jack and jill 2011 movie reviews

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Jack and Jill

Where to watch.

Watch Jack and Jill with a subscription on Hulu, rent on Fandango at Home, Prime Video, Apple TV, or buy on Fandango at Home, Prime Video, Apple TV.

What to Know

Although it features an inexplicably committed performance from Al Pacino, Jack and Jill is impossible to recommend on any level whatsoever.

Audience Reviews

Cast & crew.

Dennis Dugan

Adam Sandler

Katie Holmes

Allen Covert

Nick Swardson

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More like this, movie news & guides, this movie is featured in the following articles., critics reviews.

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Movie Review | 'Jack and Jill'

Going Over the Top, Then Downhill

• Share full article

By A.O. Scott

• Nov. 10, 2011

The continued success of Adam Sandler — the audiences who flocked to “Grown Ups” can be counted on to show up for his new one, “Jack and Jill” — proves that everyone loves a sore winner. Back in the 1990s, when he was consolidating his stardom and working his id in epochal comedies like “Billy Madison” and “The Waterboy,” Mr. Sandler’s puerile aggression had a naughty, anti-authoritarian kick. His genial hostility was a grinning rebuke to propriety, his brattiness a breath of fresh air in a prim and anxious culture.

But now that he has settled into grumpy, dumpy middle age (it takes one to know one is all I’m saying), Mr. Sandler’s comedy shows signs of curdling. His most recent feature-length gags are tantrums of entitlement. In “Jack and Jill,” as in “Grown Ups” (both directed by Dennis Dugan), he plays a guy with a more or less perfect life — cute kids, cool job, big house, hot wife — who is grievously annoyed by people variously defined as losers. This expansive category includes anyone who can be mocked for reasons of hygiene, physical appearance or ethnic background, though at the last minute, just to prove what a nice guy he is, Mr. Sandler will substitute condescension for contempt.

Mr. Sandler’s subtly self-lacerating performance in Judd Apatow’s “Funny People” suggests that he is aware of the hollow, hateful side of what he does for a living. “Grown Ups” and “Jack and Jill” prove that, as long as it pays the bills, he doesn’t care. The essential ugliness of Mr. Sandler’s brand of comic bullying — which is punctuated by notably brutal bits of slapstick — is not lessened by his playing, in “Jack and Jill,” the principal target of his own scorn. On the contrary, Mr. Sandler, done up in frumpy, bargain-shopper drag as Jill, gives full and relentless voice to the woman-hatred that has always propelled his infantile shtick.

Jill and Jack (also Mr. Sandler, obviously) are twins separated by a continent and a chasm of luck, achievement and social status. When Jill arrives from the Bronx to spend Thanksgiving at her brother’s gorgeous Los Angeles home, her presence provokes a steady barrage of rage and disgust. She is dumb — she doesn’t know what the Internet is! — crude and physically grotesque, and also loud and needy. She leaves sweat stains on the bed and talks in a high-pitched nasal singsong, broadcasting her feelings at maximum volume.

And of course we laugh and cringe along with everyone else in the movie right up until the sentimental ending, where fraternal affection is affirmed, and Jill finds romantic love as well. To call this conclusion disingenuous would be to give it too much credit.

Meanwhile, as Mr. Sandler cavorts in loud dresses, Katie Holmes (playing his wife) is on hand to remind the insecure guys in the audience how women in this kind of comedy are supposed to be: skinny, silent and blandly supportive of their cranky baby-men, with no discernible desires and ambitions of their own.

But enough of that. There are a few funny moments in “Jack and Jill,” most of them celebrity cameos that also serve to affirm what a cool, connected celebrity Mr. Sandler is. (Who, at this point, is arguing?) The most sustained of these is the appearance of Al Pacino as himself, falling for Jill and giving the film a jolt of genuine zaniness. I’m sorry to say that this may be Mr. Pacino’s most convincing performance in years.

As for Mr. Sandler, I have always been interested in what he would do next, and I suppose I still am, especially if what he does next is retire.

“Jack and Jill” is rated PG (Parental guidance suggested). Poop jokes.

JACK AND JILL

Opens on Friday nationwide.

