Review of Mr. Deeds (2002) by Stephanie G — 21 Aug 2011

This, once again, has most of the earmarks of modern-day comedies: tons of sexual innuendos, lots of good laughs but many of them out of questionable lines or behavior, and a stupid, rushed ending that tries to make all the good guys win and the bad guys lose. The latter is fine - I want the good guys to prevail - but they way they go about it is stupid.

I did think this movie had a little softer edge than most other blatantly-low class "Something About Mary/American Pie"-type comedies of today however. I guess what I am saying is this isn't as in-your-face type offensive most of the rest are.

Of course, Adam Sandler is playing the low-key Gary Cooper role of Mr. Deeds from the 1940s, so he's not the high-strung Happy Gilmore type here, although he does get violent at times. Winona Ryder plays the love interest, a tabloid low-moral reporter who is reformed by the amiable Mr. Deeds. She's not believable at all and one can see one reason she isn't much of star actress anymore. It isn't just her real-life problems. She's pretty and she's okay in the role but something's missing in her acting.

The real star of the film is John Turturro, as the Spanish butler. He's funny in about every scene he's in and he's a guy everyone roots for here.

In summary, it's a pretty nice film, with a number of laugh-out-loud scenes, but it's still a long way from the Gary Cooper-Barabara Stanwyck classic film version, at least in terms of an aw-shucks wholesome hero. This film just doesn't have the heart and soul of the original, because it's more concerned with cheap laughs than a moral message. Still, it has its funny moments and I found worth watching.