Funny & Touching - A Good Combination

Rating: 9/10 (15 December 2006)

This was a funny and - near the end - a touching movie. That's a nice combination to have. My only complaint is that it certainly isn't "family fare" for a nice story and should have been rated "R," not PG-13. There's simply too much sexual material (and and f-word) for PG-13. With some editing, this could have been a great story for everyone.
However, for us adults who like to laugh, there is plenty in here to do that. The jokes come pretty fast, right from the get-go. The premise would good: with a (television-like) remote control, you could control your life. You could fast-forward through all the unpleasant scenes in your life, or freeze frame something that is happening now, or you could go back into time with your life. It all sounds good, but as our main character "Michael Newman" (Adam Sandler) found out, it's not so cool. That's a key message here, too, that avoiding the bad things is not necessarily what's best for us. The major message, however, was that spending time with your family is more important than putting your job ahead of them, as far as priorities go. That theme leads to some touching scenes in the final 30 minutes of this comedy. As funny as this film is, you would be hard-pressed not to have some tears in your eyes at some point near the end of this film.
Sandler plays a typical role for him, and utters some great lines and uses sight gags as well for plenty of his laughs. Kate Bekinsale, who plays his wife "Donna," looks absolutely beautiful, the prettiest I've seen her since "Pearl Harbor." She plays a nice lady in here, too. Their little kids - especially the girl (Tatum McCann) - are cute and funny at times. I won't mention the dog. I can't without being crude. Christopher Walken is here, and that usually means good news as he tends to play fun-and-interesting characters.
Unfortunately - just a warning - this comedy, as so many modern-day ones are, has its share of crude moments, some language and the above-mentioned sexual material. Overall, it was extremely, entertaining, however.