I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry
Directed by Dennis Dugan

By Travis Mackenzie Hoover

I’d tell you that this Adam Sandler disgrace is at cross-purposes with itself but really it’s not: the film is totally at one with the idea of cheap, gay-bashing humour and in getting “progressive” points at the same time, the only side effect being that it shreds any viable representation of what it means to be gay or even just gay positive.

For those who must know, Sandler is lady-killing Chuck to Kevin James’s widowed family man Larry. Due to a technicality, Larry has just lost the ability to shift his pension benefits to his children, which is a problem, as Chuck and Larry are firemen who risk their lives daily. So they do the honourable thing and get married, which proves delicate when a) the fraud squad investigates their sham arrangement and b) the lawyer they hire to help them turns out to be lust object Jessica Biel.

Though the filmmakers would like you to believe that they’re nouveau frat boys with nothing but goodwill in their hearts, they still resort to every gay panic/flaming queen/femmy-men-are-funny joke in the handbook, throwing in women to demean as well — in one wearying sequence, a Japanese justice of the peace played by Rob Schneider. But this doesn’t stop them from grandstanding for the cause in the most shallow and noncommittal ways possible, going so far as to make the felonious duo a cause célèbre for the gay community.

It’s a neat trick to become heroes to the same people you treat like shit but Adam Sandler is just the sort of selfless champion to use his seething macho aggression to reach across society’s lines and play both ends against the middle. Not that there’s anything wrong with that. (Universal)

1408 - Dir. by Mikael Håfström
Eagle vs Shark - Dir. by Taika Waititi
Evan Almighty - Dir. by Tom Shadyac
Harry Potter and The Order Of The Phoenix - Dir. by David Yates
Introducing the Dwights - Dir. by Cherie Nowlan
License to Wed - Dir. by Ken Kwapis
Live Free or Die Hard - Dir. by Len Wiseman
Ratatouille - Dir. by Brad Bird
Red Road - Dir. by Andrea Arnold
Rescue Dawn - Dir. by Werner Herzog
Romanzo Criminale - Dir. by Michele Placido
Sicko - Dir. by Michael Moore
The Boss of It All - Dir. by Lars von Trier
Transformers - Dir. by Michael Bay
Vitus - Dir. by Fredi M. Murer
The first Uncharted was unheralded, an out-of-nowhere blast of awesome that finally let PS3 owners brag about the console's software, not just its hardware. Sure, its Indiana Jones-aping approach had previously been pixelated by Tomb Raider but Uncharted's art direction, ... Full Review
Commercial potential? The Avetts have it in spades, so don't be surprised if this disc blows up big. After building a grassroots following independently, the North Carolina trio signed to Rick Rubin's American label, and the man himself produced this, their fifth album. It's ready for primetime, as ... Full Review
Sitting in a Toronto coffee shop the week before the release of Little Girls' debut album, 20-year-old Josh McIntyre is a little worried. After an opening slot for crazed Israeli rockers Monotonix the previous night, the band's guitarist had his guitar amp repossessed. "He had it for a little longer than he was supposed to have it," he says dryly. A replacement needs to be wrangled before the band set out for their gig in Hamilton tonight.... Read More
Social Networking
• Be our friend on MySpace
• Be our fan on Facebook
Tweet us on twitter
Viewing the August 2007 Issue: Contents PageNewsClick Hear • Articles --> On the Cover  •  Front Five  •  Points  •  Comics  •  Questionnaire  •  Release Dates  •  Research  •  Timeline  •  Web Exclusives • Music Reviews --> Recently Reviewed  •  Aggressive Tendencies  •  Beats & Rhymes  •  Frequencies  •  Groove  •  No Future  •  Pop Rocks  •  Wood, Wires & Whiskey  •  Concert Reviews • Motion Reviews --> Recently Reviewed  •  Dvd Reviews  •  Film Reviews  •  Music DVD Reviews  •  Videogame Reviews • Music School --> Label Life  •  Where I play Contests • Contact --> About Us  • Advertising  • Distribution  • Getting Reviewed  • Getting Published  • Letters To The Editor  • Partnerships  • Subscriptions • Exclaim! Radio --> Aggressive Tendencies Radio  • Beats & Rhymes Radio  • Frequencies Radio  • Destination Out Radio  • Groove Radio  • No Future Radio  • Pop Rocks Radio  • Wood, Wires & Whiskey Radio Exclaim! TV • Home & Latest Issue Browse Issues