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Becoming a parent can certainly take the edge off your
darker or wilder side, out of sheer embarrassment lest your
kids get a clue, and recent dad Adam Sandler is no exception.
The problem is that Sandler seems to be parting ways with
his goofy and eccentric persona, along with those gross-out
tendencies, that defined him individuality as a comic, however
crude or lewd those impulses might be.***
So what we're left with is, well, Bedtime Stories,
an undercooked, formulaic kid's tale that seems to have
been put together on the fly, and with no-frills production
values. In this basically Cinderfella type of yarn directed
by Adam Shankman (Hairspray), Sandler is Skeeter, son of
a late motel owner (Jonathan Pryce) bought out by a greedy
developer (Richard Griffiths) who promised to make the kid
a manager when he grows up. But he instead assigns Skeeter
janitorial duties in what has now been transformed into
a lavish luxury hotel.***
When Skeeter's sister, single mom Wendy (Courtney Cox),
leaves town to look for work, he's stuck with babysitting
her two far from easy to please preteen kids, Patrick (Jonathan
Morgan Heit) and Bobbi (Laura Ann Kesling). Since they've
been raised in a strictly organic living environment, on
wheat germ, rice cakes, and no television or popular culture
references to speak of, Skeeter must invent his own bedtime
stories to amuse them, which is no easy task. Wendy's friend
Jill (Keri Russell) stops by occasionally to look in on
the situation, but her equally glum attitude is no help
in conjuring up some chuckles for the small fry.***
At some point, the endings provided by the kids to
an assortment of wacky stories Skeeter contrives, including
jaunts to the old Wild West, outer space and Ancient Rome,
start coming true for the baffled handyman in real life.
But these bargain basement, on the cheap fantasy interludes
are even less funny for the audience than for these underwhelmed
kids. And some frantic to please business about Skeeter's
rival at the hotel, played by Guy Pearce, along with his
best buddy Mickey (Russell Brand), feels simply embarrassing
for all concerned.***
You just know a movie is in really serious trouble
when the characters you can relate to most, are the ones
scratching their heads in hopeless confusion at the on-screen
jokes. In addition to a saucer-eyed anatromic pet guinea
pig upstaging Sandler, and coming off as the main attraction
in the movie.***
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