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Movies / On DVD / You Don't Mess With The Zohan
You Don't Mess With The Zohan

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You Don't Mess With The Zohan (2008)

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Reviews Counted:177

Fresh:64

Rotten:113

Average Rating:4.6/10

Consensus: You Don't Mess With the Zohan features intermittent laughs, and will please Sandler diehards, but after awhile the leaky premise wears thin.

Rated: PG-13 [See Full Rating] for crude and sexual content throughout, language and nudity.

Runtime: 1 hr 57 mins

Genre: Comedies

Theatrical Release:Jun 6, 2008 Wide

Box Office: $100,018,837

Synopsis: Dennis Dugan (BIG DADDY, HAPPY GILMORE) directs this comedy co-written by Adam Sandler, Judd Apatow, and Robert Smigel. Disco- and hummus-loving Zohan (Sandler) is the Israeli army's best weapon.... Dennis Dugan (BIG DADDY, HAPPY GILMORE) directs this comedy co-written by Adam Sandler, Judd Apatow, and Robert Smigel. Disco- and hummus-loving Zohan (Sandler) is the Israeli army's best weapon. He can single-handedly take out terrorists and swim like a dolphin, and still find time to charm the ladies. But this lethal weapon is tired of fighting Palestinian terrorists like the Phantom (John Turturro). He has bigger dreams: he wants to cut and style hair. Unfortunately, once Zohan arrives in New York City with a new look straight out of the 1980s and an assumed identity after faking his own death, his lack of experience gets him laughed out of salon after salon. Finally, Dalia (Emmanuelle Chriqui), a Palestinian salon owner, gives him a shot, and the older patrons love him. But just as Zohan is hitting his stride, Salim, a Palestinian New York City cabbie (Rob Schneider) recognizes him, and suddenly the Zohan's dream is in jeopardy. To confuse matters more, there is a Trump-like developer (Michael Buffer) who is trying to clear out the Manhattan neighborhood where Israelis and Palestinians peacefully coexist in order to build a mall. A bulked-up Sandler is amusing as Zohan, and this is Schneider's best performance in years. Despite the extreme stereotyping, there is an underlying message about the futility of war and fact that people really are, after all, just people. The film is peppered with brief appearances from a menagerie of celebrities, including Chris Rock, Dave Matthews, Charlotte Rae, Kevin James, John McEnroe, Mariah Carey, George Takei, and Bruce Vilanch. Lainie Kazan and Nick Swardson also star in this film as a mother and son who befriend the new immigrant. [More]

Starring: Adam Sandler, John Turturro, Emmanuelle Chriqui, Nick Swardson

Starring: Adam Sandler, John Turturro, Emmanuelle Chriqui, Nick Swardson, Lainie Kazan, Rob Schneider

Director: Dennis Dugan

Director: Dennis Dugan
Screenwriter: Robert Smigel, Adam Sandler, Judd Apatow
Producer: Adam Sandler, Jack Giarraputo
Composer: Rupert Gregson-Williams
Studio: Sony Pictures Entertainment

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Release:

Oct 7, 2008

[DVD Details]
 
 
  • Comedy superstar Adam Sandler is back - and funnier than ever - as The Zohan, the finest counterterrorist agent the Israeli army has. That is, until he fakes his death and travels to Manhattan to live his dream...as a hairdresser. Now this skilled fighting machine who used to clip bad guys is out to prove he can make the cut as a top stylist. All goes silky smooth until his cover is blown when he's recognized by a Palestinian cab driver (Rob Schneider). Now, The Zohan must fight to live a peaceful new life in New York in this razor-sharp action-packed comedy from Adam Sandler, Robert Smigel, Judd Apatow and Dennis Dugan.
  • Source: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
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    Reviews for You Don't Mess With The Zohan

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    121 - 140 (sorted by date)
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    As one character says: "Can we do this another time? I think I have a real chance of keeping my food down tonight."

    Full Review Source: Fresno Bee | comment Comment
    06/06/08
    Donald Munro
    Donald Munro
    Fresno Bee

    a goofy satire of Arab-Israeli relations, and already there's been earnest media whining about this %u2014 the playing of such a combustible subject for laughs. Too bad for the whiners that the picture is so funny.

    Full Review Source: MTV | comment Comment
    06/06/08
    Kurt Loder
    Kurt Loder
    MTV

    The notion that both sides are equally responsible for the intentional killing of civilians requires total ignorance of what's actually transpiring in the region.

    Full Review Source: Worcester Telegram & Gazette | comment Comment
    06/06/08
    Daniel M. Kimmel
    Daniel M. Kimmel
    Worcester Telegram & Gazette

    A movie that de-glorifies sex into a tool used for career advancement, altruistic joy and in lieu of "thank-you" note? Sign me up!

    Full Review Source: EDGE Boston | comment Comment
    06/06/08
    David Foucher
    David Foucher
    EDGE Boston

    Unless you find words like 'baba ghannouj' inherently hilarious, the nearly two-hour running time proves to be a punishing length.

    Full Review Source: Fort Worth Star-Telegram | comment Comment
    06/06/08
    Scott Von Doviak
    Scott Von Doviak
    Fort Worth Star-Telegram

    You Don't Mess With the Zohan contains an important, if simplified, argument that is totally lost beneath a dozen hummus jokes too many.

