Friday, January 23, 2009

The Zohan


Not really the type of movie I would go out of my way to see, but someone brought the DVD home and I have to say this was hilarious - and a touch subversive.

You Don't Mess with the Zohan is a 2008 American/Israeli comedy film, directed by Dennis Dugan and starring Adam Sandler.

The soldier has a dream to leave his war-torn country and travel to the States to become.... a hair stylist!

I welcomed the depiction of lusty older women, (including octogenarians), which was funny without being misogynist. Too often in comedy this is treated as something distasteful and not even to be considered, forget about welcoming advances or even acknowledging it might be something fun.

The other surprise was the treatment of the warring factions in the streets of NYC. In the end, they realize a rich landlord is planting seeds of discord to create unrest and drive them out of the neighbourhood. I'm sure any parallels to the situation in the Middle East are purely coincidental!

Adam Sandler really pulls this one off. Totally over the top! Love the Matrix-style effects and all the various uses of humus. What a treat. I haven't laughed this hard watching a movie in a long time.

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