...at the end of the day I’m not sure I particularly cared for this film.
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There are some movies that you want to love and enjoy, but just cannot find the intestinal fortitude to convince yourself that you liked it. Denial can also be a powerful form of defense from having your peers scratch their head and ponder your sanity. I find myself believing I did not enjoy "I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry" and continue to tell my inner being that this was not a very good film. I have told a few friends that it wasn´t worth my time and they should avoid the film. At the end of the day, I find myself thinking that the film wasn´t all that bad and that there were a few moments I particularly enjoyed. Then, I tell myself that I am wrong and the movie was horrible. With so much inner toil and confusion over my own thoughts towards this film, I´m not even sure on how to review the picture without confusing the hell out of my handful of faithful readers. Would it be kosher to just ride the fence on this one?
Is it ´kosher´ to use a slang word like kosher in my review? I could possibly be stepping on Yiddish speaking folk´s feelings, but I certainly do not mean any harm by my use of the word. However, this is a very legitimate thought process when thinking about the stereotypes and basic premise to the Adam Sandler comedy "I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry" (to be called simply "Chuck and Larry" from this point forward). The movie doesn´t necessarily insult Jewish persons, but it sure in hell creates stereotypical portrayals of homosexual males and pokes a little fun at those of Asian descent. While the movie ultimately delivers a message defending alternate lifestyles and asking that individuals are respected for their own life choices, Adam Sandler and his writers must have sat down and asked themselves "What comes to mind when you think to yourself, is that gay or what?" because every possible homophobic cliché is included. An entire sequence is dedicated to the age old fear of ´dropping the soap.´
"Chuck and Larry" is about two best friends who happen to be New York City fire fighters. They have a close and jovial relationship and are there for each other in the face of danger while on the job and when they need each other off the job. Larry Valentine (Kevin James) is a widowed father of two children. His son Eric (Cole Morgen) would rather tap dance and sing songs than watch the Mets. His daughter Tori (Shelby Adamowsky) is a tomboy with a foul mouth. Larry does the best he can to raise his children as a single father, but their sexual ambiguity hints at his inadequacies as a father and foreshadows the eventual marriage to his best friend, Chuck Levine (Adam Sandler). Chuck is the complete opposite of Larry. He is a man-whore who approaches any woman as a sexual conquest and rarely spends more than one night with the same woman. Chuck has no family connections and his life is split between fighting fires and womanizing. His only loyalties seem to be towards Larry.
While fighting one fire, Larry saves Chuck´s life. Larry places his own life on the line and is injured by falling debris and both men land in the hospital. They share a room and a nurse. Chuck eventually takes the nurse home for a group orgy with a few lovely ladies, but Larry´s thoughts are of his deceased wife who died in the same hospital. This affair puts Larry in the mindset that he may leave his children without any parents and with no clear future for his children if something should happen to him. Larry comes across an article that discusses same-sex partnerships and the legality of a recognized partner being able to provide for children in the event that a parent dies. The only person that Larry feels he could ever trust with his children is Chuck and after saving Chuck´s life, Larry feels that Chuck owes him one. Chuck initially wants nothing to do with the proposition that has underlying gay overtones, but he reluctantly agrees to help his best friend out.
Numerous legal ramifications present themselves after Chuck and Larry register for their domestic partnership. With insurance fraud being a prevalent problem and hearing stories about long prison sentences for those who use a false partnership for insurance reasons and others involved also finding jail time, Chuck and Larry decide to talk to a lawyer and find out what could befall their ruse would be discovered. The lawyer is a beautiful young lady, Alex McDonough (Jessica Biel). The men put on a show to have Alex believe they are homosexual lovers, but Chuck finds himself strongly attracted to Alex and has to fight off his own urges to make advances towards her. This puts strain between Chuck and Larry and proves problematic in their need to continue the charade as a happy homosexual pair.
As the story continues, Chuck and Larry find themselves being avoided by their fellow firemen. The other firefighters want nothing to do with the two men they believe are gay and work to have Chuck and Larry work on opposite shifts. There are only two men in the fire department who do not look down upon the pair. Captain Phineas Tucker (Dan Aykroyd) knows they are two straight men and know they are up to something fishy. He gives them a stern warning, but does not buy into their act. One of the newest members of the fire company Fred G. Duncan (Ving Rhames) is believed to be an axe murderer or something equally nasty. However, Duncan is a gay black male and looks to Chuck and Larry as heroes as he is now able to come out of the closet and proclaim his homosexuality. Duncan embraces the pair as friends and sticks up for them in the face of the other firefighters.
Another problem faced by the two is investigator Clinton Fitzer (Steve Buscemi). Fitzer pokes around the trash of Chuck and Larry and tells them their trash is not gay enough. This sends them shopping for items that would help validate their claims as being a gay couple. They also travel to Canada to get married in a further attempt to show their legitimacy. Regardless of what they try, Fitzer seems to always be one step ahead of them. He is not fooled by Chuck and Larry´s proclamation that they are a gay couple and is certain they are only out to use their partnership as a means of getting benefits they would typically not be eligible for. This skepticism by Fitzer ultimately lands the two into a courtroom showdown where their true feelings and sexuality are revealed to their fellow firefighters and to each other. Of course, everything comes crashing down when Fitzer demands that they kiss.
"I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry" is a somewhat likable comedy that has a few entertaining moments and decent performances by Adam Sandler and Kevin James. However, it doesn´t match up to many of Sandler´s more effective comedies because it is saddled with ill feeling stereotypes and pedestrian gags that often fall flat. Rob Schneider portrays a gay Asian minister in the film in a performance that brings ´yellow face´ acting to all new lows. Nick Swardson´s over-energetic gay character is another horribly stereotyped character that feels more nasty in nature than humorous. Even the affable Ving Rhames has a role in the film that seems more degrading than funny. With so many bad stereotypes affecting the characters, it is hard to like many of the supporting characters. When Sandler attacks a preacher who resorts to calling him a ´faggot´ in the film, there is some redemption towards Sandler´s stereotypes. The final courtroom battle also makes some amends to their painful stereotypes. One moment the movie is poking fun at homosexuals and the next moment it is trying to support them.
The picture contains a number of cameos. Nicholas Turturro, Richard Chamberlain, Allen Covert, Lance Bass, Dave Matthews and ESPN´s Dan Patrick are all familiar faces that pop up during the running time of "Chuck and Larry." Many of the faces in the film are very familiar for any of Sandler´s productions, but he seems to be expanding his stable of talent. Unfortunately, Sandler seems to have taken a step back and plays more to the "Happy Gilmore" and "Billy Madison" crowd than he does those that enjoyed "50 First Dates," "Click" or "Big Daddy." Sandler is a talented comedic actor that doesn´t need to resort to childish humor and stereotypes. The mean spirited comedy was left behind for years, but like his earlier films that succeeded by picking on the flaws, race or ethnicity of others, "Chuck and Larry" digs into this same formula to deliver laughs. If it wasn´t for the final courtroom sequence in the film, there would be hardly any redeeming qualities to the picture and "Chuck and Larry" would be nothing more than a long stream of gay and sex jokes.
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