JACK AND JILL (REVIEW)
Rated
PG - 91 mins
Adam Sandler, Katie Holmes, David Spade, Tim Meadows, Al Pacino,
Christie Brinkley, John McEnroe, Johnny Depp
In all my years
of movie obsession, I never thought I would witness the legendary Al Pacino dancing
around a Spanish castle to The Monkees song 'Daydream Believer' with Adam Sandler
in drag. Well, that is only one of the odd things about this latest 'comedy' from
the popular Adam Sandler and his production company that brought out 'Just Go
With It' only a few months ago.
Jack is a sharp media advertising
executive living in Los Angeles with his gorgeous wife (Katie Holmes) and two
young children. Jill is his passive-aggressive identical twin sister who annually
visits from The Bronx for Thanksgiving. With a high pitched nasal voice and a
heavy sweating problem and opinionated nature, most men she meets retreat fast
then never come back. She often refuses to leave and causes all sorts of mayhem
upon arrival, but nothing could prepare Jack and his family for her actions this
year. During a Lakers basketball game, the one and only Al Pacino spots the big
boned individual and takes more than a shine to Jill, offering his phone number
in the classy form of tomato sauce scrawled across a hot dog bun. They go out,
Jill is not keen and would rather John Stamos!
The unlikely
scenario continues onto a Caribbean cruise ship when Jack goes in disguise as
his sister Jill to meet Al and talk him into doing a coffee campaign for his company.
Full of typical Sandler juvenile jokes and situations, there are such ridiculous
moments as Jill being knocked out on the game show 'The Price is Right' and her
first time enjoying Mexican food then suffering the consequences of more than
just an upset stomach. It's these kind of lame scenarios which will enchant those
who love watching other people suffer, in a pratfall sadistic kind of way.
Al
Pacino is an eternity away from his Godfather persona, however, he seems to be
enjoying himself. Watching the great man do some very weird things on screen,
such as sing about coffee or answer his mobile phone during a Shakespeare performance
with a bewildered live audience looking on is worth the price of admission. The
story, such as it is, covers sibling love and what happens to families as time
moves on and the two opposites actually rekindling their twin admiration for each
other. Still looking exactly as she did in her 1998 film 'Disturbing Behaviour',
Katie Holmes is a rose amongst the thorns but doesn't need to achieve much acting
wise. Adam Sandler has gone all Eddie Murphy with his foray into family friendly
comedies of late such as the borderline amusing 'Grown Ups', but he has his followers
and I am sure they will love every minute of Jack and Jill, right down to spotting
his regular friends such as David Spade pop up in cameos.
Final
word must be for Johnny Depp, still looking and sounding ultra cool wearing a
Justin Bieber t-shirt court-side at the basketball. He, like Pacino, is obviously
here for a short time but a fun time.
Shane A. Bassett
