On the morning of his father's funeral, Daniel's day is not starting out too good. Not only is he about to be faced with his annoying, famed novelist brother Robert, but the funeral home has just delivered the wrong body to the ceremony. Then combine that with his wife constantly pressuring him to put a down payment on a "˜flat', and his cousin trying to help her fiancé win over her stubborn father "“ a plan that never really gets started when Simon accidentally takes a designer drug on the way to the service. But this all seems like nothing when the real shock of the day arrives. A midget of a guest threatens to reveal their fathers biggest secret - in front of the family. Now, the brothers will have to come together to hide the truth from their family and friends and figure out how to bury both their father and his secret.
Death at a Funeral is by far one of the best comedies of the year. With the art of dry humor perfected by the entire cast, there are no slow-downs in a rip-roaring ride through hell.
Matthew MacFadyen plays Daniel, a man dealing with so many inner issues, to a tee and really brings the character to life. Throw in a triad of comedic geniuses: Andy Nyman, Alan Tudyk, and Ewen Bremner and the film becomes a flawless piece of art. However, Peter Vaughan playing Uncle Alfie really steals the entire film. Delivering some of the best lines and most hilarious instances, his delivery is what really separates this film from all the other "˜dry humor' comedies. But the amazing acting does not stop there. The entire cast worked amazingly together, providing a full circle of actors that shared a strong bond of chemistry. It isn't very often that a film, with only about 10 people with speaking lines, shares this type of unity, but this group really pulls it off. Watching the film you really start to believe that this is a family ... a dysfunctional family, but a family.
In a similar retrospect, the writing of the film was brilliant as well. The lines were hilarious, the characters were real, and the story was strong. Actors can't perform great lines without having them written down, and Dean Craig, the sole credited writer of the film did a great job transferring a horrific possible experience into a hilarious film.
The film is great and really makes you appreciate the small things. It is a must-see. Just make sure you are ready to laugh a lot before you sit down. And let's just hope that this becomes the new 'Christopher Guest ensemble'.
