Reviewed 03 Jan 03      If you were paying attention to the detail that went into this film, you would have noticed in Longfellow Deeds' New Hampshire 'hometown' there was a wooden cigar store Indian used as a prop to make sure we all knew we were waaaaaay far from any Big City.  What a lot of viewers don't know about the making of this movie is the same studio artisans that made that wooden Indian also made a wooden Adam Sandler.  This wooden Sandler had a hint of a smug smile and completely flat, dead-fish eyes.  They were able to use this effigy as Sandler's stand-in for all but 3 minutes of the film.  The importance of 'consistency' here can't be overemphasized -much like McDonalds hamburgers- better to have him appear always the same than to try to get him to act.  Thus, the stage is set...
       Somehow, we are expected to buy into Sandler's never having been outside his home town, even though his borough accent and telltale Big Apple glibness were so strong you would have thought he was auditioning a wise guy part in Sopranos.  Adding insult to injury, the faked tear-jerker scenes were so contrived that all 16 of us in the theater that Saturday night were hunkering down in our seats in sheer embarrassment.  I'm talking 'maximum cringe-factor' here.
        MR DEEDS was rescued from disgrace and oblivion only by its supporting actors:  John Turturro (Emilio) displays his mastery of the art; his sense of comedy matching anyone on screen today - he's been underrated far too long.  And Wynona Ryder is an actress with unquenchable talent - if the best she can do is share a marquee with Adam Sandler, she should stick to shoplifting.  If she doesn't fire her agent after this, she needs electrotherapy.
       All said and done, does it really matter where one starts to critique a film as universally inept as MR DEEDS ? Total actual movie content might have filled a half-hour TV sitcom, remembering of course, that after advertisements, this equates to about 23 minutes.
      Enduring Line or Phrase:  "Nobody cares !"
       

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