By Jae-Ha Kim
Amazon.com
February 16, 2007
When a movie title has the word “funny” in it, viewers have an expectation that the film will incite at least a few laughs. In Funny Money, mild-mannered white-collar accountant Henry Perkins (Chevy Chase) literally stumbles upon a bag full of money, through a series of improbable mishaps. Mayhem ensues when he finds himself the illegal recipient of a few million dollars.
Since it’s mob money–and since he doesn’t want the tough guys to think he stole from them–Henry does what anyone would do: He steals from them and then tries to outsmart the Mob. This movie isn’t without a few chortles, but the problem with Funny Money is it’s not nearly as humorous as the characters seem to believe it is.
And the people we most care about are given thankless roles. Penelope Ann Miller can always be counted on to balance sexiness with astute comedic timing. But here, as Henry’s put-upon wife, Miller’s skills are wasted and spends too much time off screen.
In the end, the film plays like a tired and overly long version of a “Saturday Night Live” skit.
