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Movie Review - I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry (2007)
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(What this rating means)
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| Director: |
Dennis Dugan |
| Starring: |
Adam Sandler, Kevin James, Jessica Biel, Alex McDonough, Dan Aykroyd, Ving Rhames, and Steve Buscemi |
| Rated: |
PG-13 (for crude sexual content throughout, nudity, language and drug references) |
| Length: |
110 minutes |
| Genre: |
Comedy |
| Tagline: |
They're as straight as can be, but don't tell anyone. |
| Studio: |
Universal |
| Website: |
Chuck and Larry |
| Release: |
July 20, 2007 |
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PLOT
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Chuck Levine (Sandler) and Larry Valentine (James) are the pride of their fire station: two guy's guys always side-by-side and willing to do anything for each other.
Larry is a widower who wants just one thing: to protect his family. Chuck, on the other hand, is a womanizer who only wants to enjoy single life to the fullest.
After Larry saves his life from a fire, Chuck gratefully tells Larry that he owes him a favor - anything he wants. Well, it seems a little bit of legal red tape
prevents Larry from naming his own two children as his life insurance beneficiaries. Larry's solution? Convince Chuck to claim to be his domestic partner on
some city forms. Nobody will ever have to know.
But it doesn't take long for a suspicious city employee to come snooping around, questioning the legitimacy of the partnership. Chuck and Larry are forced to do
everything they can to make their new couple arrangement appear legit, and that includes running off to Canada to get married. One of Sandler's lesser efforts
ensues.
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JOHNNY'S TAKE
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Every film has a moment that serves as a fine example to demonstrate exactly what type of moviegoer might cull the most enjoyment from what is being viewed. Take Chuck and
Larry. Early in the film, the two firemen must rescue an incredibly obese man (we're talking about a dude wearing a fat suit that makes him look like he weighs at least
700 lbs.) which inevitably leads to the trio rolling down a flight of stairs.
It should shock approximately zero of you that at the end of this short jaunt down the steps the fat man lands directly on top of Sandler's face - crotch first. I'll leave it to
your vivid imagination to postulate which bodily function occurs next. That either qualifies as your cup o' tea or it doesn't.
Aside from the film's tendency to rely on predictable jokes (mercy on your soul if you don't know what'll happen when Sandler sits in an undersized kid's chair) and
transparent punchlines, the biggest eye-rolling aspect of the film is its reliance on patronizing speeches and heavy-handed sermonizing. Call me old-fashioned,
whatever that term means within the context of an Adam Sandler movie, but when I sit down to watch the Sandman in action, I want to laugh. That's it. I'm not looking
for a screenwriter stepping up on his soap box and telling me how I should feel about issues.
Similarly, who went to see On Deadly Ground hoping to hear Steven Seagal deliver a 20-minute speech on saving the environment? Me neither, but that's what we got,
and I've been lukewarm to the guy ever since.
Claims that the film is "homophobic" are silly. Balderdash! Poppycock, I say! If anything, it's heterophobic. There are no balanced views here. The opposition
is reduced to the lowest common denominator and covered in extreme stereotypes. If anybody should be truly offended it's probably Asian moviegoers, based on Rob
Schneider's painfully unfunny cameo as a Japanese wedding coordinator. I really didn't need three explanations of why a wedding ring is round rather than rectangular.
It wasn't funny the first time, why did they think the second and third times would bring it on home?
There are also plenty of "I didn't need to see that" moments. Fat guy in a thong? Yep, could've lived a perfectly happy life without having that image burned in my mind.
The shower scene with several gratuitous below-the-waist shots of soapy, naked men? Certainly could've done without that. I understand they wanted to run with the whole
"dropping a bar of soap in the shower" joke, but couldn't that have been accomplished with the camera angle above the waist? Who sat down and greenlighted this idea?
Sandler has a huge fratboy demographic; who thought this would be something that target audience would like to see?
I know I'm being fairly negative, but the movie certainly has its highlights - the presence of Jessica Biel being a main one. I dare say no one has ever looked hotter in
a Catwoman suit. I also laughed out loud quite a few times. The humor is certainly there. But speaking as a Sandler fan, I have to place this in the lower echelon of
his work. That probably says all that needs to be said to those of you who don't like the guy at all.
If you're like me and don't have much interest in paying to sit through politically correct, humanist sermonizing then this one doesn't merit a big screen viewing.
I'm all for a good debate, but when was the last time you convinced someone of your opinion by yelling at them and beating them over the head with it?
That's what I thought.
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ODDS & ENDS
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- Director Dennis Dugan has worked with Sandler on Happy Gilmore and Big Daddy. That sounds good, but also keep in mind that he recently directed
The Benchwarmers.
- About working with Sandler, Dan Aykroyd states, "I was a big fan of Adam on Saturday Night Live. We've only done two films together before (Coneheads, 50 First
Dates), but I hope, as time goes on, he will think of me as one of his regular players."
- Judging your body of work over the past 10 years, I don't doubt that you do, Mr. Aykroyd. I don't doubt that you do.
- Look for cameos from Dan Patrick, David Spade, Lance Bass, Dave Matthews, Richard Chamberlain, and just about every one of Sandler's friends who usually can only
be found in Adam Sandler comedies. You know the group of guys I'm talking about.
- Kevin James was in Hitch with Eva Mendes who was in 2 Fast 2 Furious with Paul Walker who was in Into the
Blue with Josh Brolin who was in Hollow Man with Kevin Bacon.
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MAMA'S APPROVAL
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Parents, I warn you, this is not suitable for your kids, no matter how much they tell you they love Adam Sandler. It originally received an R rating, and I'm a little surprised
this cut made PG-13. It features quite a bit of male nudity, enough to choke a camel in fact, during the extended shower scene. Jessica Biel and quite a few other girls prance
around in their underwear. Profanity isn't extreme, but it's there. Crude and/or disgusting humor abounds. Case in point - fat guy in a thong. No need for further explanation.
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TRAILER COMPARISON
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The trailer doesn't adequately prepare you for the all-male shower scene or the heavy-handed speeches.
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THE GIST
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I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry offers a very odd mix of comedy, and drama, all handled with heavy hands. There's no smooth flow. No even transition. If you're wary
of the subject matter and not in the mood to beaten over the head with the screenwriter's political views (whether you agree with them or not) then it might be best to save this
for a rental or TV viewing.
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