You can't make a comedy of manners in a country without manners, said Matt Zoller Seitz in The New York Times. So American director Frank Oz set Death at a Funeral in Britain, where he lived from birth to age 5. Though best known for his Muppetry, as a director Oz 'œhas a knack for peppering safe commercial projects with ecstatically deranged situations.' Death at a Funeral is no exception, said Sid Smith in the Chicago Tribune. After its patriarch dies, an eccentric family desperately tries to cover up a shocking sexual scandal involving the deceased. The wrong body ends up in his coffin, the wrong pill (LSD) gets placed in straight-laced Simon's bottle of Valium, and the wrong guest arrives, a blackmailer played with subtle humor by Peter Dinklage. It all adds up to 90 minutes of 'œlethal farce, combining hints of The Lavender Hill Mob, a dose of Joe Orton, and a smidgen of the Farrelly brothers.' Despite the tasteless poop jokes and some dated gay jokes, said Ruthe Stein in the San Francisco Chronicle, Death at a Funeral is worth watching for Alan Tudyk's hilarious portrayal of Simon. If you don't laugh at his adept physical comedy, 'œyou may require some kind of scan to check the health of your funny bone.'
Rating: R
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