Posted by Soccer Dad
Surely you're all aware that Pillage Idiot is a huge "Get Smart!" fan. (How huge? Would you believe ...? Ah never mind.)
So last night I saw a report on Entertainment Tonight that next year there will be a new Get Smart! movie. My thrill quickly came to an end, though, when I saw it was Steve Carell who would be reprising Don Adams's famous role.
I like to think that I have a sense of humor. I know a lot of people who find "The Office" funny, but I don't. Watching it is akin to watching grass grow. It has an oddity factor going for it, but that's about it.
The short clips I saw from the movie also showed that Carell doesn't quite have the same gift for physical comedy that Adams had. Carell can go through the clumsy motions but he can't do it with the aplomb Adams did.
As it turns out the wonderful fan site Would you Believe? has a preview of the movie and it's not very encouraging. Unlike me, he likes the choice of Carell, but doesn't like what he's seen of the script. (BTW, he has a synopsis at the bottom, so if you wish to avoid serious spoilers, don't go to the very bottom.)
The Cons: It begins and starts with the script. There's a tendency among many in Hollywood that a funny actor can make a bad script funny, and so you'll often see great comedic stars in unfunny movies (remember The Three Amigos or Steve Martin in The Pink Panther?). Though it sometimes can happen that a great comic can make a bad script funny, why not try and give him the best possible script? Unfortunately, this isn't the best possible script, but Steve Carell is hot and the window to make this movie was short given Carell's other commitments, so the movie may have been scheduled before the script was as good as it should be. I've seen several versions of the script and have been less than impressed with any of the versions. Unfortunately, what I've read feels more like another cheesy Hollywood remake than a Get Smart movie.
If you want to read more, go to the site.
Alan Arkin as the Chief is inspired casting. The irony is that I also think that a young Alan Arkin could have been a good Maxwell Smart. (Think, the original "The In-Laws.") Of course we don't have a young Alan Arkin anymore.
For me Steve Carell just doesn't have it. The movie probably will be insipid.
Too bad the producers got stupid.
get smart movie.
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