Mega-star line up of African American actors in a highly bizarre comedy directed by Neil Labute(of all people)about the hi-jinx and shenanigans which take place during the day of a patriarch's funeral. Chris Rock and Martin Lawrence are brothers having to contend with a dwarf(Peter Dinklage in a piece of inspired casting)threatening to show a sex photograph of himself with their father! He wants 30 thousand dollars or else their mama will see her husband's dirty little secret(emphasis on little). Loretta Devine is the widow, Keith David the exasperated preacher who just wants to sermonize and move on, interrupted over and over by Rock who has to deal with numerous issues, Zoe Saldana(Avatar; Star Trek)with a lot of problems on her plate(a doctor father who doesn't approve of her boyfriend, the significant other(James Marsden, as you have never seen him before) who reacts crazily to a hallucinogenic drug he believed was a Valium, a former lover(Luke Wilson)interested in a relationship with her, although she knows he just wants pops' money), Regina Hall as Rock's wife who desperately wants a child(even attempting to seduce her husband, not wearing any panties, before the funeral!), and Tracy Morgan as a friend of the family who must cope with the demands of disgruntled, wheel-chair confined retirement home relative, Uncle Russell(Danny Glover who steals every scene he's in, even referencing his most famous character, Murtaugh from LETHAL WEAPON). Marsden's basket-case antics and Glover's brutal honesty are definite highlights, not to mention, the reactions of Rock and Lawrence when they discover daddy's hidden life. Poor Morgan suffers from "pigment mutation" which has him constantly scratching, as well as, being defecated on when his hand gets caught under Glover's ass when he needs to drop a load in the toilet! Marsden thinks the casket of the dearly departed is moving with someone inside and removes all his clothing while recuperating in the bathroom after being told he was given a different kind of drug than Valium! Glover comments truthfully about everything, he's the relative of the family you wish to harness, often saying things without hesitation. Saldana is mostly running around with Christopher Short(as her brother, who whipped up a batch of hallucinogenic pills for a friend, them getting placed in a Valium bottle which finds its way to Marsden)trying to keep Marsden from causing an embarrassing ruckus, quite often unsuccessful. Luke Wilson is Saldana's father's chosen favorite and continues to court her despite her every resistance(he can not take no for an answer when its quite clear she is head-over-heels for Marsden). Rock lives under Lawrence's shadow(Lawrence is a successful author, although it's established that he isn't exactly a very good one)and wants to be a writer despite the lack of talent, yet as a "tax man", he's carved out a fine life for himself and Regina(Rock is the one who helped pay the bills, including the funeral expenses while Lawrence was flat broke). Perhaps the gay jokes might turn the stomach of many homosexuals, but its all in good fun and really not *that* harmful(the "little people" are also poked fun at when Dinklage is held captive by Rock and company when he tried to confront the widow about the photographs, plenty of zingers from many of the principles in the cast). Every member of this massive cast get a chance to shine, each with their own little moments. Certainly the comedy is broad and the plot is all over the place, more slapstick and farce than anything else.
Review of Death at a Funeral
