Official Synopsis:
A harried workaholic, Michael Newman (Adam Sandler) doesn't have time for his wife (Kate Beckinsale) and children, not if he's to impress his ungrateful boss and earn a well-deserved promotion. So when he meets Morty (Christopher Walken), a loopy sales clerk, he gets him to bypass life's little distractions with increasingly hysterical results. But as Michael gleefully mutes, skips and scans past his family and his friends, the remote gradually takes over his life and begins to program him, in this fast, funny and out-of-control comedy adventure.
Our Take:
Adam Sandler used to be a really funny guy; he perfected the man-child shtick that became his signature role and made him popular, and it worked well for him. Of course, it was also good to see him try to move out of that particular rut and into stronger fare at some point. Unfortunately, now he's settled squarely into the lovable nice-guy role, and he's completely lost any edge he might once have had. He's become the master of the uber-safe comedy.
And so we have Click, an uber-safe comedy in which Sandler plays... you guessed it, the lovable nice guy. Click is a movie with a terrific concept (a universal remote that actually controls the user's universe), a great It's-A-Wonderful-Life theme, and a completely limp first 90 minutes due to the presence of Sandler. He's just so typically Sandler-ian in the role that it's become rote, and there's nothing here we haven't seen before. A better director (like P.T. Anderson, who directed Sandler in Punch-Drunk Love) or, more to the point, a better comedic actor could have turned this into a heart-shaped comedy treat wrapped in gold (with a syrupy-sweet center), but with Sandler in the lead, it just never quite (pardon the pun) clicks.
On the plus side, Sandler has an excellent supporting cast. Kate Beckinsale is serviceable in the thankless role as Sandler's wife, but Henry Winkler shines as his father and Sean Astin is lots of fun as his romantic rival. The movie also benefits from a terrific last 20 minutes that, despite its predictability, will still probably bring a tear to your eye.
The DVD release for Click comes with a handful of extra features, and most all of the cast and crew (including Sandler, Beckinsale, and Christopher Walken) are seen in interviews and on-set footage.)
* Commentary - Adam Sandler, director producer Frank Coraci, producer Tim Herlihy, and co-writer Steve Koren.
* Deleted Scenes (3 minutes) - Four short scenes that were cut from the movie.
* Make Me Old and Fat (6 minutes) - Focuses on the aging and weight-gain make-up in the film.
* FX of Click (5 minutes) - A look at the surprisingly large amount of special effects in the film.
* Cars of the Future (3 minutes) - See the cars of the future! Well, one, at least.
* Design My Universe (5 minutes) - This featurette looks at the production design of the future.
* Humping Dogs (1 minute) - Yep, it really is about humping dogs.
* Director's Take (4 minutes) - Meet director Frank Coraci, and hear the cast talk about him.
* Fine Cookin' (3 minutes) - A random collection of on-set goofing around with Sandler in a fat suit.
Adam Sandler fans will probably enjoy his goofiness in this film, but I can't help but see it for the film that it could have been in more capable hands. Click is a pleasant enough distraction, but not much more.
Overall Picture:
Movie: C+
DVD: B+
- Mike Spring
Editor
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