You Don't Mess With the Zohan (Unrated + BD Live) (2008)

Sandler goes back to his juvenile roots with this one. That is not a bad thing in my book, I find Billy Madison and Happy Gilmore a riot. In this movie, Sandler plays Zohan. Zohan is a tough as nails Israeli intelligence operative who fakes his death because he is sick of all the violence in the Middle East. He goes to America to become a hair dresser because he wants everyone to have silky smooth hair. Not every joke works, but the silly situations come fast and furious. If one doesn't get you, then maybe the next one will. Yes it is pretty stupid and juvenile stuff, but I found most of the movie amusing. If you like his first movies, then this one is for you.

Well, clearly, not everyone has the same sense of humor. You've got to walk Disbelief right out the door with "You don't mess with Zohan," but if you just need a fun summer flick and you have a very bent sense of humor, this could be it.

Story in a nutshell: Zohan (Sandler) is tired of the Israeli Army. He busts it to capture a terrorist, the Phantom (John Turturro) and the government merely trades the Phantom back. So--when his next opportunity to go up against his arch nemesis comes up, Zohan stages his own death and comes to America to become a hairdresser. He ends up falling for a Palestinian girl, Dalia (Emmanuelle Chriqui) and realizing there are worse things than his original enemies.

The humor's just as juvenile as you would expect, but if you need a good, hard laugh--and you don't mind gross, this is it. Be warned, you will never look the same way at hummus again!

Rebecca Kyle, June 2008

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If you were ever a fan of blazing saddles like I am, then you'd see the value in this movie a lot clearer. Blazing saddles used humor to tackle a situation of racism in america that was a major issue that everyone just tiptoed around because everyone was so scared of offending others, but Blazing saddles took racism and punched it in the nose with humor. You don't mess with the Zohan is an exceptional film with slapstick humor all throughout delivered in the same manner that Blazing Saddles delivered. It managed to take the middle east conflict and all the racism and hatred that is there hit it square in the nose, sure there was plenty of stuff some might deem as "Offensive" but I was never a fan of political correctness, it censors us and brings us to a point where free speech is taken away. I salute you Adam Sandler, you made a funny movie, and you managed to tackle a much bigger issue in the process. This movie was art, if people can't appreciate it, then they need to open up their minds some.

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This was a very funny movie. Not only are there a million laugh out loud moments, but I thought it was also a sardonic look into Middle East relations both there and in America. Not much about the Mid-East conflicts is funny, but this movie fearlessly finds the humor and delivers the laughs and even some messages.

I thought it was very original and unpredictable. This is a perfect Sunday afternoon fun-fest.

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While I've never been a -hugefan of Adam Sandler's films, I have watched them and laughed throughout most of them. I'm the type of guy who enjoys some slapstick, some raunchy humor, and a lot of zanyness.

I went into Zohan not expecting anything but pure frivolous humor. You don't go into films like this with any expectations, and I think that's where a lot of the reviewers prior to myself went wrong. They went in expecting to see an evolution of Sandler's humor, and while I would say that Zohan raised the bar a tad, it's still Adam Sandler. Yes, it's going to have a corny ending, a lot of physical humor, and a healthy dose of humor aimed at the more intelligent in the crowd as well.

Overall, I couldn't stop giggling, laughing, and chuckling throughout most of the film. After a long streak of not seeing any humor films, I thought it was the perfect thing to bring me back to comedies. The last few years, especially, have been incredibly lackluster in regards to comedies (if that's what evolution of the genre is, count me out, by the way), and I found Zohan refreshing.

I think another thing a lot of the other reviewers missed, is that the film in no way expected to take itself seriously. The only serious moments were cheesy, predictable, and ultimately corny, which is irony in itself and only contributed to my bemused chuckling. Yes, a lot of the humor bordered on racial stereotyping, there were a lot of over-the-top accents and allusions to the Middle East, so if you're the type to get touchy about that, feel free to skip. I found it to be a rather hilarious joke on the seriousness that everybody applies to the stereotyping. The stereotyping is, actually, rather fair and towards the end even shows plenty of "good stereotyping" (as accurate as stereotyping ever is, which is to say, rarely).

Really, the film laughs at itself. Are there some bum moments? Certainly, but it seems that's been the case for almost every film I've seen in the last few years, but it was grand seeing the cast and crew not try to make this the 'next great comedy' and just have a load of fun. And if the cast and crew are laughing at themselves (which you can clearly feel through the screen), you can't help but laugh with them.

If you want to spend an hour or two snickering and have an open mind, give Zohan a shot. Don't expect an evolution of comedy. Don't expect the bar to be raised, because that's not what this film was trying to do. It was trying to be ridiculous and make people utter that ever so fantastic groaning-giggle followed by the heart chuckle.

Don't let the other critics fool you, they've probably forgotten the meaning of the word 'satire'.

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