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If you’ve seen the trailer for Adam Sandler’s new comedy, 'Jack and Jill', then you’re not in for any surprises (well, only one that I can think of, and it’s more of a “Holy crap, what's he doing in this movie?” than, “Wow, that was so cool and/or funny”). For those of you that haven’t seen the trailer, here’s what you’ve missed: Jack and Jill (played by Sandler and Sandler) are twins. Much to the dismay of twin enthusiast Jill, they two have grown apart over the years. Enter, the holiday quinella; Thanksgiving, Hanukah, Birthday and News Years, all packaged nicely over only a few weeks and a prime setting to bring the ailing relationship of the siblings back together.
Jill drives both Jack and the audience crazy with her needy, passive-aggressive and sweaty ways, while Jack is overly critical and unreceptive to Jill’s sisterly affections - that is, of course, until Jill suddenly has what Jack wants, the attention of one Al Pacino. Yes, the real Al Pacino. Cue the twin jokes, ugly sister jokes, supportive wife, cute kids (one with a major penchant for sticky-tape), celebrity cameos and, of course, the neat happy ending where everyone learns the value of family, or something to that effect.
This is yet another Sandler/Dugan collaboration ('Happy Gilmore', 'Big Daddy', 'Grown Ups'), and boasts all the usual suspects. A who’s-who of Sandler’s buddies and contact list (and one from what I can only guess was Pacino’s), along with Katie Holmes who plays Jack’s ever so supportive wife, in a completely under-utilised role.
I didn’t find this film funny so much as embarrassing, however the packed cinema I was sitting in saw differently. As a Sandler fan, I was disappointed, lessened only at the end when it appears that the joke may have been on us. Is it possible the film makers (Pacino included) knew all along just what they were making, and were making fun of themselves the whole time? For Sandler’s sake, for Pacino’s sake, one can only hope so.
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