2008 Woodie Awards
Ineptitude reigns (& rains) over all
Film Review - Reign Over Me
Soheil Rezayazdi - The Daily Iowan
Issue date: 3/30/07 Section: Arts
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** out of *****
No one can accuse Mike Binder's new film of bad intentions. Like a child eager to cook dinner for his family - only to set off all three smoke alarms - Reign Over Me means well.
No amount of buddy-movie charm, however, can save the film from its inept script, disjointed tone, and uneven performances.
One of the first fiction films to engage with 9/11 on a wholly personal, apolitical level, Reign Over Me begins on a promising note. Adam Sandler, channeling Bob Dylan and Rain Main, weaves through New York City on a motorized scooter. Though the images are pleasant, we feel unsettled. 9/11 taints every frame. Writer/director Binder gets it right, evoking tragedy without resorting to heavy-handed dialogue or symbolism. It's mostly downhill from there.
Reign Over Me trails Charlie (Sandler), a burnout who lost his entire family in 9/11, and Alan (Don Cheadle), his former college roommate. While Charlie represses family memories, Alan feels suffocated by his wife (Jada Pinkett Smith), a token movie wife who scolds her husband for having fun with anyone but her. Charlie covets Alan's stability, and Alan covets Charlie's freedom, but both won't admit it.
From the start, we know both will learn lessons about appreciating what you have, but the fun is in watching them evolve. As the two grow close, Binder treats us to several fun, if easy, montages of the two rocking out, riding a scooter, and cracking up to Mel Brooks comedies.
Binder gives generous screen time to Donna (Saffron Burrows), a distraught woman desperate to give Alan oral sex, but her role is so superfluous that it deserves no more mention.
Binder fills his script with lazy plot devices and chance encounters. In an early scene, five recurring characters (Alan, Charlie, Charlie's landlady, and Charlie's former in-laws) all bump into each other outside his apartment building. Later, while Alan takes Charlie to see a therapist (Liv Tyler), Donna exits her office as the men enter. It's as if Binder weren't even trying.
No one can accuse Mike Binder's new film of bad intentions. Like a child eager to cook dinner for his family - only to set off all three smoke alarms - Reign Over Me means well.
No amount of buddy-movie charm, however, can save the film from its inept script, disjointed tone, and uneven performances.
One of the first fiction films to engage with 9/11 on a wholly personal, apolitical level, Reign Over Me begins on a promising note. Adam Sandler, channeling Bob Dylan and Rain Main, weaves through New York City on a motorized scooter. Though the images are pleasant, we feel unsettled. 9/11 taints every frame. Writer/director Binder gets it right, evoking tragedy without resorting to heavy-handed dialogue or symbolism. It's mostly downhill from there.
Reign Over Me trails Charlie (Sandler), a burnout who lost his entire family in 9/11, and Alan (Don Cheadle), his former college roommate. While Charlie represses family memories, Alan feels suffocated by his wife (Jada Pinkett Smith), a token movie wife who scolds her husband for having fun with anyone but her. Charlie covets Alan's stability, and Alan covets Charlie's freedom, but both won't admit it.
From the start, we know both will learn lessons about appreciating what you have, but the fun is in watching them evolve. As the two grow close, Binder treats us to several fun, if easy, montages of the two rocking out, riding a scooter, and cracking up to Mel Brooks comedies.
Binder gives generous screen time to Donna (Saffron Burrows), a distraught woman desperate to give Alan oral sex, but her role is so superfluous that it deserves no more mention.
Binder fills his script with lazy plot devices and chance encounters. In an early scene, five recurring characters (Alan, Charlie, Charlie's landlady, and Charlie's former in-laws) all bump into each other outside his apartment building. Later, while Alan takes Charlie to see a therapist (Liv Tyler), Donna exits her office as the men enter. It's as if Binder weren't even trying.
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