Funny Fat Guy explores one stand-up comic's tragic downward spiral as he becomes tainted by drug addiction and alcoholism. This film can be seen by many as a breath of fresh air, adding a dimension of realism to the film industry and describing the sad reality of many who become involved with drugs and alcohol, as well as the repercussions on themselves, their relationships, and careers. The plot moved along at a slow enough pace for audiences to keep up and enough happens to evade boredom.
The main character (Charlie McStean- played by Sandy Danto) is the embodiment of being pathetic. This results in excessive viewer sympathy and the slow trek down to the lowest point of his life can only be described as painful to watch, perhaps even a little too repetitious. Each time a ray of hope appears, it is promptly squashed 3 or 4 glasses of beer later. Again, this raises awareness of the tragic reality of an alcoholic. The relationships between characters were underdeveloped, but perhaps that was the point- to demonstrate how alcohol and drugs break down these relationships.
But you may be wondering; 'all this depression needs some kind of positive elements. Right?' Wrong. There isn't much happiness to be found in this film, even the ending is brutal in its nature. This is perhaps where some viewers could find creative differences with this film, but nevertheless, it is devoid of clichés, confronts to the extent of engaging viewers, and portrays its messages.
The production value was moderate in quality, but impressive for a film of this size. The cinematography had its moments, but was a little shaky at times. I was kept engaged as there was always something happening, and like McStean, there was always a thread of hope dangling just out of reach viewers could reach for. It is evident that Director Ryan Penington had a clear vision of the result through the duration of the film. The sound editing was sometimes a little unorganised- some of the dialogue was difficult to discern.
To improve, some more thorough editing should definitely be put in place to fix some of the little things that may bug viewers and decrease ethos of the film, however, overall, the content and themes was very impressive for this type of film, and enjoyment can definitely be sourced from it.
