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"Only An Idiot Fast
Forwards Through Kate
Becnkinsale!" |
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Directed by Frank Coraci
- Written by Steve Coren,
Mark O'Keefe
Starring Adam Sandler,
Kate Beckinsale,
Christopher Walken,
David Hasselhoff
Distributed by Sony -
2006 - 98mins - Rated
PG13 |
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This summer, everything will click. |
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Hmm.
How can I say this without appearing to disrespect myself?
Actually, I can't.
So, I'll just say it.
Ignore the critics.
I'm serious. We don't like to admit this, but it's true. Sometimes,
even the best film critic is wrong. You see, the vast majority of us
can be, well, a bit snobbish, a tad detached from the real world AND,
perhaps most importantly, completely unable to disconnect our
intellectual selves long enough to recognize an entertaining film even
if it bites us in the ass.
"Click" is an entertaining film filled with every "put family first"
cliché in the book, every sappy movie stereotype around and quite a
bit of Adam Sandler's typical cinematic stupidity. You'll be sitting
there in the audience going "Man, that is so stupid" or "That reminds
me of "It's A Wonderful Life" so much" or "I know exactly where this
is going."
You'll be right on all three counts, but if you'll step back for a few
minutes and just relax, surrender and just give yourself to "Click,"
then I dare predict it's going to happen. You will find yourself
enjoying it...you will laugh a lot, though not as much as you might
during a typical Sandler film. You will also find yourself moved,
quite genuinely, in a way similar to the best moments of "Billy
Madison," the most dramatic moments of "Spanglish" and the quirkiest
moments of "Punch-Drunk Love." You might, as I did, even find yourself
shedding a tear or two in the film's more sincere moments.
"Click" is the story of Michael Newman (Sandler), an up and coming
architect whose desire to provide the best life possible for his wife
(Kate Beckinsale) and two children often comes at the expense of
actually spending time with them.
One night, after having spent a large sum of money on family presents
based upon a promised promotion that doesn't quite happen, Michael
ends up in the back room of a Bed, Bath & Beyond store talking to Morty
(Christopher Walken), a sort of mad scientist looking fella who seems
jovial enough and who just so happens to have received a universal
remote that is programmed to remember Michael's every decision and,
thus, programs itself to universally control his daily life.
Sound like a silly idea? It is. Remember, I said "surrender" is
required here. I wasn't kidding.
What follows is, indeed, a contemporary version of "It's A Wonderful
Life" crossed with "Defending Your Life," in which Michael essentially
fast-forwards through all the negatives that life can offer only to
realize that he, in fact, also missed the everyday things that make
life so wonderful.
This universal remote initially appears as quite the gift, as Michael
can fast forward through fights with his wife, foreplay before sex,
tasks at work, a demanding boss (a hilariously over-the-top David
Hasselhoff), dinner with his parents (Henry Winkler and Julie Kavner)
and a variety of other undesirable responsibilities. However, as the
universal remote records more and more of Michael's decisions to "fast
forward" he suddenly finds himself missing more and more of his daily
life...first days, then months, then the disintegration of his
marriage, family and even health.
Much like in "It's A Wonderful Life," Michael finds himself
accompanied by an angel of sorts in the person of Morty. To explain
Morty would be an injustice, but Walken is simply hysterical in
portraying this man who is a little mad, a little sincere and, most
likely, a touch of evil. Walken was inspired casting for the role, and
his performance is restrained enough that Morty never becomes a
caricature.
On a certain level, it's quite the shame that screenwriters Steven
Koren and Mark O'Keefe didn't go out more on a limb. Both Sandler and
Beckinsale are strong enough that this film could have stretched
significantly beyond its predictably clichéd storyline. Beckinsale
doesn't go much beyond the typical "perky, beautiful wife" role until
the film's second half when we begin to see age progression (supplied
perfectly by make-up genius Rick Baker), maturity and life changes. In
the second half of "Click," something does, indeed, click between
Sandler and Beckinsale. Their scenes become tender, intimate, funny
and, at times, surprisingly sweet.
Sandler, whose roles in "Spanglish" and "Punch-Drunk Love" garnered
critical praise but not much box-office, may give audiences more to
like here with a difficult to balance mix of his Sandler brand of
sophomoric humor and a sort of confused, but essentially good-hearted,
grown-up. Sandler pulls off both roles well, though he's still not
quite convincing in scenes requiring him to be distraught/tearful. He
comes closer in "Click" to pulling off this sort of scene than I've
ever seen, and I have to believe that acting alongside Beckinsale's
remarkable authenticity allowed him to let go more fully. It reminded
me of the impact Beckinsale had on John Cusack's performance in
"Serendipity." Quite simply, she brings out the best in her leading
men.
Henry Winkler and Julie Kavner do a nice job as Michael's loyal but
neglected parents. Winkler, in particular, pulls off his age
progression perfectly and a scene with him, Michael and Michael's now
grown-up son Ben in Michael's office is downright heartbreaking.
