Walking out of the theatre, my cousin summarized this movie as Òtoo childish for adults, and too adult for children.Ó I have to say that description perfectly describes ÒDeath to Smoochy.Ó
The cast was filled with actors I usually enjoy watching Ð Robin Williams (Rainbow Randolph Smiley), Edward Norton (Smoochy / Sheldon Mopes), and Jon Stewart (M. Frank Stokes). However, in this film, I didnÕt particularly enjoy any of them. The character of Rainbow Randolph Smiley was intended to be the zany guy who could bring the lions share of the laughs. Yet, I thought RandolphÕs attempts at humor were more forced than funny, and the only laugh-out-loud remarks were sexual in nature and had nothing to do with the story. At brief moments, they gave the illusion of a humorous movie, but were really nothing more than cheap laughs in an otherwise hum drum film. As for Sheldon Mopes (a.k.a. Smoochy) and M. Frank Stokes, they felt like characters from a comic book Ð stiff and corny. The cast also included Danny DeVito (Burke), but his acting was exactly the same as it is in every movie so his character is barely worth mentioning.
If you find yourself amused by more than the cheap laughs, you may get some enjoyment out of ÒDeath to SmoochyÓ. Otherwise, youÕll be able to can count the laughs on one hand and leave the theatre less than fulfilled. |
