You Don't Mess with the Zohan (2008)

I've been a fan of Adam Sandler for much of my life. . . all the way back to his SNL and 'Airheads' days. I've seen him go through many phases, from some great films like 'Punch-Drunk Love,' 'Reign Over Me,' and 'Big Daddy' to some of his lower-end films like 'Eight Crazy Nights' and 'Little Nicky.'

'You Don't Mess With the Zohan' is not one of his best films, but it's still enjoyable. Personally, I'd place it along the comedic quality of 'Billy Madison'. . . contains mostly sight gags and juvenile humour. But, c'mon. . . sometimes that's what we need. Our world is going to Hell, so shouldn't we have some relief from the pain and torment we must witness on a daily basis? No. It's not a great film. But it's funny and stupid and entertaining. And that's the reason to see it. . . don't expect a comedic masterpiece like 'His Girl Friday' or 'Forrest Gump.' Expect what the film actually as and accept it as such. . . if it's not for you, then it wasn't MEANT for you.

Final verdict: 6.5/10.

Fmovies: If your expectations are high going into movies like this, then please, do yourself a favor and never watch a movie again. This is an Adam Sandler movie and we all know what he's like and what type of humor we're going to expect.....and this movie is no different.

I wanted to laugh, and this movie did just that for me and more! Being from Israel, I found his jokes funny and very witty. I don't know if none-Israeli's would find half the jokes funny though.

The movie tried to delve into the whole Israeli-Arab conflict, but it doesn't go deep enough to make much of a point.

See the movie if you wanna laugh, A lot, but don't see it if your looking for a an Oscar movie night.

Well, well well. This movie is a real treat. Sure it is over the top, but it is so funny and entertaining you won't regret buying it and watching it over and over. Rob Schnieder is in it and is even funnier than his role in water boy and all other roles combined! John Tuturo is the arch rival of Sandler in the film, and is very funny. Of all the Sandler films, I rate this one as his best, with water boy a close second. I would even add a star if you are from NY or California where the stereotypes in the movie are very realistic. There are funny appearances from many Saturday Night Talents such as Chris Rock and Kevin N. and Mariah Carey is funny as well. Life is too short to sweat this purchase, buy it, enjoy it and get some well needed laughter in a world that takes itself much too seriously.

You Don't Mess with the Zohan fmovies. I have been coming to IMDb for movie reviews for a few years now and have never commented on a movie...until now. I must say that I was personally a bit confused when I saw the rating on this movie. I expected it to be much higher. (currently a 5.8) The theater was packed on the day I went to see this (opening weekend)...and I went with 6 other people. All of us laughed a lot and left the theater talking about how we thought it was a very funny movie. Consistently the remarks were that we didn't expect it to be so good! The laughs in the theater were very loud and seemed to be coming from throughout the auditorium. Perhaps this humor isn't for everyone but it never occurred to me until now that there would be so many lower ratings. I say this because I most always feel the reviews here at IMDb are right on and rely upon them for my movie going choices. My wife feels the same way about this...very confused at the lower score. Oh well...each to their own as humor is unique to each individual. My recommendation: For anyone considering this movie...if you like Adam Sandler, over the top sexual humor and just plain weird material....see this movie.

Zohan Dvir is a legendary Mossad agent known for his unique skills and indestructible nature but, unlike his current violent job, Zohan's dream is to become a hairdresser and bless the world with the gift of silky-soft and styled hair. He seems destined to never know this dream though, until he decides to fake his own death during a battle with Palestinian freedom fighter/terrorist The Phantom. One smuggled flight later, Zohan arrives in New York to take up a position at the salon of Paul Mitchell but finds that he cannot just walk into this world of styling and washing. Refusing to work in an electric store, Zohan finds work as a cleaner in a small salon run by a Palestinian woman, where he waits his chance to prove his skills.

The unusual title and setting for the characters were enough to make me forget that, ultimately, what I was about to watch was nothing more than an Adam Sandler comedy. You see, mostly, when you come to a Sandler comedy you know what you are going to get and have a feel for whether or not it is your type of thing. Now the quality of his films may vary but generally what he does and how he does it in most films is pretty constant. However, Mossad agents who wish to pursue a dream of hairdressing in the US is not one of his usual themes and somehow I thought this might be more than just an Adam Sandler comedy as I have experienced them in the past.

The film itself didn't allow me to sit in this misconception for very long as from the very start we find ourselves with physical comedy and jokes reliant totally on body parts and sex organs. This continues with ongoing humour drawn from a young man having intercourse with elderly women on a frighteningly regular basis. Of course if I still hadn't worked it out, then what really reminds me where I am is that the entire film is silly beyond belief but yet also still finds time for a stunning young woman to fall for the main character no matter how arrogant/stupid/unlikable he is - a persistent thread in Sandler films. So, knowing what you are getting into is important but, once there, what does Zohan do for the casual viewer - ie not the audience member who puts Sandler as #1 on the list of all time comedians but rather someone who sees him as, at best, a man who can turn his juvenile comedy into a guilty pleasure. Well, Zohan is not really that funny a film but it just about has enough wild humour and creativity to it to make it quite fun. I was not laughing out loud that often but it did have plenty of amusing moments that made me not hate it - which was a possibility. What helps it is that it throws itself totally into how nonsensical it all is and never really attempts to step away from it, thus maintaining the tone that is knowingly silly and makes it possible for the audience to accept this and not unfairly expect anything more.

Of course this does not make it brilliant by any means and the film is still only silly fun and not a hilarious comedy that is accessible to all. Sandler himself throws himself into his role and his accent even if he still has the same crude material as ever. The fact that he makes fun of the Israel/Palestine situation is a move that gives his material a "different" feel but it is essentially a different doorway to the same material. He plays up the silly aspect but of more help is a wonderfully daft Turturro, Schneider and others, who get easy laughs without the need to progress plot. As she did in "In The Mix", Chriqui concentrates on being light and sexy – not that easy with

I read over the reviews from other IMDb users and am surprised how many mentioned that this film is "racist" or "insensitive". It begs the question: Are people going into to ADAM SANDLER films searching for serious or deep social and political commentary? This movie is a comedy and it stars Adam Sandler if you walk into that theater expecting anything except a stupid-funny movie then you need to instead leave the theater to go home and hit yourself in the face with a rock, after all it can't do more damage to your brain.

In the most simple of terms this movie stars Adam Sandler if you do not find him and his over the top antics funny then I would delicately suggest that you do not see his movies as I understand they are not for everyone. To preempt any whining from people saying that "Other Adam Sandler films made me laugh but this one was not the same" let me remind you that the movie you just saw was called You Don't Mess with the Zohan NOT Happy Gilmore. If you walked into this theater expecting to see Happy Gilmore then again let me remind you that you can actually buy Happy Gilmore on DVD and also there is a rock at home for your face. NEWSFLASH! Movies do have differences from one another and thank heavens they do or the only Adam Sandler movie we would ever have is Happy Gilmore recycled over and over.

Finally and perhaps most important of all this movie was never intended to somehow explain or even explore the difficult and tense situation in the Middle East it was not even necessarily supposed to poke fun at it. This movie was supposed to make you laugh. If you laughed and had a good time then who cares? Everyone in the theater with me was laughing through the movie and having a good time. That is what I look for in a comedy so thumbs up Sandler for a fun night out.