Death to Smoochy
Review
by : Gareth Von Kallenbach
Starring:
Robin Williams, Jon Stewart, Danny DeVito,
Ed Norton
Directed by: Danny DeVito
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The world of children's television shows is often filled with
magic, glitter, and fairydust as reality is given way to fantasy,
to the delight of children everywhere. While the antics of
some of the characters and the music and merchandising give
parents headaches and the occasional homicidal fantasy, most
parents let the fantasy play its course until their children
grow to other interests.
When the
lights and music fade however, the reality behind the magic
is not always as happy as it is portrayed. Such is the life
of Rainbow Randolph, (Robin Williams), a top rated children's
show host who is knocked from his lofty perch when he accepts
a bribe from an undercover fed posing to get a child on his
show. Reeling from the scandal, the network places the task
of finding a replacement that is squeaky clean in the hands
of M Frank Stokes (Jon Stewart), and Nora Wells (Catherine
Keener). This is no easy task as most of the available candidates
have issues ranging from drugs, assault charges, and drinking,
to name a few. Desperate to save their jobs, Stokes and Wells
reluctantly settle on Sheldon Mopes (Edward Norton), a Rhino
impersonating, tree hugging, milquetoast who makes vanilla
seem wild and daring. His character Smoochy becomes a gigantic
hit and this drives the desolate Rainbow Randolph to the brink
of madness, as he sets out to take down his replacement and
regain his crown as the king of kid shows.
While
this should have been a recipe for a laugh fest, "Death To
Smoochy" soon gets lost in crime subplots and repetition.
Williams is sadly missing from large portions of the film,
as his presence elevated each of the scenes he was in; though
sadly not nearly enough. Norton is good in his role, but his
character is very bland. The supporting work by Keener, Pam
Ferris, and Danny DeVito, (who also directed), are very good,
but can't make the film step above its muddled pacing. What
could have been a frantic and inventive comedy loses momentum
as large gaps occur between Williams's antics. For example,
there is a sensational moment when Williams frames Smoochy
only to have it followed by several scenes of Norton moping
about his bad fortune. The momentum was gained briefly when
Williams is shown celebrating his success, and is lost when
the story moves back to the show.
Dark comedies
can be very difficult to do and even harder to sell to the
public. Just look at Jim Carrey's brilliant turn in the little-watched
"The Cable Guy". However, "Death To Smoochy" suffers from
a lack of Williams, repetition, and not enough fleshing-out
of characters. We have no idea why Mopes has his views, and
we have no inkling as to why Randolph would seek to take bribes
due to not having any money (despite being the top rated show).
This could have been a comedy classic; the talent and ideas
are there for all to see, and that is what makes the final
product so frustrating. Opportunities for character growth
and humor were left out in favor of several scenes of the
characters in bars, restaurants, meetings, and wandering New
York that did little to enhance the plot, but a lot to kill
the potential of this great film idea.
Gareth
Von Kallenbach
Gareth@nwlink.com
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