Playing with prejudices, clichés and stereotypes is a popular tool, especially in comedy. And in the appropriate context, this can be quite clever, funny and debunking. Especially when it comes to the much-maligned double standards of the Americans. But when playing with clichés becomes a cliché itself, the shot quickly backfires.
This is what happens in the new comedy by Dennis Dugan ("Big Daddy") in which, in addition to Adam Sandler, "King of Queens" star Kevin James can also be seen on the screen. In "Chuck and Larry - On Fire", the two comedians play firefighters Chuck Levine (Sandler) and Larry Valentine (James), whose friendship is put to a particularly tough test when widower Larry learns that as long as he's unmarried, his children won't be covered by his life insurance in case of an emergency. And the protection of his family is absolutely sacred to Larry - as is his love for his late wife. So, of course, remarrying is out of the question for him - at least not to a woman!
And so Larry asks his friend Chuck, whose life he recently just saved, for a very special favor. He is to become, on paper of course, Chuck's new life partner. For the woman lover and full-time macho Chuck this idea is of course anything but pleasant. But for his friend Larry he takes this sacrifice on himself. But the authorities are not so easily fooled and quickly an informer (Steve Buscemi) is put on the two, which is to expose the couple as non-homosexual cheaters. But things get really complicated when Chuck and Larry seek help from lawyer Alex (Jessica Biel), who puts Chuck's libido to one hell of a test.
"Chuck and Larry - Like Fire and Flame" has a hell of a lot of potential, not least because of Kevin James. So there are some genuinely delicious moments, though they're primarily on the credit of Dan Aykroyd as the fire chief and Ving Rhames as Chuck and Larry's colleague Duncan. The play with all the gay clichés is also quite amusing to watch, especially at the beginning. But at the latest when the film goes back on the all too politically correct track towards the end, virtually apologizing for every gay joke made before, it becomes clear that the makers themselves are infected by the lying double standards they were supposed to denounce with a film like this.
But that's not all: Instead of letting the humor live on a more subtle level from the talent of the actors, director Duncan rather relies on completely unnecessary fecal jokes and on the in an Adam Sandler comedy unfortunately inevitable guest appearance of the as always not at all funny Rob Schneider. At the latest here the film gives away any potential and leaves the viewer completely unamused in the cinema chair. The fact that every now and then a gag hits the mark and Jessica Biel at least makes the blood of the male audience boil in a scene, unfortunately does not really help.
That Adam Sandler has the talent to be a really good actor, he has recently proven in "Die Liebe in mir". And that Kevin James is not only funny on TV but also in the movies is something fans have known at least since "Hitch". So why are these two talents and the script, which is promising in itself, being trashed like this? Just to perhaps appeal more to mass tastes? Or perhaps in order to avoid giving the impression of wanting to exercise something like subtle social criticism? Unfortunately, the filmmakers don't give us the answer to these questions. The answer to the question whether "Chuck and Larry - Like Fire and Flame" is worth a visit to the cinema, on the other hand, I will gladly answer: rather not! For an amusing DVD evening the strip may well offer itself, but you should rather save the way to the cinema for a better film.
Original title: I now pronounce you Chuck & Larry
Directed by Dennis Dugan
Length: approx. 115 min.
FSK: age 12+
