black comedy about some very bizarre events which occur at a man's funeral. DAAF is very much a British comedy film, based around embarrassment, awkward situations and a dry, dark sense of humour. The film could easily be replicated on stage, and is refreshingly low key. Being British myself, I love this kind of humour, but this film is sometimes an example of too much of a good thing. Much of the time, the jokes are too subtle to get, and the film doesn't always succeed in making its awkward moments funny and it just becomes cringe-worthy instead. The film takes a little while to get going and there aren't always that many laugh-out-loud moments, but it's still a good film and well worth watching. The acting is all-around awesome with the wonderful Peter Dinklage being as brilliant as ever, many of the gags are very effective and there's a delightful mix of intelligent jokes and surprising tension. It certainly has its flaws, but it is underrated and the American remake (I haven't seen it yet) was the film I was far more aware of. Watch without seeing the trailer or knowing anything about the plot, and the film's many twists and turns will hit even harder.

7/10

It's been ages since I had such a good time enjoying a movie. While other movies about dysfunctional families are so dramatic and serious, Death at a Funeral makes things brighter and funnier even at a funeral. The characters are not complex, but various - an accidentally drugged men, a hurting widow, a famous writer and his brother who cannot escape the other one's glorious shade, a hypochondric young men, a sever father, a sour old men, a homosexual blackmailer... and much, much chaos. This antithesis between life, with its different forms of manifestation, and death makes Death at a Funeral a juicy mild-black comedy.

Eight out of ten well deserved.

For such a recent movie, it's still got the classic British humour, sometimes a little predictable, yet still it is a well-thought plot with attention for detail.

Real British scenery, top acting, really nice anticipation on certain clichés. My only remark on this, is that certain characters may have been worked more thoroughly, except for the main character(s), most characters have got a rather dull personality or we don't get to know them.

Another merit is the use of limited cast/extras and locations, the making of the movie was probably not excessively expensive, and therefore a very good outcome in comparison with the input.

I saw this at a screening and I had a rousing good time. It starts with a chuckle in the opening credits and slowly builds to spotty laughter, belly laughs, and loud groaning silliness. This is British farce with an expert ensemble cast. Everyone hits their marks and a couple go completely overboard and over-broad (Mr. Vaughn, we're looking at you.) Tudyk and Dinklage have the showiest parts and they feast on them. The rest of the cast is inspired and spot on.

It's a delightful combination of highbrow meeting lowbrow and everything in between. A dash of wit and charm mixed in with a few genuine surprises. A few old tropes are trotted out but there is a bit of backspin on them. If you want a laugh, go!

An upper class British family gathers for the funeral of their father. Naturally everything goes wrong. Son Daniel wants his brother to help--but his brother is only interested in getting a girl into bed; a cousin's straight-laced boyfriend accidentally takes a hallucinogenic that makes him act quite crazy (leading to an uproarious--if sick--bit with a coffin); a little person shows up with some secrets that the family didn't know about; an elderly uncle swears nonstop and causes complications and various family members get involved with one calamity after another.

I saw this as a special preview at a film festival. My audience was in absolute hysterics almost constantly. I did laugh long and loud more than once and this movie has a wonderful cast going full force...but I wasn't crazy about it. Some of the humor was far too cruel for me to enjoy (poor Alan Tudyk is forced to walk around nude) and there was some real sick bathroom humor here too. The black comedy however worked well and the dead pan expressions of the cast as one disaster after another happens were quite funny. It does lead to a truly hilarious eulogy at the end. Worth catching but don't go out of your way for it.

In all seriousness, I expected a lot more out of this film - and it just didn't deliver. First of all, where I am from we grew up with British comedy (Fawlty Towers, Some Mothers Do Have 'Em etc etc etc), and so I can say I certainly appreciate good old British slapstick. In fact many of my favorite recent movies had followed in such vain (Hot Fuzz springs immediately to mind). But this movie is just bad. It's really not that funny. It is saved by a few Freudian moments but otherwise I feel it relies on overusing blasphemy to get a cheap laugh (just moments where people swore and they didn't need to).

The people out there claiming to be British comedy experts and giving THIS rave reviews quite simply do not know what they are talking about. Sorry. This film is a rental quality effort and no more.

I've heard a lot of people say this movie is peak British humor, but I'm not sure that's true. It felt like peak human humor. The comedic writing and performances translate so well across the pond I can see why the film was remade in America just three years later. The whole comedic ensemble hung together so well, but I have to give special mention to Alan Tudyk's performance, that man playing a normal guy on a drug trip for the entire film had me laugh out loud every time he was on screen.

I had seen this movie a couple years ago and remember really enjoying it, but I had genuinely forgotten there was a bit of drama to the story. I appreciate what the film tried to do, but I think with such a large (and hilarious!) cast, the family drama following Matthew Macfayden and his relationship with his brother and dead father didn't land for me quite as well as the comedy did. However-this movie is so fun and I highly recommend you take some time and watch it.

I found this to be the funniest movie that I've seen in ages. We saw it today (July 12th) in Herzliya, Israel at the local movie theater at the mall.

There were only 8 people in the whole audience, and my husband and I filled the room with howls of laughter.

The actors are fabulous, especially Alan Tudyk, Khris Marshall, Andy Nyman, Peter Dinklage, and Daisy Donovan. Actually, the whole ensemble was great.

Especially Alan Tudyk keeps his frenetic performance absolutely hysterically funny, throughout most of the film!

Free of Hollywood hype, this film was a pleasure.

The wackiest Funeral you'll ever witness.

