Jack and Jill: The Joke That Struck Gold


The other night I watched a movie that is almost universally panned.  This movie was disliked from the time that the initial trailer came out.  People didn’t like that trailer.  In fact, I would go as far as to say that they hated that trailer.  I don’t think that it’s an understatement in any way.  The same reaction to the trailer was done with the movie.  People hated the movie.  It won the Golden Raspberry for worst picture, along with a myriad of other awards in that specific festival.  The movie is Jack and Jill.

Jack and Jill stars Adam Sandler as the title character of Jack.  He also plays the title character of Jill.  The two characters are twins.  The plot is rather complicated, so follow me here.  Jill visits Jack.  Jack hates Jill.  Jack takes Jill to a basketball game.  Al Pacino is at the basketball game.  Al Pacino falls in love with Jill.  And the movie continues into places that get even more ridiculous.

The reason I am writing this is simple.  Yes, the movie was bad the whole way through.  That is, until the final scene.  I’m not talking about the people in the credits.  I mean that final scene of the movie.  If you don’t want to be spoiled about Jack and Jill, you should stop reading right now.  I’m sure not many made it this far when they read that this was about Jack and Jill.  But I’m still writing and some of you are surely still reading.  Moving on.

The final scene of the movie is Al Pacino and Adam Sandler watching a commercial for Dunkin Donuts in which Al Pacino stars.  This is Al Pacino the character played by Al Pacino slumming it in a commercial that is far beneath the talent he has.  This is easily comparable to Al Pacino the actor slumming it in the movie Jack and Jill which is far beneath the talent he has.  Right this way, readers.  There is still more to the brilliance of this scene.  So Jack and Al are watching the commercial.  I already told you that.  As the commercial ends, Al Pacino looks at Jack and says something to the effect of “What is this?  Burn it.  Nobody should ever see this.”  This seems oddly fitting for a movie in which both Adam Sandler and David Spade dress as women, there is a verbal defence of Rob Schneider, half of the dialogue is jibberish, a bird drowns itself in a chocolate fountain, and there is a large segment that feels like a Royal Caribbean advertisement.

Perhaps Sandler was pulling a joke on the audience with this movie.  This final scene seems like it could be his homage to the ending of Inglourious Basterds.  This could be his masterpiece, meant to poke fun at the fans that support his movies that are all too similar to those his character was making in Funny People.  This movie seemed even more outlandish in terms of the comedy than any of his other movies by a long shot.

If the ending does signify what I think it does, then Jack and Jill is the perfect partner to Funny People.  It also makes Jack and Jill a better movie than people give it credit for, if only for the true comedy within it.

I could be completely wrong in my assessment of Jack and Jill.  I won’t argue that.  But this is what I believe.  I will defend my right to believe it as long as I live.

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