It’s Kind of a Funny Story

I recently watched a film from 2010 about a young man flirting with suicidal thoughts that suddenly became intense. He realizes he should not end his life, so he checks himself into a mental hospital, but the teen ward is closed, so he is thrust into uncharted waters, experiencing a more mature community of people caught in difficult circumstances, along with some juvenile’s as well. Directors Ryan Fleck and Anna Boden culled great performances from all of their cast members.

Keir Gilchrist demonstrates appropriate teenage angst in playing depressed Craig Gilner, a young man fraught with social, intellectual and familial pressures; Zach Galifianakis takes on the rold of Bobby, a man with a touch of Hawkeye Pierce, who seems to transcend the concept of a psych ward patient, does not have the kind of resources Craig has, and is a perceptive friend to Craig; Emma Roberts portrays Noelle, the lovely young lady whose misuse of scissors to deface her physique is unsettling.

A beautiful fact about this movie is that most every character in it is enjoyable to watch; Craig’s parents were the only possible exceptions, especially his dad, who didn’t get that his son was not meant to be in business. But then, they were unaccustomed to the world their son found himself in.

Another wonderful thing is that It’s Kind of a Funny Story realistically depicts life in a mental ward, shows the trials and the pathos, and more importantly, the camaraderie. I’ve been a patient in several different psychiatric hospitals, and they are not easy places to be, but like any disparate group thrown together in adversity, good things can sometimes happen; the film definitely recounts those types of things.

Finally, the film is not only a well-told tale of the human condition, but has humor and romance to boot. Craig is enamored with his ‘best-friend’s-girl’ Nia, but it is the relationship that develops between Craig and fellow patient, Noelle that is great to watch, also evinced in character Bobby’s observations of the young couple’s progress.

There are a ton of great supporting performances, including roles filled by Viola Davis, Jeremy Davies, Bernard White, Adrian Martinez, Mathew Maher and Lou Myers. A sad coda to the story is that the author of the story, Ned Vizzini, who struggled with depression, and himself once spent five days in a mental hospital, ended his life at age 32. But don’t miss the movie for that. It’s very sad about the author, but the story is full of hope.