Directed by Dennis Dugan; written by Steve Koren and Adam Sandler, based on a story by Ben Zook; director of photography, Dean Cundey; edited by Tom Costain; music by Rupert Gregson-Williams and Waddy Wachtel; production design by Perry Andelin Blake; costumes by Ellen Lutter; produced by Todd Garner, Mr. Sandler and Jack Giarraputo; released by Columbia Pictures. Running time: 2 hours.

WITH: Adam Sandler (Jack and Jill), Katie Holmes (Erin), Allen Covert (Otto), Nick Swardson (Todd), Eugenio Derbez (Felipe/Felipe’s Grandma), Valerie Mahaffey (Bitsy Simmons), Geoff Pierson (Carter Simmons), Rohan Chand (Gary), Elodie Tougne (Sofia) and Al Pacino (himself).

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Jack and jill, common sense media reviewers.

Few laughs in crude, kid-targeted Sandler comedy.

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this movie.

Although Jack and Jill's positive message is o

Jill, despite her obnoxious personality, is a lovi

Slapstick and physical comedy throughout: Jack'

Pacino makes lots of suggestive overtures toward J

"Hell," "crap," "oh my Go

Like many of Sandler's movies, there are nonst

Adults are shown at dinner parties with wine or ch

Parents need to know that, like all Adam Sandler movies aimed at families, Jack and Jill includes lots of potty humor and crude jokes at the expense of women who don't fit the Hollywood ideal of beauty. Since Sandler plays both Jack and his twin sister, Jill, the movie "allows" him to make many…

Positive Messages

Although Jack and Jill 's positive message is overshadowed by the many gross-out gags and fart jokes -- not to mention the many jokes made at others' expense (especially women who don't fit the "accepted" standard of beauty) -- there are some take-aways about the importance of family, friendship, and not taking your siblings for granted.

Positive Role Models

Jill, despite her obnoxious personality, is a loving sister and aunt, and she manages to be optimistic despite all the disappointments she faces. Jack realizes how important his twin sister is to him, even though she annoys him. On the downside, women who don't fit a certain standard of beauty are the butt of jokes, and there are some stereotypical depictions of a Mexican family.

Violence & Scariness

Slapstick and physical comedy throughout: Jack's son punches his Aunt Jill, and she falls off her chair. Jack, disguised as Jill, shoves and hits Al Pacino, and he retaliates. Jill punches a bathroom attendant, who goes flying through a bathroom door.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Violence & Scariness in your kid's entertainment guide.

Sex, Romance & Nudity

Pacino makes lots of suggestive overtures toward Jill, and Felipe also flirts with her. Jill's full-figure bras and control-top panties are shown on more than one occasion for laughs. Jack and his wife hug and are shown in bed together, but they're just getting ready to sleep.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Sex, Romance & Nudity in your kid's entertainment guide.

"Hell," "crap," "oh my God," and insults ranging from "freak" and "annoying" to "loser" and "stupid." Jill, who's rather sheltered, makes tactless comments (she wonders if a bearded man is Al Qaeda, etc.).

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Language in your kid's entertainment guide.

Products & Purchases

Like many of Sandler's movies, there are nonstop product placements and corporate tie-ins. The sequence on the cruise feels like an extended commercial for Royal Caribbean and its ship. Everyone uses Sony computers (Sony is also distributing the film); Pepto and Dunkin Donuts aren't just prominently featured -- the companies are Jack's clients, and fake commercials the brands are shown in the movie. Other tie-ins include The Price Is Right , YouTube, Craigslist, Morton's Steakhouse, online dating sites like Match.com and eHarmony, and celebrity cameos.

Drinking, Drugs & Smoking

Adults are shown at dinner parties with wine or champagne on the table, but it's not overt.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Drinking, Drugs & Smoking in your kid's entertainment guide.

Parents Need to Know

Parents need to know that, like all Adam Sandler movies aimed at families, Jack and Jill includes lots of potty humor and crude jokes at the expense of women who don't fit the Hollywood ideal of beauty. Since Sandler plays both Jack and his twin sister, Jill, the movie "allows" him to make many jokes about women's bodies and personalities -- not to mention bodily functions. There's also plenty of insult language ("freak," "stupid," "loser," etc.), some suggestive comments/humor, and an extended sequence featuring a stereotypical Mexican family that may offend some viewers. Parents concerned with commercialism should note that the comedy is chock-full of product placements, from Sony (which is also the movie's distributor) to Dunkin Donuts and many, many more. To stay in the loop on more movies like this, you can sign up for weekly Family Movie Night emails .

