Mike Binder's "Reign Over Me" takes its name from "Love Reign O'er Me", that 1973 rocker from the Who, which had to do with a man going through a great personal crisis who prays for the rain to wash all of the pain away. It's an appropriate title for a film about a man who lost his family, and in essence himself, on the morning of September 11th. Unfortunately the operatic build and power of that song seems to have translated to this film in theory and premise only.
Adam Sandler takes a second turn away from his tired comedic shtick (his first presumably being "Punch Drunk Love") to portray the lead. Even though dramatic turns for comedic actors have served many films very well in the past, this is simply unforgivable casting. Sandler is completely two-dimensional, playing an emotionally stunted man that seems fresh when he's quiet and brooding, but then seems all too familiar when he delivers that childish shrill he calls acting. There's dishonesty to the character with him in the role, because it's hard to believe that a previous time existed for his character that did not involve video games and staying out all night.
Playing opposite Sandler is the usually dependable Don Cheadle, as Sandler's former college roommate who has several chance encounters with him. The circumstances might be a touch too coincidental, but the result does draw both of the men out of their prospective shells. It's a shame that Cheadle didn't get to sink his teeth into the lead role, because it might have made for a more fascinating and more honestly moving film. Instead he has a subservient, secondary role that seems unclear and inconsistent as the inconsequential subplots serving as character development roll on by.
"Reign Over Me" might have been considered daring in 2007 for it's exploration of 9/11, however, it actually does a disservice to those looking for a film about healing, mourning, and moving forward, because none of the characters seem real enough to have really lived through the event. Like the song that inspired its title, the film offers up big drama, but it sadly squanders it with very little emotional resonance.
Adam Sandler takes a second turn away from his tired comedic shtick (his first presumably being "Punch Drunk Love") to portray the lead. Even though dramatic turns for comedic actors have served many films very well in the past, this is simply unforgivable casting. Sandler is completely two-dimensional, playing an emotionally stunted man that seems fresh when he's quiet and brooding, but then seems all too familiar when he delivers that childish shrill he calls acting. There's dishonesty to the character with him in the role, because it's hard to believe that a previous time existed for his character that did not involve video games and staying out all night.
Playing opposite Sandler is the usually dependable Don Cheadle, as Sandler's former college roommate who has several chance encounters with him. The circumstances might be a touch too coincidental, but the result does draw both of the men out of their prospective shells. It's a shame that Cheadle didn't get to sink his teeth into the lead role, because it might have made for a more fascinating and more honestly moving film. Instead he has a subservient, secondary role that seems unclear and inconsistent as the inconsequential subplots serving as character development roll on by.
"Reign Over Me" might have been considered daring in 2007 for it's exploration of 9/11, however, it actually does a disservice to those looking for a film about healing, mourning, and moving forward, because none of the characters seem real enough to have really lived through the event. Like the song that inspired its title, the film offers up big drama, but it sadly squanders it with very little emotional resonance.