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Click (2006) Columbia Pictures 1 hr. 48 mins. Starring: Adam Sandler, Kate Beckinsale, Christopher Walken, Sean Astin, Joseph Castanon, Tatum McCann, David Hasselhoff, Henry Winkler, Julie Kavner Directed by: Frank Corasi This film is rated: PG-13 Click Rating:  
E-MAIL FRANK OCHIENG It never gets old when giving a tongue-lashing to another pointless Adam Sandler movie. For the most part, Sandler has been rather quiet as of late. When he wasn’t appearing in mildly acceptable cinematic fare in such good turns as Punch Drunk Love or Spanglish, Sandler would play it safe and work behind the scenes while letting former desperate SNL pals do the dirty task of appearing in his putrid-produced flicks. But as they say, you can try to take away the country from the hayseed but don’t expect to take the hayseed from the country—at least not entirely anyway. In other words, Sandler is up to the same old tricks courtesy of his redundant, prototypical formulaic vehicles. In the painfully generic and gimmicky comedy Click, Sandler revisits his woefully juvenile tendencies here in what amounts to be an awkwardly poor man’s It’s A Wonderful Life meets Robin Williams’s Bicentennial Man shenanigan. Relentlessly interminable, predictable and drowsy in concept, Click is about as operational as a defective remote control powered by sand. This one-note farce has all the whimsy of an inebriated toad’s burp and is just as imaginative. Director Frank Corasi (Sandler’s collaborator from The Waterboy) throws together an uninspired laugher that mixes straining sci-fi silliness with typical doses of retread potty humor and expects the audience to get a whiff of its synthetic Frank Capra-esque overtones. There’s an odor to be detected for sure and it’s not a pleasant one for this monotonous, magical mess. It’s so hard to fathom the miscalculation of why so many talented personalities (taking Sandler and walking pretty boy punchline David Hasselhoff out of this particular equation) gravitated to this giddy gadget-trap spectacle in the first place. There’s really nothing amiable, clever or intriguing about this flaccid fantasy that routinely showcases Sandler’s trademark fratboy foolishness that persists as tediously as mold on spoiled government cheese. It is as if Sandler was so afraid that his “box office” clout would be forgotten by his legions of fans so in quick fix fashion he concocted Click to ensure his desired buffoon-induced appeal. In many ways, one can’t fault Sandler for rushing to mindless material that is an instant goldmine for him. As long as indiscriminate moviegoers desire such transparent mockery, Sandler and his cohorts are happy to oblige the hard-up masses. Meet workaholic architect Michael Newman (Sandler). Apparently, Michael conveniently fits the cliched mode of the neglectful breadwinner that forgets to set aside quality time for his family. The ignored loved ones in question are wife Donna (Kate Beckinsale) and their offspring (Joseph Castanon and Tatum McCann). In actuality, Michael wants to invite more availability for his brood and wishes that he could manage his time so that he’s not a slave to his job or an absent head of household either. With an insufferable boss (David Hasselhoff from TV’s “America’s Got Talent”) to tolerate at his workplace, this should be the incentive for Michael to pry himself away from his work-related commitments. It’s not long before an oddball mad scientist named Morty (Christopher Walken) suggests that Michael invest in a specialized remote control contraption at the local Bed, Bath and Beyond store. This device has the unique powers to manipulate his life by stopping, pausing, forwarding or altering events. Granted that the premise feels unoriginal and sketchy at best. Sadly, there’s never any truly funny or stimulating occurrence in which Sandler’s Michael Newman utilizes the mystical clicker to the point where you are lost in the anemic madness that tediously ensues. Furthermore, add Sandler’s obligatory crudeness and screenwriter Steve Koren’s (A Night at the Roxbury) lackluster script to the equation and you have more unwanted static than scrambled cable channel in the wee hours of the morning. Although Click happens to be a smorgasbord of countless fantasy-based movies all rolled into one, the tandem of star Sandler and helmer Coraci can’t even capitalize to make this feeble comedy-fantasy resemble the blueprints it is copying as a flimsy knockoff. Not only is Click inventively lame but hopelessly sophomoric with the samples of misplaced lowbrow humor. The schmaltzy sentiments never really compliment the chuckles brought on by horny household pets, flatulence or jabs at male body parts. The sight gags are atrocious and Sandler’s man-child routine has already run its course ad nauseam. The supporting cast is lost in the shuffle as expected. As an artist that has been in his share of forgettable duds, Oscar-winner Walken’s head-scratching participation in this rag-tag rouser is quite bewildering. Walken hasn’t sunk this low since he signed on for the fettered Ben Stiller-Jack Black romp Envy. Both Henry Winkler (Sandler’s The Waterboy co-star) and Emmy-winning actress Julie Kavner are wasted as Sandler’s on-screen parents. The only worthy bit that works out creatively is having James Earl Jones on board as the background commentator who gives a play-by-play analysis of Michael Newman’s life planning as it clicks from period to period. As for Beckinsale as the tortured housewife, she and Sandler don’t seem to...er, “click” in terms of being the so-called detached Mrs. and her harried hubby. Well, what can you really say about another goofy-minded entry from a performer that doesn’t know when to bow out thus overstaying his welcome in a sappy chuckler? Sandler was probably more effective in letting comedic cohorts Rob Schneider, David Spade and others cloud the camera lens with their unfounded stupidity while he sat back quietly and let his profitable production company reap the benefits of their fruitless frivolity. Click here to comment on this review or post your own thoughts. Frank Ochieng © TheWorldJournal.com |
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