First of all this is not suppose to be funny. A father dies and leaves the bulk of his 2.5 million to his mentally unstable son, Zach Galifan. Amy Poehler is the sister who fights the will. Owen Wilson is the weather man on TV who tries to keep Galifan sane. What happens to the money? What happens to the store? Finally smething does change for all the characters, and it wasn't an easy road. The tone is consistent with an upper class family trying to readjust after the patriarch dies. This is one of Owen Wilson's best.

Steve (Owen Wilson) is a successful weather reporter in Annapolis, where he is less successful in creating an established relationship. Also, curiously, he is always broke but, we soon learn the reason. A childhood pal, Ben (Zach Galifianakis) has bipolar disorder and can't work, depending on Steve for daily expenses. To be truthful, the duo also has a pile of money go up in "smoke", literally, as they have a need for weed. One day, things take different path. Zach's father has passed away and the two go back to the small North Carolina town where the dad was a big wheel, with a town's store and a large farm. Unhappily, they soon run into Ben's sister (Amy Poehler) who is a bee-itch to the endth degree. Also present at the funeral is Ben's father's second wife, who is much younger, beautiful, and quirky. At the reading of the will days later, surprises are put forth. Sis gets a couple hundred thou, the widow gets a small inheritance, as was her wishes, and Ben gets the huge rest of the money and property. Sis is miffed. Ben, confused, stays in a daze on the farm, while Steve must return to Annapolis and visit on the weekends. Soon, Ben is filled with wild and crazy ideas for the money, which prompts Sis to take him to court for a psychological evaluation. Who will ultimately inherit and is there future happiness for Ben and Steve? This very interesting film, by the creator of Mad Men, is brave in its depiction of mental illness. Galifianakis is great as the troubled Ben; he is a most fine actor. Wilson does himself proud, too, in one of his most meaningful roles while Poehler will shock viewers in her role as the bad-tempered, selfish sister in an amazing about-face of her typical humor. The scenery is lovely and direction careful and sweet. Are you here is a great watch for those who like films far from the usual Hollywood fare.

Steve Dallas (Owen Wilson) is a local TV weather reporter. He smokes weed with his slacker friend Ben Baker (Zach Galifianakis) who lives in a rundown trailer and has a philosophy of balance with nature. Ben's dad dies and Steve drives him home. Terri Coulter (Amy Poehler) is Ben's bossy sister. Angela (Laura Ramsey) is their hippie stepmother. Terri is given $350k and the rest of the property totaling some $2.5 million to Ben. It puts Ben into a tailspin until he comes up with an idea. Then Terri challenges the Will.

The material keeps trying and certainly Zach gives it his all. This is simply not funny. Writer/director Matthew Weiner is famous for some terrific TV work. Most of this falls flat. It's hard to put a finger on a single cause of this. The jokes are not sharp enough. The directions aren't there. There is something off about the chemistry between Owen, Zach and Angela. Owen is playing a ladies man but the movie starts with him being a horrible date. These weed smoking characters are not nearly funny enough. The four main characters just make me scratch my head. Amy Poehler is almost funny a couple of time. Laura Ramsey struggles to stay in the picture with her costars. Owen has a great moment about his friendship and then the movie turns it on his head. Just when this movie seems to climb out of a hole, it digs an even deeper one. With the talents in the picture, this should be so much funnier.