Adam Sandler notoriously
shuns the print press while promoting his
films because he doesn't usually need to pull out all the stops.
Faithful fans will typically follow him anywhere. In the past five
years alone, the comedian has notched five $100+ million-grossing
films.
Mr. Sandler's latest offering, "You Don't Mess With the
Zohan", will need those loyal fans to come through again, considering
how many reviews so far are negative. (It's probably not encouraging
that some critics are citing the peformance of Mariah Carey - who
flopped spectacularly in "Glitter" - as a highlight.)
"Zohan" features the 41-year-old Mr. Sandler as a Mossad agent
who fakes his own death to pursue his real passion: cutting "silky
smooth" hair. The film features Emmanuelle Chiriqui (from HBO's
"Entourage") as a pretty Palestinian salon owner. It's co-written by
old Sandler pals Judd Apatow and Robert Smigel.
Here's a sampling of "Zohan" reviews: The Wall Street
Journal's Joe Morgenstern says the film is "as messy as comedies come -
an inspired, hilarious mess". Chicago Tribune: "This Israeli-on-Arab
version of Shampoo is terrible in many ways, and shoddy in every way
that has to do with filmmaking." Entertainment Weekly: Lisa Schwarzbaum
says Mr. Sandler is "a menschy charmer, all the more so for being so
casually, confidently post-political about the role; it's a sexy, adult
look for the guy," but the film is "a muck of lessons about shalom as
bland as any underseasoned bowl of chickpea dip."
Variety: Although the film's treatment of the Israeli and
Palestinian conflict might normally court controversy, Zohan itself is
just "too silly to justify genuine anger". New York Times: A.O. Scott,
however, gets a kick out of "the finest post-Zionist
action-hairdressing sex comedy I have ever seen," and calls Sandler's
Zohan "a less anguished version of the character played by Eric Bana in
Munich".
Source: Wall Street Journal
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