Where to Watch

Videos and photos.

Community Reviews

• Parents say (22)
• Kids say (98)

Based on 22 parent reviews

Funny movie

So so movie, bit disappointing, what's the story.

Jack ( Adam Sandler ) is a successful Hollywood advertising agent who dreads the annual Thanksgiving visit he receives from his Bronx-dwelling twin sister, Jill (also Sandler). Tactless (and loud) but sweet, Jill incessantly annoys Jack. When, during her most recent visit, Jill decides to stay past Thanksgiving through Hanukah -- and then New Year's -- Jack threatens to kick her out ... until Al Pacino (the star that Jack's client, Dunkin Donuts, wants to land for their new "Dunkaccino" campaign) shows a romantic interest in her after a brief encounter at a Lakers game. Jack is forced to decide whether he should respect Jill, who isn't interested in actor, or pretend to be her to score his business deal.

Is It Any Good?

There is precisely one reason to see JACK AND JILL: Pacino. The Academy Award winner chews up the scenery while poking fun at himself (particularly his penchant for losing his cool and channeling his iconic characters like Michael Corleone and Tony Montana), and he's hands down the movie's one hilarious gag. Once Pacino enters the picture, it's redeemed by his simultaneously self-deprecating and self-aggrandizing performance.

Without him, watching Sandler times two would be torture, not entertainment. How many fart and Mexican jokes can boys (and men!) endure before realizing that it's just not funny? How many times must Sandler play another version of a very rich man with few redeeming qualities whom the audience is supposed to root for? Gone is Sandler the underdog, the Everyman of his youth. He's been replaced with Sandler the King Midas of rude comedy geared toward boys who don't care whether his movies are more or less 90-minute commercials for the many products stuffed into them.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

Families can talk about why Adam Sandler's movies are so popular. Are fart jokes and gags about people's appearance that funny? What's the difference between his "family" movies and the ones for older audiences?

How does Jack and Jill portray women? What message is it sending about appearance and body image ?

Does the movie undermine or reinforce stereotypes ? When does portraying an ethnic group shift from comedy to insulting?

Do you think that all of the companies and products featured in the movie are necessary to the plot? If not, why are they included ?

Movie Details

• In theaters : November 11, 2011
• On DVD or streaming : March 6, 2012
• Cast : Adam Sandler , Al Pacino , Katie Holmes
• Director : Dennis Dugan
• Inclusion Information : Female actors
• Studio : Columbia Pictures
• Genre : Comedy
• Topics : Book Characters
• Run time : 91 minutes
• MPAA rating : PG
• MPAA explanation : crude material including suggestive references, language and comic violence
• Last updated : January 25, 2024

Did we miss something on diversity?

Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by suggesting a diversity update.

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Jack and jill: film review.

Adam Sandler stars as Jack, whose life is turned upside down when his twin sister, Jill (also played by Sandler), comes for a visit.

By David Rooney

David Rooney

Chief Film Critic

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The funniest part of Adam Sandler ’s dual-role, ambi-gender comedy vehicle, Jack and Jill , is the mashup on YouTube of the movie’s trailer with an increasingly traumatized George C. Scott in a scene from the 1979 Paul Schrader drama, Hardcore . Seriously, brilliant stuff. The rest, not so much.

Sandler has made a handful of more mature comedies; this is not one of them. Back in whoopee cushion territory with an undernourished vein of sentiment, he takes a co-writing credit with Steve Koren , from a story by Ben Zook . But the movie, directed with workman-like diligence by frequent Sandler collaborator Dennis Dugan , is less a screenplay than a lazy pitch.

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It might have started something like this: Let’s make Adam a mensch from the Bronx called Jack, who moved out to California, married this gorgeous wife and had two adorable kids. One of them is ethnic and adopted, which’ll be cool and, like, quirky. Maybe we can give the kid some weird random behavioral tic like taping stuff to his body. Awesome, huh?

PHOTOS: Hollywood’s 10 Highest-Grossing Actors

So Jack’s life is perfect only he’s got this annoying, clueless twin sister called Jill he has to put up with once a year when she flies out for Thanksgiving. She’s also played by Adam and she’s, like, real homely and kind of a jock and has a loud, squawky voice and a lisp. And she has a pet cockatoo called Poopsie. Hilarious, right? And Jill keeps extending her stay and Jack’s going nuts.

