.: Roberts' Reviews - Movie Reviews :.

At the Movies with Mike Lippert:

Michael Newman, the main character of Click has a universal remote control that controls his universe. As he is told by Morty (Christopher Walken), a strange employee in the Beyond section of Bed, Bath and Beyond, when Michael fast forwards his life he is put on autopilot; his body is still present but his mind does not exist. How ironic, the film itself is also on autopilot. I know that it is physically complete because I have seen it, but it's mind is still somewhere in preproduction. Maybe it could have used a rewrite, or five.
The film is about Newman (Adam Sandler), husband, father of two, and hard worker. He's an all around busy man. He works as an architect on the brink of promotion under Ammer, who would be like every other non-sympathetic movie boss if he were not played by a very funny David Hasselhoff as a sort-of parody of, well, David Hasselhoff.
After a night of fighting with the wife, disappointing the kids and having too many stupid remotes, why someone would have a garage door opener in the living room baffles me, but oh well, Michael leaves the house and finds the only place that is still open, where he meets Morty.
He asks for a universal remote like the one the neighbors have, there is a funny ongoing joke about how the neighbors always have the best new gadgets, which the neighbor kid is always willing to brag about. Anyway, Morty takes Michael to a section marked "the really new stuff." The way Walken concentrates on trying to find the only thing that is sitting on the shelf is a small bit of brilliant comedic acting that only Walken himself could pull off. Although, on a whole it seems as though the film has no idea how to use Walken's unique talents. Morty begins to give a speech about Lucky Charms breakfast cereal, but Michael doesn't want to hear it. Why doesn't Director Frank Coraci know that when Walken speaks you shut up and listen? Especially if it's about Lucky Charms.
As you can suspect Michael finds out that the remote doesn't just work for appliances, but it controls his entire universe. He can turn the volume down when the dog is barking, fast forward through moments in life that he would rather skip, and in another funny scene, plays with the colour.
This is fine, but the way the film handles this device is uninspiring. The remote is used for two purposes, both arbitrary, and both working only for the convenience of the plot. This is another one of those shapeless comedies, which never seem to make it past the brainstorming stage; their motivation is high, but their execution is shallow and directionless. It's as if the filmmakers never truly understand the possibilities of their narrative.
Function 1: Michael uses the remote in order to subvert everyday occurrences. He fast-forwards while his wife is bickering at him, pauses time to fart in his bosses face, etc. I was reminded of those scenes in the dreadful Fantastic Four in which the title characters are shown using their fantastic powers for uninspiring tasks like the Thing not being able to use the telephone because his fingers are too big. So what? A remote control that controls the universe is not interesting in and of itself, it's an idea that should propel the narrative, not hold it up.
Function 2: The remote being the advanced technology that it is, sets itself based on Michael's preferences. Alas, every time he fights with his wife, wants a promotion, anything that he skipped before, the remote will automatically skip again. So what? This simply allows the filmmakers to skip to certain points in Michael's life in order to conveniently teach him a lesson about how horrible his life has become, as he wasn't around to live it for himself. It's like an abridged novel with all the good parts cut out.
Click thinks it has it's heart in the right place, it tries to teach us a lesson about the importance of taking time out of a busy day to live life to the fullest. Yet, didn't Last Holiday also make this same point within a film that was much nicer, simpler, funnier, more insightful, and knew how to use its gimmick as a starting point from which the narrative can build upon, not rely on? Although… a universal remote could easily serve its purpose. If I had one, I'd use it to rewind myself out of the theater, the money I paid to see Click would jump back into my wallet. I'd then drive home backwards to my couch and maybe watch La Dolce Vita or Judge Judy.