    Full Review Source: Colorado Springs Gazette | comment Comment
    06/06/08
    Brandon Fibbs
    Brandon Fibbs
    Colorado Springs Gazette

    Zohan may have an Apatow label, but it's got Sandler guts.

    Full Review Source: Arkansas Democrat-Gazette | comment Comment
    06/06/08
    Philip Martin
    Philip Martin
    Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

    Harold and Kumar Escape from Guantanamo removed the Do Not Open band from the jar of Terror jokes, and Zohan reaches in with greedy hands, adding Arab-Israeli jokes as well.

    Full Review Source: Philadelphia Daily News | comment Comment
    06/06/08
    Gary Thompson
    Gary Thompson
    Philadelphia Daily News

    Given the missed opportunities for sharpening silliness with satire, it's impossible not to mess with the Zohan.

    Full Review Source: Rolling Stone | comment Comment
    06/06/08
    Peter Travers
    Peter Travers
    Rolling Stone
    Top Critic Icon Top Critic

    Mess with The Zohan if you like, but be prepared for the consequences. This picture is to comedy what carpet bombing is to aerial warfare: The onslaught is so relentless that occasional direct hits on the funny bone are a statistical guarantee.

    Full Review Source: Globe and Mail | comment Comment
    06/06/08
    Rick Groen
    Rick Groen
    Globe and Mail

    From the wholly insular and yet perfectly realized fantasy world it creates to the nonstop barrage of ethnic slams, You Don't Mess with the Zohan is a comedy of contradictions..

    Full Review Source: PopMatters | comment Comment
    06/05/08
    Bill Gibron
    Bill Gibron
    PopMatters

    Methinks the kids to whom this superhero movie will most appeal won't be able to separate the stereotypes from the political wishful thinking.

    Full Review Source: Groucho Reviews | comment Comment
    06/05/08
    Peter Canavese
    Peter Canavese
    Groucho Reviews

    The movie paints crude and insulting portraits of Israelis and Palestinians, going in for the basest stereotypes that would only bring a smile to the face of a Klansman.

    Full Review Source: Journal and Courier (Lafayette, IN) | comment 1 Comment
    06/05/08
    Bob Bloom
    Bob Bloom
    Journal and Courier (Lafayette, IN)

    he film might be rated PG-13, but with this sort of verbal wit, it appears to be aimed at first-graders.

    Full Review Source: eFilmCritic.com | comment Comment
    06/05/08
    Dan Lybarger
    Dan Lybarger
    eFilmCritic.com

    Let's not mince words here, or hem and haw and add caveats about a few laughs or good intentions: You Don't Mess With the Zohan is astonishingly, impressively, depressingly bad.

    Full Review Source: Cinematical | comment Comment
    06/05/08
    James Rocchi
    James Rocchi
    Cinematical

    Any hopes of it actually transforming into a dark and corrosive satire are pretty much dissipated in the first few minutes when we get inexplicable close-ups of our hero catching both a Hacky Sack and an entire barbecued fish between his butt cheeks.

    Full Review Source: eFilmCritic.com | comment Comment
    06/05/08
    Peter Sobczynski
    Peter Sobczynski
    eFilmCritic.com

    I really wanted to hate this movie so much based on the trailers and Sandler's past couple of films but his outrageous performance won me over and made me chuckle throughout the entire film.

    Full Review Source: WJFK-FM (CBS Radio) | comment Comment
    06/05/08
    Kevin McCarthy
    Kevin McCarthy
    WJFK-FM (CBS Radio)

    Like too many comedies these days, the humor is based more on the concept than execution... and the scripting is lazy. But there is a weird mixed message behind the jokes.

    Full Review Source: Seattle Post-Intelligencer | comment Comment
    06/05/08
    Sean Axmaker
    Sean Axmaker
    Seattle Post-Intelligencer

    It's too long, with too many plot threads, too many penis jokes (and hummus jokes), and too many "unexpected" celebrity cameos.

    Full Review Source: Combustible Celluloid | comment Comment
    06/05/08
    Jeffrey M. Anderson
    Jeffrey M. Anderson
    Combustible Celluloid

    A desperate, miserable experience.

    Full Review Source: DustinPutman.com | comment Comment
    06/05/08
    Dustin Putman
    Dustin Putman
    DustinPutman.com
     
     
    121 - 140 (sorted by date)
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    Latest News for You Don't Mess With The Zohan

    October 05, 2008: This counter-terrorism satire is its own worst enemy. Especially whenever Sandler's whining geek turned combo swaggering assassin hair stylist's too-much-information bulging prosthetic crotch pops up. Opens in new window
    More...

    August 19, 2008: Arab Censors Mess With The Zohan Opens in new window
    In a move that will leave some American filmgoers seething with jealousy, censors in Egypt, Lebanon, and the United Arab Emirates have banned Adam Sandler's You Don't Mess With... More...

    August 16, 2008: NewFilmReview: This counter-terrorism satire is its own worst enemy. Especially whenever Sandler's whining geek turned combo swaggering assassin hair stylist's too-much-information bulging prosthetic crotch pops up. Opens in new window
    More...

    July 13, 2008: Box Office Guru Wrapup: Moody Superheroes Rule the Box Office
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