Then, someone from marketing might have chimed in: Hey, what if we made Jack an advertising executive so we could pay for the movie with product placement for Pepto Bismol and stuff? And then, OMG, when we can’t figure out how to resolve things between the twins we’ll just stick everyone on a Royal Caribbean Allure of the Seas cruise. That way we get more promo dollars and the audience will be too distracted by all that floating luxury to notice there’s no catharsis. Genius. High-fives all round.

That’s pretty much the movie except, oh wait, there’s Al Pacino . In order to keep the Dunkin’ Donuts account, Jack’s agency needs to lock down Pacino to advertise their new Dunkaccino. (Geddit?) So Jack takes Jill to a Lakers game to stalk him. He doesn’t have a hope of convincing him to do the commercial. But – surprise — Al is feeling nostalgic for his Bronx roots and a little off-kilter, which makes him instantly smitten with Jill.

With bizarre commitment, Pacino endures one indignity after another — as himself, as Richard III and as Don Quixote. Why? You start to wonder if they drugged him. Similar doubts arise about Katie Holmes in the utterly thankless role of Jack’s good-natured wife. Where were the Scientology minders, saying, “No, Katie, no!” And what about all those celebrity cameos? Folks like Regis Philbin, Shaquille O’Neal, Drew Carey and Bruce Jenner are not such a mystery. But Johnny Depp ? Does someone at Sony have incriminating photos of him?

There might have been a sweet comedy here if Jill had been treated like a real character. In theory, she’s a meek homebody — lonely, socially challenged and starved for affection, craving quality time with her resistant “wombmate.” But physically, she’s never more than Adam Sandler galumphing around in a wig and a dress, acting dorky. Even back in the actor’s SNL days as a Gap girl, he put more effort into playing female. (One of Sandler’s cohorts from that sketch, David Spade, turns up briefly as an unfunny Bronx Guidette.)

VIDEO: Adam Sandler’s ‘Jack and Jill’ Trailer Hits the Web

As for mining the singular connection between twins for comedy, that happens mainly in the cute interviews with real identical twins that open and close the film. The idea is lifted from When Harry Met Sally , which did it with slow-bonding couples.

There’s a solid history of contemporary comedy built around men playing women, from the sublime ( Tootsie ) to the disarming ( Mrs. Doubtfire ) to the guilty pleasure ( White Chicks ). But this is closer to the lowbrow anathema of Eddie Murphy in Norbit . Jack and Jill is witless and sloppily constructed, getting by on fart gags, homeless jokes, Latino stereotypes and that old favorite, explosive chimichanga diarrhea — and no, not in an inspired Bridesmaids way. Maybe there’s an audience for it, but they should be embarrassed.

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"We waste our money so you don't have to."

"We waste our money, so you don't have to."

Movie Review

Jack and jill.

US Release Date: 11-11-2011

Directed by: Dennis Dugan

Starring ▸ ▾

• Adam Sandler ,  as
• Jack Sadelstein / Jill Sadelstein
• Al Pacino ,  as
• Katie Holmes ,  as
• Erin Sadelstein
• Elodie Tougne ,  as
• Sofia Sadelstein
• Rohan Chand ,  as
• Gary Sadelstein
• Eugenio Derbez ,  as
• Felipe / Felipe's Grandma
• Nick Swardson ,  as
• Tim Meadows ,  as
• Office Worker
• David Spade ,  as
• Norm MacDonald ,  as
• Geoff Pierson ,  as
• Carter Simmons
• Dana Carvey ,  as
• Crazy Puppeteer
• Johnny Depp ,  as
• Regis Philbin ,  as
• Gad Elmaleh ,  as
• Shaquille O'Neal ,  as
• Drew Carey ,  as
• John McEnroe ,  as
• Christie Brinkley ,  as
• Caitlyn Jenner ,  as
• Bruce Jenner
• Rob Schneider ,  as
• Peter Dante as
• Carol's Boyfriend

Adam Sandler as Jack and Jill.

Adam Sandler gathers the usual suspects for this Happy Madison Production. Jack and Jill is filled with familiar faces often featured in his movies. It also contains the usual bathroom humor and juvenile jokes. Last but not least is a dose of sentimental family togetherness that have become ever present in Sandler's movies. Everything you would expect from a Sandler holiday film.

