Blu-ray Review “Jack and Jill”

Directed by: Dennis Dugan
Starring: Adam Sandler, Katie Holmes and Al Pacino
Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
MPAA Rating: PG
Running time: 91 minutes

Film: 1 out of 5 stars
Extras: 2.5 out of 5 stars

Man oh man…Adam Sandler, what are you doing?  After watching “Grown Ups” in 2010, I finally believed that Adam Sandler’s films had officially bottomed-out and couldn’t get any worse.  HAHA, well guess what…they did.  This film is just plain sad and fails on almost every level.  It doesn’t take a genius to figure out that this was a bad idea…come on Adam! So while taking it into consideration that I am not a fan of watching Adam Sandler recently, so to only add insult to injury we get Adam Sandler times two and in drag in this film. It is sad to say when the best part of the film is seriously a quick cameo from Johnny Depp wearing a Justin Bieber shirt.

Since I already tore apart Adam Sandler, I will chat about the rest of the film now and don’t get me wrong, I actually really want to enjoy Adam Sandler’s films again but pieces of crap like this make it impossible. Many sources have said that Al Pacino is the saving grace for this film but I really didn’t feel the same way. He definitely played a fun more obnoxious version of himself but the jokes really weren’t nailed. I did like his Dunachino rap at the end. Katie Holmes was miscast in this film and can do so much better…come on Katie!! Don’t even get me started on when the family goes on a Royal Caribbean cruise, they might as well have been flashing the phone number on the screen to make a reservation.

The Blu-ray presentation is impressive though with its clear HD video transfer and Sony’s sharp DTS-HD MA 5.1 track. This release also included a streaming digital copy for the new Ultraviolet service. The special features are ok but unless you totally love this film, they are worth passing up. If the film wasn’t hard enough to watch there are almost 20 minutes of deleted scenes. I am sure glad they were cut because the movie couldn’t have been a single minute longer. “Laughing is Contagious” is a blooper reel, decent overall. “Look Who Stopped By” is a feature on all the cameos in the film, which was basically the only good part of the film. “Boys Will Be Girls” is a short features on Sandler’s transition from Jack to Jill. “Stomach Ache” is a walk around the set with Regis Philbin. Since the film was a walking advertisement, a commercial for the cruise is only expected with “Don’t Call it a Boat-Royal Caribbean”. End of line.  Try again Adam Sandler.

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Filed Under: DVD/Blu-Ray Reviews Tagged With: bluray, jack, jill, review

Interview with Jill Andresevic

Jill Andresevic is the director and producer of the film “Love Etc.” The film will premier on Oprah Winfrey’s Own Network February 2nd at 8pm EST. The film will also replay as part of the networks Super Soul Sunday line up on February 12th at 11am EST.. Media Mikes had a chance to talk with Jill recently about the film and the idea behind it.

Adam Lawton: Can you tell us about the documentary, “Love Etc.”?
Jill Andresevic: The film is five stories based in one city and told over 365 days. The film is a real life love story told from people age 18-89. The film examines love in all different stages. The stages of love I think cross time and weather you lived in the 18th century or are living now the themes of love are the same. Love is very universal and part of our being so I found it very interesting to explore. I had no idea where we were going to end up on this journey. It has been an interesting ride.

AL: What was the initial thought behind the film?
JA: The concept was Jonathan Tisch’s who also funded the film. He was at City Hall waiting to get a marriage license and noticed that all the people waiting in this one small room were there for the transaction of love. That room was really a snapshot of the world. Jonathan was inspired to do something about love in New York from that experience.

AL: How did you go about selecting the couples in the film?
JA: It was a very intensive process that always started with research. We wanted to get an interesting cross section of people that reflected different lifestyles and socio-economical conditions. We examined people across all 5 boroughs of New York City. We were able to get representation from just about every section of the city. We did a really massive casting outreach that was based on categories such as types of people and ages. We thought it would be really interesting to find young love from a couple still in high school all the way to a couple celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary. There is an interesting story arc related to love in high school that the film will show. We did quite a bit of casting through networks of people as I didn’t really have any success using things like Craigslist or other postings. We were able to pretty much hand pick the people wanted.

AL: What do you feel was the hardest part about putting the project together?
JA: I had to take 600 hrs. of footage and edit it down to 90 minutes. I thought I was going to injure someone during that process. (Laughs) The prep days and all the shooting were nothing compared to the process of taking all that footage down to just 90 minutes. I found it quite fascinating though because people have accused us of scripting the film. If I could script this type of stuff I would be a genius. The reality of it is we just shot a lot and got lucky when we cut it down.

AL: Do you have any other projects we can be watching for?
JA: I have some different television projects that I am working on currently. I also am working on my next film which will be a scripted feature.

 

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Filed Under: Interviews, TV Interviews Tagged With: andresevic, interview, jill

Film Review “Jack and Jill”

Starring: Adam Sandler, Katie Holmes and Al Pacino
Directed by: Dennis Dugan
Rated: PG
Running time: 1 hour 31 mins
Columbia

Our Score: 3 out of 5 stars

As the holiday season approaches, it’s time to make way for a new comedy starring the hilariously funny…Al Pacino? That’s right. Pacino has a small but pivotal role in “Jack and Jill” and, in a film full of people known for being funny, pretty much stands alone.

Jack (Sandler) is a successful creator of television commercials. One of his clients, the folks over at Dunkin’ Donuts, wants him to secure the talents of one Al Pacino to promote their new product, Dunk-A-Chino. But Jack has other things on his mind, mainly the upcoming yearly Thanksgiving visit of his twin sister, Jill (also Sandler). Where Jack has always been the popular twin, Jill has taken a back seat. Now, with their mother recently passed, the two must find a way to tolerate each other during the sure to be festive holiday season.

A one note joke that runs an hour and a half, “Jack and Jill” gives Sandler the chance to use the same “funny lady” voice that he used on his early comedy CDs. With his high pitched whine you almost expect to hear Jill proclaim, “they’re all gonna laugh at you,” or perhaps implore you to “play with your cock and balls for mama.” Along the way we meet many of the Sandler comedy troupe, including Allen Covert, who appears to be channeling the homeless man turned caddie he played in “Happy Gilmore.” Along with the regulars are some fun bits from such well known people as Jared from Subway and Vince, the Shamwow! Guy. We are also joined by his two young children: a young boy adopted from India when less than two weeks old and a little girl who is always curiously dressed exactly as her doll. The boy has discovered scotch tape and it’s fun to see what household item he’ll apply to his body next.

The premise gets annoying after awhile, but that is when Pacino shows up to make things interesting. He gets great laughs spoofing his serious side while on stage and, when his Oscar is accidentally damaged, zings the Academy Awards. He even manages to belt out “The Impossible Dream” from “The Man of La Mancha.” Pacino is truly, as they say in show business, a triple threat! And to see him play off his very stern on-screen reputation is a welcome treat. Hoo-ah!

The script loses steam shortly after it begins to boil, with the only new “idea” being to put Jack and Jill in another unusual situation. Look…they can jump rope! If anyone but Sandler had been playing Jill the film may have worked better. But his constant whining makes Jill more sympathetic, to the point where you can forgive her the occasional break of wind. Heck, when Pacino is on screen you can almost forgive anything.

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Filed Under: Film Reviews Tagged With: film, jack, jill, review
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