Kavner performs admirably, but makes an odd, noticeable change to her
"Marge Simpson" voice as she progresses in age. Particularly when she
becomes a senior citizen, this vocal shift is distracting and caused
me to think about "The Simpsons" during one of the more serious scenes
in the film.
Because there's age progression across the board, it is interesting to
watch Michael's kids also age. As young Ben and Samantha, Joseph
Castanon and Tatum McCann are adorable and convincing. While the teen
Ben and Samantha appearance is brief, when they resurface as adults
Jake Hoffman (Dustin's son) and Katie Cassidy (David Cassidy's
daughter) take over the roles and add a nice touch of sincerity during
the film's more dramatic scenes.
Sean Astin, as I'm sure you've never seen him, offers a nice
supporting performance. Additionally, Sandler regular Nick Swardson
offers a brief, funny performance in Bed, Bath & Beyond. While the
store itself is named in the film, it never feels like product
placement so much as it feels like a name they were able to play off
of in working with the plot.
Director Frank Coraci (who also is here in a cameo) is directing his
third film with Sandler ("The Wedding Singer" and "The Waterboy" being
the other two), and rebounds nicely from the debacle known as "Around
the World in 80 Days." The film features a solid, entertaining
soundtrack including a pleasant, unexpected cameo from Cranberries'
lead singer Dolores O'Riordan. The production design is simple yet
effective, and the film's special effects with the remote are a notch
above usual Sandler fare.
So, it all comes down to this simple statement...
Ignore the critics. We're going to pick apart "Click" because it
doesn't really offer anything new, it doesn't really stretch its
actors and it's really not being marketed very effectively. "Click" is
a new type of Adam Sandler film that combines the best that Adam
Sandler has to offer...his silly, juvenile and sophomoric humor and
that grown-up, mixed up but good-hearted man-boy we've all grown to
love.
Sometimes, a film just "clicks." It doesn't really matter what the
critics say. This film, well, it's one of those films. Despite all its
inherent flaws and challenges, what can I say? It clicks. |
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© Written by Richard Propes -
Email Me! |
TC Candler's Comment
I am not sure
why exactly, but I had avoided reading reviews
of this latest Adam Sandler flick. I suppose I
just presumed there was nothing much to read. I
saw the typically constructed previews and
thought I knew what to expect. I was way off.
"Click" ain't your run-of-the-mill Sandler fare.
It seems to start off that way. It takes a turn
into Frank Capra's "It's a Wonderful Life"
territory. And then it completely reverses
course in the final third of the film, becoming
a surprisingly serious and powerful message
about the danger of living your life on
auto-pilot. I was floored by how emotionally
involved I became by a film about a universal
remote control!?!?!
This review is late, so I am not going to detail
the plot. The basics -- Man has busy life. Many
doesn't spend time with family. Man needs to buy
universal remote. Man buys remote from weird
man. Man can use magical remote to rewind,
fast-forward and pause his life. Man gets into
trouble doing so. Man learns a hard lesson about
not treasuring every moment. End.
Let me start off by admitting that cruelty to
kids is freakin' hilarious! Okay okay... not
that kind of cruelty... movie cruelty... the
kind you will see in abundance during "Click".
There are about about a half a dozen scenes
where Adam Sandler's character makes a child cry
-- I almost wet myself laughing each and every
time. The first half of the film is an always
amusing, often hysterical comedy that only
overstays its welcome when it wears out a joke
involving a dog and a stuffed-toy duck.
The second half of the film is the better of the
two because it shifts from merely generating
laughs to a film that creates palpable drama.
For only the second time in Sandler's career, I
was impressed by his acting skills. The first
time, of course, being the masterful turn in
Paul Thomas Anderson's "Punch Drunk Love". He
shows some terrific range here. Kate Beckinsale
is also impressive in a film that many great
actresses may have passed on because of the
bizarre concept. Both of them showcase great
talent.
This film should appeal to those who enjoyed
Sandler's early comedies, "Billy Madison" and
"Happy Gilmore". It will also please those who
appreciated his work in "Punch Drunk Love".
"Click" is another film that helps Sandler live
down the disappointing middle part of his
career, where he cashed in with $25 million
paychecks and some abysmal scripts. This is a
truly pleasant surprise in the 2006 movie
calendar. I laughed hysterically and cried
wistfully, a combination that is hard for any
film to achieve. "Click" is highly recommended.
Jacob Hall's
Comment
“Click”
a remarkably unfunny movie. Sandler is such a
talented character actor (see “Punch Drunk
Love”) that I cannot even contemplate why he
continues to play these straight, boring
versions of himself. I’ll leave the basic
critique at that.
I will elaborate on what would have made this a
genuinely decent movie: cut the comedy out
completely. In the last act of “Click,” the
story takes a surprisingly dark and somber turn.
This part of the film I found to be interesting
and to be completely honest, very disturbing and
saddening. If this was to be re-written and
re-made as a dramatic film, I would certainly
not complain. There is some serious potential
here. Hell, even the entire cast can stay the
same…just remove the humor.
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