Jack and Jill are 41 year old twins living on opposite coasts. Jack lives in Los Angeles working as a successful ad man. Jill lives in the Bronx where she lived with and took care of their recently deceased mother. Jack is married with two children, while Jill is only a couple of cats shy of spinsterhood. She already has a bird she talks to.

Jill comes to LA for Thanksgiving but ends up staying through New Years. She is loud, sweaty and obnoxious. Most of all, she is lonely. In one of the weakest aspects of the script, her mere presence bothers Jack tremendously. She asks if he has gained weight, embarrasses a homeless man invited for dinner and is naive to anything computer related. Nothing truly horrible, but Jack spends most of the film trying to get her to go back to New York.

At work, Jack has a very important account with Duncan Donuts that he may lose if he cannot get Al Pacino to do some commercials for their new drink. Things take an odd turn when Al Pacino falls for Jill after they meet at a Lakers game. Pacino is sitting next to Johnny Depp sporting a Justin Bieber t-shirt. Jill thinks he is a member of Duran Duran.

Pacino makes like Neal Patrick Harris in the Harold and Kumar films spoofing himself by playing himself, only made up. You know what I mean! Known for his highly dramatic roles, it is odd seeing Pacino in such a ridiculous part. I think his performance will either make or break this film for a lot of fans. The final scene in the film surprised me the most. If you are at all a Pacino fan, you have to see it.

Jack and Jill has some funny moments and some not so funny ones. Jack's son likes to tape things to his body. This causes a huge laugh during the Thanksgiving dinner scene, but at other times it just seems odd. Much is made of Jill being masculine and large. She kills a horse after sitting on it. A guy looks up her skirt as he thinks she is a man. She out lifts some body builders. The biggest laugh in the entire movie comes courtesy of a bathroom attendant, Adam Sandler, two melons and some anticipation.

Jack and Jill , like most Happy Madison productions, is harmless family fun. It often employs grammar school humor, such as when Jill eats some Mexican food and has to race to a bathroom. However, it is also very pro-family. Sandler's movies are like a bologna and cheese sandwich on white bread. They are generic, everyone can stomach them and you're not going to crave one again any time soon.

Adam Sandler, Rohan Chand and Adam Sandler in Jack and Jill .

I can say with all honesty that I have never craved an Adam Sandler movie in my life. I get his appeal, but I would never choose to see one of his movies. As a member of this site I am merely fulfilling an obligation. I approached this movie with trepidation. Jack and Jill is not only one of the worst reviewed movies of all time it's also the only movie in history to make a clean sweep at the Razzies (Sandler won for Worst Actor and Worst Actress). I don't think I could have possibly gone in with lower expectations than what I had as the opening credits began.

I'm sure those incredibly low expectations must be partly to blame for the fact that I actually almost enjoyed this movie. It's far from a great comedy but it isn't the colossal train wreck it's been made out to be. The humor is juvenile but I found it less obnoxious than I expected it to be and also a bit more low-key. At one point Jill teases Jack by saying, “Why are you so afraid to admit that we are connected? Face it. We shared Mom's womb. We were womb-mates.” Jack's son (played by Rohan Chand, the boy from Bad Words ) gets a few good lines acting as his dad's conscience. After he catches his father posting a fake profile for Jill on an internet dating site he innocently asks, “What are you gonna wear Daddy... in hell?”

Sandler actually gives one of his better performances as Jill. As Jack he's a complete bore who walks through the movie. Clearly he put all of his focus and energy into playing the distaff twin. Sure Jill's annoying but she's also likable and vulnerable with childish enthusiasm for life and a cheery disposition. But don't piss her off, she packs quite a punch.

As Eric mentioned, beneath the humor Jack and Jill is a holiday family film with characters that regular people can identify with. It has a message of acceptance and forgiveness that is pure schmaltz but it's cut with such silly jokes that its sentimentalism isn't artery clogging. Jack's rude behavior towards his twin is meant to create sympathy for her but I concede Eric's point that the script overdoes it a bit.

Al Pacino's amped-up impression of himself is easily the best thing about the movie. He's absolutely -albeit strangely- committed to the role and is quite funny in the process. His commercial at the end is indeed hilarious. Trivia buffs will remember this movie as Caitlyn Jenner's final movie appearance as Bruce, in a cameo as herself acting in a play with Al Pacino.

