"It isn't how you get there, it's what you do along the way that counts."
"It isn't how you get there, it's what you do along the way that counts."
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Director: Adam Shankman Screenplay: Matt Lopez & Tim Herlihy Genre: Comedy - Family - Fantasy Country: USA Certification: PG Language: English DVD Release: 27th April, 2009 (UK)
MAIN CAST:
Adam Sandler (Skeeter Bronson) Jonathan Morgan Heit (Patrick) Laura Ann Kesling (Bobbi) Courteney Cox (Wendy) Keri Russell (Jill)
Skeeter Bronson is just your average guy, albeit a tad naïve and given to feeling sorry for himself when things don't go his way, his greatest fault is his inability to think of anyone or anything else once he's got his mind set on something... and Skeeter's got loads on his mind - ever since his father sold the family motel they lived in to a rich developer who ended up turning it into a posh hotel, Skeeter has been waiting to be made manager. The terms of the sale were that Skeeter would become manager once he'd grown up and proven himself, and Skeeter, who has been working as a janitor and general Mr-Fix-It, reckons that he deserves recognition for all of his hard work by being given the promotion.
Unfortunately for Skeeter, when the owner of the hotel
announces that his future-son-in-law will be made manager of the new hotel that is under development, a position Skeeter expected to be given, his entire world comes tumbling down around his shoulders and he is devastated.
To make matters worse, Skeeter's sister, Wendy, whom he hasn't actually spoken to in a while, asks him to take care of her two children, whom he hasn't seen in nearly four years - Skeeter's job at the hotel has been extremely time-consuming, and added to that the fact that Skeeter disliked his sister's ex-husband, he never actually got close to the children.
Taking matters from worse to downright dreadful; Wendy enlists the help of her responsible colleague/friend, Jill, to check up on Skeeter and the children during her absence, and to look after the children when Skeeter is working - needless to say that there's no love lost between Skeeter and Jill who are exact opposites.
Managing for the most part to 'get along' with Jill, Skeeter, who has no idea how to look after children, is somewhat at a loss, and his relationship with the children is strained--until, one night, he tells the children a bedtime story... and it comes true.
'Bedtime Stories' possesses an incredible potential--the premise is magical, the possibilities are endless... what if stories could become reality? What would we do with such an incredible gift? What life would we create for ourselves--but more importantly, would we be able to remain true to ourselves? As Skeeter proves in this movie, given such an incredible gift, no matter how kind-natured or how well intentioned a person is, conceit and greed are bound to surface.
Adam Sandler manages to give Skeeter some depth of character, however, it is a depth that isn't all that deep. Sandler only skims the surface, never quite managing to make his character totally loveable. Skeeter is a flawed character that is superficial. Although meant to be easy-going, he's so stressed and frustrated most of the time that his behaviour is more often lukewarm than warm, and after he discovers the powers of storytelling, he becomes downright conceited--you could say he's somewhat of a Jekyll & Hyde... on a milder scale. It isn't immediately obvious who's at fault in the case of Skeeter's lack of character-development because Sandler's characters have always been somewhat shallow. Let's face it, Adam Sandler has become the stereotypical Mr. Nice-Guy, the easygoing and naïve type who is downtrodden and always taken advantage of - he is the modern version of Jerry Lewis. Because Sandler's roles are always pretty much the same, it's hard to tell whether or not Skeeter was meant to be different. If he was, then Sandler did a poor job in giving Skeeter any real depth.
This said, Sandler's performance doesn't alter the fact that this is an entertaining movie for children, and that its magical nature forces the more mature viewer to ponder the possibilities, to wish that stories did come true.
From a shower of colourful gumballs to a frenzied chariot race, the action/adventure aspect is very much Walt Disney, however, the story/dialogue is very much a Happy Madison (Sandler's production company) film. There is a glimmer of Disney magic in this movie, however, because of poor character development and a few lagging scenes, the movie isn't all it could be.
'Bedtime Stories' wasn't an entire flop at the box office, kids did love it, but it has been highly criticised, mostly by mature audiences who failed to be impressed by the special-effects or by a stereotypical Sandler. Personally, I was fascinated by the possibilities, but let-down by the characters, especially Adam Sandler who was a bit too cynical and conceited for my liking... also, as far as Disney movies go, if it hadn't been for the logo and all the hype, I would never have guessed it was Disney.
This movie deserves a 3-star for imagination and because it is visually pleasing, however, it isn't getting one from me because I didn't actually like any of the characters... except perhaps for the bug-eyed CG hamster!
How helpful would this review be to a person making a buying decision? Rating guidelines
Funnyman Adam Sandler stars in Walt Disney Pictures' Bedtime Stories the magical family ... more
comedy that's packed with adventure and lots of heart. When Skeeter Bronson (Sandler) babysits his sister's (Courteney Cox) children his imagination runs wild as ...
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Mar 9th, 2009
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