`Nicky' gets stuck in comedy hell
By JUDE SEYMOUR
Scene Movie Critic
Since Adam Sandler is not only the star of "Little Nicky" but also its co-writer and producer, there is little chance he would admit his movie is not funny. Adam Sandler is too involved in this film, and the result for "Little Nicky" is disaster.
The plot is thin and Sandler's "Nicky" character is painfully unfunny. In fact, he's the least funny of the group. It is a rare instance in an Adam Sandler movie, but he has been outperformed by the legions of cameos he has collected.
The worst element of "Nicky" may be its plot. Admittedly, people do not go to Sandler movies for something deep. But they do want more than a string of jokes. Sandler has done comedy tours; certainly that could whet the appetite of anyone interested in just a couple of laughs without any context.
People flock to movies for something more, however: something that is as funny as a comedy tour but could never be captured on the small stage (like punching out Bob Barker in a heated golf match in "Happy Gilmore").
In "Little Nicky," the plot will make even a Sandler aficionado wince. Nicky is the product of an alcohol induced sexual encounter between the Devil (Harvey Keitel, "Reservoir Dogs") and an angel (Reese Witherspoon, "Cruel Intentions") at a Heaven-Hell mixer.
Nicky has two brothers, Adrian (Rhys Ifans, "Notting Hill") and Cassius (Tom Lister Jr., "Friday"), who are both looking to take over their father's rule of Hell.
When the Devil announces that he has decided to rule for another 10,000 years, the brothers conspire to go up to earth and make a hell out of New York City. But since they go the wrong way through the soul portal, they freeze it. And since the Devil feeds off souls, he needs the brothers to come back, together, to free up the passageway. So it is up to Nicky to complete this task and save his father from dissipating into nothing.
On earth, Nicky is guided by a talking dog (voiced by Robert Smigel, creator of "SNL's" animation skits). And as he tries to trap his brothers and save the day, Nicky begins to fall in love with Valerie (Patricia Arquette, "Stigmata").
The weakest character in this movie is Nicky for several reasons. Sandler is forced to either deliver flat lines out his character's decrepit voice, or repeat a joke ad nausem (such as Nicky being from "the deep south"). Also, his character's facial expressions and speech mannerisms make it impossible for Sandler to make any joke funny.
The cameo roles are a mix of the creative and the ill-planned. A cameo by Rodney Dangerfield is well received because Dangerfield always has an appealing sort of humor. His lines are delivered with the customary Dangerfield gusto and phrases like "I get no respect" are as funny in "Nicky" as they were when they were first spoken.
Another cameo, by Quentin Tarantino, is well scripted and adds a few more laughs. Bit parts given to Rob Schneider ("Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo") and Michael McKean ("Best in Show") are a waste of otherwise good talent, however.
The romantic element of the film, as well as Nicky's introduction to earth, is riddled with the customary lack of attention to detail that hampers almost every Sandler film. Valerie and Nicky fall in love without exchanging one personal question or idea. And when Nicky is brought up to Earth, he does not understand urinating or how to eat food, but he understands basketball without ever playing.
The lone bright spot in the movie is Allen Covert, who plays Nicky's gay roommate, Todd. His lines (probably written by co-writer Covert himself) are the main source of humor in the film. Unfortunately, his part is miniscule in comparison to Sandler's role, so the humor quickly disintegrates.
Adam Sandler has proven himself a comedic talent over the last 10 years, but his movies have shown a serious lack of what it takes to make a good movie. Unless they are taped stand-up performances, movies cannot exist as a string of jokes. Even Sandler fans can admit that movies with a halfway intriguing plot are better than the ones that contain little substance.
"Little Nicky" went through four rewrites before New Line agreed to produce it. From the looks of it, a little more time should have been spent in that fourth rewrite to make an enjoyable plot. Maybe showing the script to someone else would have done the trick. Any way one looks at it, it's up to Sandler to make amends for "Nicky." Perhaps by being less involved in his next picture he'll gain a better perspective on what is truly funny.
--1 and a 1/2 out of 5 shamrocks
All Scene Stories for Thursday, November 9, 2000
