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Funny Farm (1988)
Directed by George Roy Hill
Starring: Chevy Chase, Madolyn Smith Osborne
Once in a while it feels good to watch a nice 80’s comedy. This time it was Funny Farm, the 1988 film directed by George Roy Hill. Yes, this is the same George Roy Hill who won an Oscar for Best Director with The Sting (1973). The same man who was behind Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969) and The Great Waldo Pepper (1975). This time he didn’t find himself with Redford and Newman, it was Chevy Chase leading the way. Chase has done a number of comedies over the years, but I think he’s best known for his repeated work as Clark Griswold in the National Lampoon films. This movie also features Madolyn Smith Osborne opposite Chase. She was on a number of television shows in the 80’s and 90’s.
Andy (Chase) and Elizabeth (Osborne) have sold their place in the city and moved to the country. Now Andy can work in their new country home as he tries to pen the next great novel. The quiet and peaceful existence they imagined couldn’t be further from the truth. As Andy struggle with his writing the two of them also struggle to fit in to the small community of Redbud, Vermont. While the couple struggles to adjust they’ll have to deal with the local crazies and the skeletons they might unearth as they carve out their own niche in their new home.
Like so many other comedies from the 80’s, I love this movie because it makes no sense. That isn’t to say that the plot is bad, but that the story is far-fetched and very loose. This makes movies like this fun to watch as long as you’re willing to just go with the flow. With Chase and Osborne working together nicely this is a fun movie for the whole family.
I hope I’ve made it clear that this is just a fun film. It has a good story and seems to play off the natural abilities of the actors involved. I would recommend this one for the whole family. I give this movie 3 out of 5 stars.
Did You See That One? 
Haven’t seen this one in a while. I remember the “record setting” scene and the con at the end, but that’s about it.
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It’s got the same sort of feeling that came along with most comedies of that time. I really love his record setting dinner though. It’s a fun movie all around.
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Classic movie! I grew up with Chevy Chase’s brand of humor all over the place. This definitely falls more into the realm of serious comedies over the more slap-stick variety. Most of the laughs I got from the movie weren’t really “laugh out loud” moments, but I still quote this movie a surprising amount
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It was a fun one to see so many years after I saw it the first time.
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