Movie Review: THE HEBREW HAMMER

THE HEBREW HAMMER

2003
R


"I thank you, Gentile friend, for your generous offer of that deliciously unkosher snack."
-- Mordechai Jefferson Carver

The Hebrew Hammer is a 2003 comedy directed by Jonathan Kesselman that pits the Christmas holiday against the Jewish holiday of Hannukah. Growing up as a Jewish boy was never easy for Mordechai Jefferson Carver (Adam Goldberg), who dealt with oppression from the likes of Christians as they celebrated Christmas at the same time he celebrated Hannukah. As he grew older, he turned himself into the Hebrew Hammer and started to take to the streets to protect his Jewish kin from the likes of Christian persecution. One day, however, he hears from the Jewish Justice League (JJL) that Santa's son Damian Claus (Andy Dick), the new heir to the Santa Claus throne, has decided to destroy the Hannukah celebration completely. In an attempt to stop his evil plot, the Hammer joins with Esther Bloomenbergensteinenthal (Judy Greer) and Kwanzaa-celebrating friend Mohammed Ali Paula Abdul Rahim (Mario Van Peebles) to keep the Jewish holiday intact.

Over the past few years, I've caught snippets of The Hebrew Hammer on television from time to time, but I had never taken the opportunity to watch it in its entirety. Seeing as it was readily accessible on NetFlix's Instant Watch playlists, I figured now was as good a time as any. I figured I could add a little bit of Hannukah flavor to my barrage of Christmas posts, and considering this film offers a semblance of a battle between the two holidays, I felt as though it fit the mold of the types of reviews I've been bringing lately.

That being said, I don't think I could honestly recommend that anyone watch this film. It takes nearly every Jewish stereotype you can imagine and lampoons it so strongly that it almost feels like a hate crime to enjoy it. The storyline itself is a legitimate one: we have a crazy, anti-Semitic Santa who wants Christmas to be the reigning - and sole - holiday in December, so he creates a plan to rid the world of the Jewish holiday. Also, considering this film is a play off the old blaxploitation films of the 1970s, you can see that there's that sort of feel to the film. However, with the nearly non-stop jokes about the habits and livelihood of Jewish people in the United States, it's a little tough to take anything even remotely seriously in this one. It all seems like just a tad too much. It's just too over-the-top.

The acting isn't all that fantastic, although each character does relatively fit the stereotypical mold they're attempting to create. Goldberg does well enough as our lead, but he gets a little too annoying about halfway through the film. The same goes for Andy Dick, who is really an acquired taste more than anything else. I'm finding fewer and fewer people are still fans of his brand of comedy, and I think this film serves as a staple as to why those few fans are leaving. The female leads in the film actually fare rather well considering the way their roles are written. Greer plays off Goldberg exceptionally well, and Nora Dunn, who plays Mordechai's mother, offers some of the better laughs during the movie. However, the best performance probably belongs to Van Peebles, who stays with his character religiously and plays him out very well.

Ultimately, The Hebrew Hammer just isn't that great of a movie, and it's consistent attack against the Jewish holiday and everyday traditions is just a little too much to consider this film an effective spoof. That being said, however, I couldn't help but find myself chuckling from time to time, mostly at the over-the-top ridiculousness of the film. So, if you're in the mood for some such fare, then maybe this irreverent, no-holds-barred comedy is right up your alley. I just want you to know that you have been forewarned.

Movie Review Summary
Grade: F
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Movie Review: HOODWINKED!

HOODWINKED!

2005
PG

Hoodwinked! is a 2005 animated film directed by Cory Edwards, Todd Edwards and Tony Leech that gives a little bit of a twist to the age-old story of Red Riding Hood and the wolf. In this version, Red (voiced by Anne Hathaway) is on her way to see her Granny (voiced by Glenn Close) in order to talk about keeping her recipes safe from the Goody Bandit who's been stealing recipes from every critter in the forest. When she reaches Granny's house, however, she finds a Wolf (voiced by Patrick Warburton) in her bed disguised as the old woman. A fight ensues, and it's only broken up after a woodsman (voiced by Jim Belushi) comes crashing through the window in an apparent rage. We immediately cut to a police investigation at the home. When special investigator Nicky Flippers (voiced by David Ogden Stiers) arrives on location, he questions each of the persons involved, and a deeper and more nefarious plot is soon uncovered...

I heard about this flick back in the day when it was first released, but I never had the opportunity to actually see it. The premise had seemed relatively interesting, and although I never expected anything brilliant, I figured it'd be a good watch. The first thing you're going to notice is the very different-looking animation. It took me out of the film in the beginning, but after a while, I grew accustomed to the strange look. I'm not sure how I feel about the animation, but the physical look of a film (i.e., animation or special effects) does not - and should not - affect my personal grade for a movie, and it really shouldn't change your opinion either (here's looking at all you Avatar fans - terribly movie with great special effects is still a terrible movie). But I digress... The film looked a little awkward from the get-go, but it eventually settles into your consciousness, allowing you to fall into the story.

We actually get a pretty good story, but I did figure out the final resolution pretty early in the film. We're given a twist a minute as the four "suspects" give their version of the day's events, and once it's all said and done, we do get a rather satisfying ending. The story progresses rather well, and the laughs do come relatively consistently. The dialogue is pretty good, especially for some of the characters. For example, the Wolf and his trusty friend Twitchy (voiced by Cory Edwards) are both given fantastic one-liners throughout the film; in addition, Nicky Flippers brings a certain intelligent bravado that definitely draws you to him. Each character is actually well-written, even if it's all a little too goofy to be considered "great."

There's no one who's truly offering a brilliant bit of voice acting (although Warburton definitely comes close), but we do have some big-time names in the film, as I'm sure you've already noticed. In addition to those aforementioned names, be on the listen for the likes of Anthony Anderson, Andy Dick, Chazz Palmentiri and Xzibit.

I'd also like to make mention of the music in the film. We've got a couple of original songs that prove to be quite good ("Great Big World" and "Top of the Woods" were my personal favorites), but the entire soundtrack is actually quite original.

Overall, Hoodwinked! is a fun little film that's probably worth giving a watch at some point or another. Apparently there's a sequel due in theaters on April 29th, but I hadn't heard about it until tonight. Will I see it? Perhaps, but I definitely won't be racing to the theater to be the first in line. Like I said, this movie's a little too goofy to be considered great by any means, but it's still fun for it's nearly-80 minute run-time. Give it a go, I suppose.

Movie Review Summary:

Grade: B
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