Review No.27: Jack and Jill

There is a saying how the mighty have fallen which decades ago didn't seem to apply to many actors because how could legends like Al Pacino and Robert De Niro fall that far? But come 2011 we see Raging Bull himself in ensemble romcom disaster New Year's Eve and then The Godfather fall even further by playing a romantic interest for Adam Sandler in a dress. Jack and Jill sees Sandler take both of the titular roles as twins the man who is an LA-based arrogant scriptwriter and partner in an ad agency while the latter is a nasally-voiced talkative woman who has lived in the Bronx all her life but who wants to be spend more time with her. The way the two are presented it is Jill who is the nightmare because she is so in your face while Jack is the rational one despite him spending a lot of time at work and not noticing that as he is married to Katie Holmes he can have sex with her as many times as he wants. When Jack discovers that Dunkin' Donuts want Al Pacino for a new commercial he decides to go after him in order to save his company. Predictably Pacino is drawn to the uncomplicated nature of Jill and wants to romance her despite her being completely disinterested in her and the whole thing comes to a head when Jack tries to whore his sister to the actor in order for him to seal the deal.

There is an interesting film somewhere in Jack and Jill featuring a once great actor who is torn between starring in theatre or selling out to do a commercial. In fact Pacino's career has been on a large downward spiral for years and this sort of Curb Your Enthusiasm type vehicle would be something to get more public interest in him. However Pacino, the best thing about the movie, is simply a subplot and a way for Jack to realise how much he needs Jill and how horrible he is to her. Jill really isn't that terrible she is just a bit annoying and the worst thing about her is the nasly New York twang which Sandler gives to her. Like most of his male characters Sandler's Jack is a man who puts his career before his family and has to go through a whole film to realise this. Poor old Katie Holmes meanwhile doesn't do much more than smile which probably is an accurate portrayal to her actual marriage to Tom Cruise. There's also no mention why the couple's adopted Indian child likes to cover himself in tape or why their Mexican gardener makes a lot of inappropriate racist jokes. But the biggest question is why Pacino agreed to appear in a bit part role in a film which could've be an interesting portrayal of his own fall from grace. In the last scene Pacino tells Jack to burn the whole thing and to be fair he could've given that advice to all those involved in this dreadful film.

Verdict: Al Pacino should be ashamed about being the best thing in this dreadful movie but at least earns it a more than deserved 2/10