Reviewed July 2011

What are the odds at watching two movies involving midgets in pivotal roles back to back? To my experience British comedies have been excellent in the 2000s.

Death at a Funeral is almost a classic comedy baring a few misfires. The entire story takes place during a funeral ceremony where the eccentric family members and the friends deal with a dark secret of the deceased. It has an extensive use of pot and poo jokes as the latter was a bit disgusting and out of place for the setting.

Performances were apt and subtle by most even while expressing their eccentric best and the story never lags. Special mention should go to Alan Tudyk who gets accidentally drugged with a hallucinogenic pill.

It is definitely an enjoyable comedy with quite a few very awkward moments and a heart in the right place.

I watched this movie yesterday at a pre-screening in Berlin. Without knowing what to expect I went there with a friend. When we came out of the theater, we've had tears in our eyes - it was just too hilarious! I haven't laughed that much in a movie for quite a while. If you love black-humor, "Death at a funeral" is definitely a must-see movie! It's full of bizarre scenes (partly earthy though, nevertheless funny), great cast (especially Alan Tudyk, who's having quite a lot of laughs on his side) and the script is so awesome! Dean Craig has done an excellent job by writing it, Frank Oz by directing one of the year's best comedy movies! You won't regret watching it!

Death at a Funeral has a distinct Four Weddings and a Funeral feel. This movie is more amusing that many so-called American comedies at their peaks. Director Frank Oz's credentials as the helmsman of funny movies are well established - he steered such productions as What About Bob?, In & Out, and Bowfinger. Improbably, this is a perfect choice for him, and the result ends up being a fusion of his off-kilter style and screenwriter Dean Craig's zaniness. Embarrassment may be the soil of British comedy, but the cringe-inducing fertilizer is all American. Death at a Funeral is flawed, but I'm willing to forgive a lot of flaws when a movie makes me laugh as much as this one. Despite being directed by a Yank, Death at a Funeral has a very British flavour. In fact, at times it reminded me of nothing less than an extended episode of Fawlty Towers, minus the manic genius of John Cleese. The film begins slowly, with occasional low-key laughs widely spread. However, it then does something too few comedies achieve: it builds momentum. The closer we get to the end credits, the faster and more furious the jokes come, until they're tumbling all over one another. The film's climax is nothing short of hilarious.

Basically, this movie is just a bunch of people, from the same family, who get together for the funeral of the patriarch of the family. But one of those people has a secret regarding this man.

Now, the thing that I wanted to see in this movie was funny situations and the characters dealing with them in funny ways. An that's what I saw. The movie is well written, well directed, although i would have liked to see longer shots like moving into a different scene without cutting.' The acting is good too. Some of the character are pretty forgettable but there are some that I will never forget.

Like Peter Dinklage's character. I mean the dude was funny as sh*t. Rupert Graves is good in the movie, you know Lestrade from BBC's Sherlock. He kinda reminded me of Barney Stinson. There's another dude, played by Kris Marshall and he's like a drug dealer, dude was good. And Wash from Firefly he's in this movie, most of the movie he's on drugs, but he plays it good.

To wrap up the movie funny and good. That is all I have to say

Slow to warm-up, fortunately this understated British comedy fires on all cylinders when a wake is interrupted by the bizarre activities of its guests, among them a blackmailing dwarf (Drinklage), a drug-affected naked man (Tudyk) and the incontinence of the ageing and slightly demented Peter Vaughan character whose unfortunate nephew (Nyman) must tend to his care in comical fashion.

McFadden plays the well-adjusted son entrusted with organising his wealthy father's funeral, his mother (the once-seductive and still glamorous Asher) the remaining parental link to a dysfunctional family whose dark secrets come to bear during a day of chaos and farce. Apart from Vaughan, Tudyk, Peter Egan and Asher, none of the cast was especially familiar to me at the time I saw this in 2008, but whether you know the names or not, it doesn't matter as all the weird and wacky characters offer something different.

Tudyk is trademark eccentric as a guest who accidentally pops a party drug and ends up disrobing and climbing the stately castle's walls, while Drinklage has an hilarious scene where he bounces off a sofa onto a coffee table, and the moment where Nyman has to clean his uncle whose defecated is among the most side-splitting moments I've experienced. Doesn't always ignite, but despite the slow start an very occasional misfire, director Frank Oz's expertise knows how to build the momentum to a rousing and farcical climax that's sufficiently worth the wait.

This film was absolutely hilarious - can't believe we haven't found it sooner. Perfect brutish humour. I was crying with laughter throughout!

So much better then the US version. That was really horrible.

Opened in the UK today and the reviews ranged from awful to great. Such a difference of opinion meant I had to see it.

There's much said about the difference between the US/UK sense of humour but personally I think, at least in TV terms, the US leaves us standing. Which is why I find it strange that people outside the UK seem to like this film.

For the benefit of US viewers, most of the cast are top notch UK actors. And you'll know that Frank Oz has made some decent films. But this is so awful it made me genuinely angry.

I stayed with it because I read that, despite a slow start, it gathers momentum into a kind of Fawlty Towers farce/comedy of errors. I was still waiting at the end. It was hard to watch, a film so awful it made me feel that somehow it was all my fault, and it was too late to do anything about it.

Its a shame that such a great character actor as Peter Vaughan (Uncle Alfie) is used in such a demeaning way. Worse still, it made the lovely Keeley Hawes look dowdy.

I had the choice of Heartbreak Kid or this crap tonight, and I'm pretty sure I went the wrong way.