The REEL Addict 

The potential in the fundamental high concept behind BEDTIME STORIES is rife with creative, magical, family film possibilities. A lowly handyman who tells on-the-fly, more than slightly fantasized auto-biographical stories to his nephew and niece that end up coming true the following day? Everyone loves a good Disney fairy tale, especially when it’s paupers, princes and princesses narratives are catapulted into the present (see ENCHANTED), and especially when it’s done well.

The problem is Adam Sandler is no Amy Adams, and BEDTIME STORIES is no ENCHANTED.

In fact, that is perhaps the root of the problem. BEDTIME STORIES, whether intentionally or not, echoes too closely Disney’s previous effort, and suffers as a result. Even though both films features the stock elements of Disney-fied fairy tales, ENCHANTED treated the subject matter with both complete respect and wink-wink self-deprecation and even a little post-modernism. BEDTIME STORIES buys into the fairy tale archetypes without ever thinking it does, and when it does poke fun at them, it does so with the crass, shallow (Disney-fied) humor of Sandler, not the satirical but loving insight of ENCHANTED.

That’s why the only real times BEDTIME STORIES really works, and becomes slightly magical, is when it remembers it’s a movie about magical stories, not a movie starring Adam Sandler. When his shtick, the imprint of his humor is put aside, the film for a few moments reveals what it could have been.

Those moments are, sadly, few and far between, and instead we’re stuck with mostly shallow and familiar family film sentiments and plot lines, supposedly humorous sidekicks and villains, and a lot of bad jokes ranging from a horrendous running gag involving a large-eyed hamster (which kids will probably love actually) to just your everyday Sandler tired shtick.

I just realized the reason I elicit ENCHANTED so much here. It’s not only because BEDTIME STORIES recalls that film and suffers for the comparison, but because BEDTIME STORIES is exactly the rudimentary, unintelligent modern Disney-fied fairy tale/family film that Disney was declaring with ENCHANTED that it would be leaving behind.

Oh well. At least film buffs should be able to get a kick out of Guy Pearce hamming it up for a paycheck so we can see him do better movies, or Lucy Lawless dressed as a troll, or Russell Brand providing the only consistent humor in the film, or the lovely Keri Russell being, well, lovely.

Overall rating: 1.5 out of 5 REELs