Jack and Jill is a mediocre comedy with a gooey center, but it's not memorable enough to be labeled one of the worst movies ever made. There's nothing about it to earn such distinction.

Photos © Copyright Happy Madison Productions (2011)

© 2000 - 2017 Three Movie Buffs. All Rights Reserved.

Jack and Jill

Where to Watch

Adam Sandler (Jack) Katie Holmes (Erin) Al Pacino (Al Pacino) Elodie Tougne (Sofia) Rohan Chand (Gary) Eugenio Derbez (Felipe) David Spade (Monica) Nick Swardson (Todd) Tim Meadows (Ted) Allen Covert (Otto)

Dennis Dugan

Family guy, Jack Sadelstein, prepares for the annual event he always dreads--the Thanksgiving visit of his fraternal twin sister, the needy, and passive-aggressive Jill, who then refuses to leave.

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Jack And Jill

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Movie Review – Jack and Jill (2011)

December 4, 2011 by admin

Jack and Jill, 2011.

Directed Dennis Dugan. Starring Adam Sandler, Al Pacino, Katie Holmes, Elodie Tougne, Rohan Chand, Eugenio Derbez, David Spade and Nick Swardson.

Advertising executive and family man Jack (Sandler) has to contend with the one event of the year he fears most… the Thanksgiving visit of his identical twin sister Jill (Sandler).

I feel compelled to write something about this film – despite everything in my body being affronted by the idea that some of you masochistic people will be compelled to pay and see this train wreck.

Jack and Jill is the most insipid effort from Happy Madison productions yet. It really is filmmaking at its most passionless, effortless, thoughtless, and wasteful.

The premise is that Jack (Adam Sandler) a popular television ad director is going to lose his company in this trying financial climate (ooohhh topical right – I know – this is just like fucking Win Win or Up in the Air except devoid of anything that made those films great) if he doesn’t get Al Pacino to do an ad for their biggest client, Dunkin’ Donuts. What a fucking tenuous bullshit excuse to get Pacino on board.

Also Jack’s strange, annoying, clearly Adam Sandler-in-drag, caricature, walking slogan T-Shirt that gets old in 2 seconds flat, sister Jill (Adam Sandler) is coming to visit. Doesn’t this just sound like the perfect situation for comedy ever… No. No it doesn’t. It sounds fucking stupid.

So in an effort to purge any remote desire you may have I’ll mention all the things you would know if you had seen it…

1. Everything that could be deemed as remotely funny is in the trailer. And you really only love the trailer because you think that it’s a parody of a trailer (as seen in Judd Apatow’s Funny People) because the premise is so bullshit.

2. Nothing remotely funny happens in the film except for the lowest common denominator fart jokes and slapstick falls with Adam Sandler in drag.

3. You get to see David Spade in drag for 1 minute and it’s boring and pointless. (Don’t even bother looking for it on Youtube).

4. Johnny Depp makes a cameo (as himself) for 1 second and it is funny because it’s an exchange with Al Pacino (if you like Depp he is MUCH MUCH funnier in his appearance in Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant’s Life’s Too Short).

5. If you do see the film you’ll notice a desperate grab for sincerity in portraying the the ‘twin’ experience. This sincerity may be attempting irony but it doesn’t work – like everything else in this film.

6. All SNL alumni are wasted and feel like they’e appearing for their pay check. And they recycle so many jokes, characters, personas from other Happy Madison films that it’s sickening. They literally cannablise peripheral characters from other films (the homeless guy is pretty much Steve Buscemi’s character from Big Daddy). It is nice to see Norm MacDonald – because he looks, sounds and is terribly funny (but just watch Dirty Work again instead for some great Norm).

7. Sandler and Co. do a great job of portraying racist generalisations of Mexicans in the film – it’s really to die for.

8. The finale of the film sees Adam Sandler talking to himself via both Jack and Jill characters in ‘Twin Speak’ – which is just an excuse for Sandler to do his “habbado odeb bo zzebbaddooo” bullshit language (this was funny in SNL and Billy Madison but that was about 15 years ago).

9. Al Pacino is a good sport for taking the piss out of himself steadily throughout – but wait – all the Pacino bits will be edited together on Youtube in no time so don’t bother.

This is the worst movie I’ve seen this year and perhaps the worst example of Hollywood Studio Comedy that has ever been committed to film. They need to keep the negative in a controlled environment just like the small pox virus so that people know how bad it is if anything else remotely like it is mentioned, pitched or discussed again.

