Turning "Old Jews Telling Jokes" into a feature film is the natural evolution of the web series by Sam Hoffman that started in 2009. His jokes and anecdotes contributed to several Jewish personalities already have been complied into a book, transformed into a TV series and became a podcast. It was relatively simple to transform the original material into all of those formats because they have a loose design.
Making the movie based on the concept, "Humor Me" took more work, but Hoffman ends up hanging on to the essence of his popular compilation of comedy while weaving it into a touching family story. His script has no major problems, but it also isn't overly strong. The good thing is the family element is elevated because of the strong work by both Elliott Gould ("Ray Donovan") and Jemaine Clement ("Flight of the Conchords).
The family story Hoffman has fashioned is more of inspired by his "Old Jews Telling Jokes" than saying it is based the stories. Biggest among the adjustments is the storyline of Nate (Clement), a struggling playwright forced to move in with his joke-telling dad, Bob (Gould), in a New Jersey retirement community. It is an uneasy situation because Nate has gotten tired of his father's endless telling of jokes while Nate is a disappointment to his father because of his lack of focus. Both must learn to adjust or the father-son relationship will be ruined forever.
Hoffman, who also directed the film, smartly weaves in jokes into the script in two very different ways. Gould is masterful at telling humorous stories that come across funnier than they really are because of his delivery. There's a beautiful rhythm to the way Gould fires off jokes as emotional defensive mechanisms.
The other smart move by Hoffman is scattering some black-and-white vignettes of the jokes through the film. These stand-alone jokes come closer to the original design of the web series, but are a jarring jump from the family elements. Hoffman uses just enough of the comedy scenes so they are an accent and not a distraction to the far more interesting family story.
Gould is strong both as the jokester and as the frustrated father. But, he doesn't have to carry the load on his own. The family story works because Clement turns in a believable performance, both as the struggling writer and as the emotionally oppressed son. It's not the normal role for Clement, but he rises to the occasion.
Where the movie begins to move away from its emotional core is having Nate take over as the director of a senior citizen production of "The Mikado." This allows Hoffman the opportunity to bring in other veteran actors, including Annie Potts. It also sets up a potential love interest for Nate with Allison (Ingrid Michaelson). This is one of the most accessible versions of "The Mikado," but the story thread isn't strong enough to warrant the time it takes between Gould and Clement. The movie is loaded with highs created by the father-son story and lows caused by the theater production. In the end, the highs come out slightly ahead.
Saving the ending is the moment when a video of one of Nate's plays surfaces, opening old wounds for him and his father. Ultimately, the father and son realize they have both been trying to deal with the pain in their lives in methods not that different. Again, it is Gould and Clement who prove that a film based on "Jokes" can get strength from the more personal moments.
"Humor Me" opens in New York Friday and then goes wider Jan. 19.
