When it comes to Disney movies, Adam Sandler isn't exactly the first guy you think of as leading the parade; a man known more for his vulgarities and
less than family friendly entertainment, Sandler is an actor who often chooses to let his inner child loose in his own twisted realities rather than those of children's and Mr. Mouse's. It's with a small degree of trepidation then that Bedtime Stories, a movie more suited to say, a Robin Williams or modern-day Eddie Murphy leading man, goes all out with the Sandman and puts his face on the front cover. The result? Nowhere near as bad as it sounds on paper. In fact, Sander here remains as one of the movie's only real sources of engagement for anyone older than ten, sticking to his usual everyday-guy character with more charm and less sleaze. Yet despite this surprisingly entertaining breath of fresh air, this latest offering from Disney feels stuck in the same spot as it was 6 months ago with Game Plan, and the year before that, and that, and, well you get the point. Sure enough, families looking for no brainer entertainment for the holidays could do worse, but don't expect anything new here; this is cookie-cutter Disney, even if Mickey does have bed-hair a little stubble this time around.
As typical as Bedtime Stories can get, it's worth pointing out that there are a few redeeming and refreshing qualities to the film that propel it from the realm of children's entertainment to that of the family variant. Although featuring two young children and their cute, bug-eyed hamster that all play large roles in the eventual outcome of the story, our primary focus here lies on hotel janitor Skeeter Bronson (Sandler). Being the son of the hotel's former owner, Skeeter was promised the ownership of the location by the time he came of age and competence, yet this promise has to this point be unfulfilled by tycoon Barry Nottingham (Richard Griffiths). The story from here takes a drastic turn into the fantastic when Skeeter soon realises that the bedtime stories he has been making up with his nephew and niece start to come true in reality- to some degree. Thankfully, the world of Bedtime Stories takes on a magical tone, but not one of overly contrived silliness; there's fantasy fuelled by imagination and then fantasy fueled by lack of such- think of Bedtime Stories as the much more subtle former and Alvin and the Chipmunks as the perplexing latter.
For the most part, this story fulfills its purpose, developing a character arc for poor schmuck Skeeter and detailing his quest for what is rightfully his whilst tying in themes of family (for the adults) and childhood imagination as the holy grail of life (for the little ones) in a neat little bow. Such is the major detraction from what could have been nay, should have been- a powerful, emotive and engaging story. Scared to come out of its comfort zone and habits, Bedtime Stories is all too familiar and all too transparent to provide most adult audiences with any degree of resonance or revelation at points where the feature relies on it. As a result, the feature feels touching because we've been programmed to react in such a way to these elements; yet taken into context, Bedtime Stories never achieves any real degree of emotional connection; the story demands it and we will most like give it just to see where it goes, but in end the experience is too shallow to warrant any further commitment.
As detailed above, Sandler, who isn't particularly known for his lighter, more child-friendly outings, does a fine job here. The script asks for a meek, everyday man with a heart on his sleeve, and to this date, that is essentially the role Mr. Sandler has been donning feature after feature for so many years now; it's not in any way a remarkable performance for himself, but it's a fitting and decently casted one. On the other side of the pond is supporting lead male Russell Brand who plays the movie's more overt comic relief character (think, Rob Schneider in Sandler's more typical movies); Brand, who has proved himself a comically in-tune performer, is still on form here even though he seems more out of his water than Sandler. The remainder of the cast is largely disposable and fodder to the background, playing roles that demand nothing out of the ordinary for this type of factory-pressed production.
In the end, whether you will enjoy Bedtime Stories comes down to two important questions: how adverse are you to silly, fantasy-based family movies? And how do you feel about seeing another one that is almost the exact same as the last one you seen? To be fair, there are some interesting and entertaining ideas present in Bedtime Stories but squished in between layers of mundane padding straight from the vaults of script-writing 101 classes, such moments serve as sporadic reminders of the fun that can be had in front of a big screen. With Sandler at the helm it's also worth noting that the feature does take on a much more engaging style for older audiences, but fans of the actor should certainly be under no pretence that this is a Sandler-flick; no, this is Disney, and no rules are broken here at all. Instead, what Bedtime Stories offers is fluffy, mediocre family entertainment; there's fantasy, comedy, romance, and a hamster with giant eyes that makes cute purring noises when it sleeps in its tiny little bed. It's just a shame it's all so formulated and neutered to the point of emotional indifference.
- A review by Jamie Robert Ward (http://www.invocus.net)
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