Blake Howard is a writer/site director/podcaster at the castleco-op.com . Follow him on Twitter here: @BLAGatCCO.

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Review by Jason Buchanan

So aggressively unfunny is Adam Sandler's Jack and Jill that it seems to have been made in contempt of his fans, rather than for them. With lead characters that range from grating and unlikable to condescending and egocentric, it already would have been difficult to endure Sandler's one-two kidney punch of comedy pain even before factoring in the uninspired writing and the embarrassment of watching Al Pacino transform into the laziest self-parody ever conceived. Sure, Sandler has had his fair share of detractors over the years -- comedy is, after all, very subjective -- but here all of their arguments coalesce into a perfect storm of awfulness so toxic that it should come with a surgeon general's warning.

As Thanksgiving approaches, the prospect of losing his biggest client isn't the only thing stressing Los Angeles advertising executive Jack Sadelstein (Adam Sandler). In fact, it's hardly a close second to the fact that his twin sister Jill (also Sandler) will soon be arriving from New York City for her annual visit with the family. Try as she might to smooth out the strained relationship between her irritable husband and his needy, overbearing sister, Jack's wife Erin (Katie Holmes) has little choice but to sit by and watch as the cyclone of dysfunction keeps spinning. Meanwhile, just before Jill arrives, Jack learns that star client Dunkin' Donuts may reconsider their decision to seek out a new agency if his team can convince film legend Al Pacino to appear in an advertisement for their latest coffee concoction -- for the simple reason that it happens to rhyme with his name. Later, at a Lakers game, Jack tries his hardest to sell Pacino on the idea, but he hits an unexpected roadblock when the actor becomes smitten with his sister. Now the only way Pacino will agree to appear in the commercial is if Jack can convince Jill to date him. Unfortunately, Jill couldn't be less interested in Pacino, and as the deadline for the Dunkin' Donuts account draws near, Jack is forced to take bold action in a last-ditch attempt to save his career.

Though it could be said that the disheartening desperation of Sandler's brusque ad man in the film parallels the real-life plight of the comedy superstar, it's hard to believe that he or anyone else involved in Jack and Jill could have actually thought that this depressingly laugh-free comedy vacuum was ever a good idea. Even if you're one of those people who can't stand the sight (or sound) of Adam Sandler, you have to feel sorry for him while watching Jack and Jill. In fact, it's hard to decide which is more disheartening: watching Sandler's own comic trappings tear him limb from limb onscreen like a pack of rabid jackals, or seeing Al Pacino, a man who's played some of the most-memorable characters in movie history, feign that selling coffee is a career nadir when he's been shilling for Vittoria for over a year. Oh, but those ads are in black-and-white, and since it's a European brand instead of Dunkin' Donuts apparently that makes it classy rather than crass.

Perhaps astronomers may get some enjoyment out of Jack and Jill since they're used to staring at black holes all day, but for everyone else this Sandler outing is about as funny as the thought of our sun going supernova. If Sandler has any respect whatsoever for his large and loyal fan base, this would be the perfect time to graciously step back from the spotlight, regroup, and consider taking a vastly different approach to comedy, lest the shrinking goodwill surrounding his name turns outright malignant.

Jack and Jill

Review by brian eggert november 12, 2011.

Adam Sandler’s twin comedy Jack and Jill contains everything you’ve come to expect from a Happy Madison production: farting; borderline racism; slapdash direction; grammar-school-level scripting; talking animals; a single joke beaten to death; celebrity cameos (some large and some very small both in terms of screentime and star level); and more farting. The only thing missing is the objectification of women, usually a staple in Sandler movies. But this one’s rated PG, so Sandler and Co. will have to make up for that next time. Don’t forget the gratuitous product placements. When it’s all over, you’ll want a cup of Dunkin’ Donuts coffee on an American Airlines flight linking up with your scheduled passage on Royal Caribbean’s new “Allure of the Seas” vessel, where you will no doubt want a Subway sandwich. Oh, and Al Pacino and Johnny Depp will be there. (So will David Spade, but in a lesser capacity.)

