ShareThisWriter-director Judd Apatow has been going city to city to talk about "Funny People," his third movie as a director after "The 40-Year-Old Virgin" and "Knocked Up."
The film about superstar stand-up comedian George Simmons (Adam Sandler) and his protege Ira Wright (Seth Rogen) contains most of the hallmarks of an Apatow movie: realistically lowbrow guy talk, a large comic ensemble and supporting roles for Apatow regulars including Jonah Hill, Ken Jeong and his wife, Leslie Mann.
But there's also an unexpected serious and contemplative side to this movie -- particularly Sandler's lonely, depressed character.
"Funny People" also explores the areas of stand-up comedy where other movies on the subject fear to tread, including an almost documentary style of shooting in the clubs.
Q: How important was it for the comedy club parts in the movie to look right?
A: It was important for all of us that the stand-up be portrayed accurately, because it almost never has been in movies. So we brought in real crowds, and we shot five or six cameras, and whatever happened happened. I didn't shoot Seth without a crowd and then shoot the crowd and then construct it. Everyone just did sets. And then we used pieces.
Q: Did unexpected things happen?
A: One night Adam said, "I want to do something with a piano tonight. Maybe I'll improvise a song." This whole song that he sings in the middle of the movie, he just made up on the spot. It's so sad and demented and funny. ... That's what I was hoping would happen.
Q: Did you have a George Simmons to help you during your stand-up days?
A: I had a lot of George Simmonses. There were a lot of comedians who mentored me. I don't know if they thought that's what they were doing. You would just hang out with older comedians, and they were nice and would give you advice.
Q: What was the best advice you got?
A: That it would take seven years to become a good stand-up comedian. I think that was from Jerry Seinfeld. ... I was writing jokes for comedians to pay my rent, because I wasn't making any money doing stand-up. So I started selling jokes, and that turned into longer-term gigs writing people's acts with them. I wrote Roseanne's act for a year.
Q: Did Roseanne have a dark side?
A: Everyone was very nice to me. That's why it took me a long time to come up with the story for "Funny People." Because I actually had to fabricate a much nastier character than anyone I knew. Roseanne was just great to me. I wrote her jokes, and she bought me a Rolex one Christmas. I had no complaints.
Q: What was the least amount of money you made as a joke writer?
A: Back in the old days there were certain people who would give you 50 bucks if they liked a joke. I wrote some jokes for Jeff Dunham's puppet Walter when he first created that puppet.
Q: Do you remember any?
A: One of the jokes was "A lot of people say, 'Sex gets better when you get older.' Hold on to that dream!"
Q: You got 50 bucks for that?
A: Fifty bucks right there.
Q: Most directors have six or seven projects on deck in their Imdb.com page. Yours is pretty much blank.
A: I've made an effort to slow down. We're shooting a movie called "Get Him to the Greek," which Nick Stoller wrote and directed and stars Jonah Hill and Russell Brand and P Diddy, Colm Meaney, Elisabeth Moss and Rose Byrne. That's shooting until the end of the summer, and then I don't have anything lined up.
Q: Your kids are in "Funny People." Are they allowed to see "Funny People"?
A: Actually, I am. I asked the editor to cut out everything bad in the movie that my 11-year-old can't see. So I have to look at it and see if it's OK.
Q: All that will be left is the James Taylor song and the 30 seconds where George meets his parents.
A: Yeah, we'll have to see. I think she can handle the cursing, but I don't want my daughter to know sex exists.
Q: Have you thought about directing a children's movie or a horror film?
A: I say that to people all the time. "You know I'm out of ideas when I'm making a thriller." I guess it's possible. I think about that sometimes. I think about the people who get asked to direct movies like "Harry Potter." "How did he get asked to direct "Harry Potter." How did they make that connection? I never put myself out there as someone who does that kind of work. But I can see after making a bunch of very personal movies that it would be interesting to take a job that's a great piece of writing and execute it well.
Q: The Harry Potter kids are getting older. Maybe the studio would let you put a sex joke in there.
A: Oh definitely, definitely. I want to do the fourth "Golden Compass" movie. ... But usually I have something I want to say, and if I don't get it out of my head, I'll have mental problems. It's a good form of therapy for me to make (my own) movies. I'm sure I'll always have enough mental problems that I won't have to take an assignment.
(E-mail Peter Hartlaub at phartlaub(at)sfchronicle.com. For more stories visit scrippsnews.com.)
Must credit the San Francisco Chronicle
High Profile
