Michael Newman (Adam Sandler) feels that his life is
nothing but a constant struggle leading nowhere, though he’s blessed
with two wonderful, healthy kids and smart, resourceful wife Donna (Kate
Beckinsale). As is the case in so many modern families, he finds that there
simply isn’t enough time to meet the needs of his loved ones and
succeed professionally as well. At work, Michael is fighting an uphill
battle to get the recognition he deserves from his narcissistic boss, John
Ammer (David Hasselhoff, in a wonderfully self-effacing turn). The solution to all of Michael’s problems falls
into his lap at a Bed, Bath & Beyond store, when he stumbles through a
door marked “way beyond” and meets Morty (Christopher Walken),
a charming mad scientist who’s invented the answer to every modern
dad’s problem: a true universal remote. This thing doesn’t just
turn on the TV, DVD player, and stereo; it also has the power to mute a
barking dog, fast-forward through life’s unpleasant moments, and even
rewind to key parts in your life for a quick jog of the memory. Yep,
Michael’s problems are solved, but there’s a catch: Once he
starts to use it, he can never return the remote. Of course, he pays no
mind to this warning — until he realizes, to his regret, the device
is cheating him out of years of time with his family and causing him to
miss many meaningful moments. This is all great fun for a while, and whenever
Walken shows up onscreen, he delivers as he always does with his droll
turn. What works best in the film are the serious scenes involving Michael
and his family, especially when he comes to realize what a fool he’s
been by being on autopilot through most of his life. His regret over
neglecting his family is palpable, and a sequence in which he goes back to
watch the last time he saw his father (Henry Winkler), an event he
regrettably missed the first time around, is as moving as anything
I’ve seen in a movie this year. However, along the way there are fart
jokes, more than a few sequences devoted to lame physical comedy, and far
too many shots of the family dog dry-humping an enormous stuffed animal.
These scenes do nothing but undercut the genuine emotion that’s been
so wonderfully crafted — and you’ll be wishing you had an
all-powerful remote to fast-forward through this film.
This article appears in Jun 22-28, 2006.