Sandler co-scripted along with Click scribe Steve Koren, basing their efforts on a story by Ben Zook as well as Sandler’s experiences with his own siblings. Sandler takes a cue from Eddie Murphy’s usual fat-suit-drag routine and plays both eponymous twins here. Jack, an L.A.-based advertising guru, is a typical Sandler character—a wealthy guy with an attractive wife (Katie Holmes, who has little to do) and a couple of bright children (Elodie Tougne and Rohan Chand, neither as charming as Bailee Madison from this year’s Just Go With It ). His irritating Bronx-based sister, Jill (also Sandler), comes to visit for Thanksgiving, and we immediately understand why Jack is annoyed with her. The reason is simple. Jill is annoying. Sandler never attempts to disappear into the Jill character, despite the potential of a good man-in-drag comedy (think Some Like it Hot or even Mrs. Doubtfire ). Rather, he puts on a dress and wig and makeup, does his usual aggravating lady voice, and thus Jill is born.

The plot’s nitty-gritty consists of Jack needing to appease his unseen bosses by landing Al Pacino (playing himself) as the new Dunkin’ Donuts spokesman. Meanwhile, Jill decides she’s going to stay with her brother through Hanukkah and do all those annoying things unwanted houseguests do. You know, like riding a jet ski in your swimming pool. We can all relate to that . Jack yells at her, Jill runs off crying, and Jack issues a fake apology. Repeat. Of course, once Pacino inadvertently meets Jill, it’s like Pepé Le Pew chasing after Penelope Pussycat. He loves her and she wants nothing to do with him. But Jack encourages the relationship if it means it will get Pacino into his commercial, not realizing until later how much he loves his twin and how cruel he’s been. Also, at any moment, director Dennis Dugan might cut to Jill’s pet bird Poopsie (yes, Poopsie) doing something wacky, or Jack’s adopted Indian son Scotch-taping random objects to his body for a laugh.

Pacino puts more effort into his cameo than most celebrity guest shots do in Sandler pics. Much like Jack Nicholson in Anger Management , Pacino has as much screentime as Sandler, often poking fun at himself. While on stage performing Richard III , Pacino loses it on an audience member whose cell begins ringing; later, his own cell rings on stage and he happily accepts the call if it means a date with Jill. In the end, he delivers a dancing rap for the inevitable Dunkin’ Donuts commercial, referencing films like Dog Day Afternoon and Carlito’s Way in the lyrics. It’s an energetic performance, certainly more so than any of Pacino’s recent dramatic projects (like 88 Minutes or Righteous Kill ), and the song-and-dance bit almost reaches the heights of Tom Cruise’s appearance in Tropic Thunder , an obvious inspiration here. For good measure, Sandler also includes cameos by Regis Philbin, Dana Carvey, Shaquille O’Neal, John McEnroe, Tim Meadows, Billy Blanks, Bruce Jenner, and others. The aforementioned Depp gets the biggest laugh in a surprise appearance, hilariously wearing a Justin Bieber t-shirt.

But like much of Sandler’s recent output, Jack and Jill is painfully tedious and sophomoric, with an added dimension of annoyance given Sandler’s dual roles. The plot goes exactly where you’d expect it to, inciting only irregular chuckles, and, finally exasperation when the music swells and we’re supposed to feel something but do not. It used to be that one could guiltily take pleasure in an Adam Sandler comedy. Remember those days? Titles like The Waterboy and Big Daddy are less durable comedies than more assured movies like Happy Gilmore and The Wedding Singer , but enjoyable nonetheless. The trouble is, I can’t recall the last Happy Madison production that made an impression on me. Perhaps 50 First Dates ? It’s been several years, to be sure. But out of some vague sense of interest still lingering from his earlier comedies, I’ll continue to see Sandler’s movies. He just makes it harder and harder when he continues to dish out stinkers like Jack and Jill.

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Jack and Jill – review

T here is a type of film so bad that it is actually scary, like seeing those mawkish photographs of sweet little children in Victorian Britain dressed up as angels and realising after a few moments that they are corpses. Adam Sandler's new comedy Jack and Jill is such a film.

It was not given an advance screening for the press, and I watched it as a paying customer in the Vue Wood Green, in north London, in an eerie, echoing, almost empty auditorium. There was one other customer present. After it was all over, we walked out together in ashen-faced silence, past the pick'n'mix confectionery stand, past the Muppet posters, afraid to speak, afraid to catch each other's eye. Each knew what the other was thinking: "What's the switchboard number for Dignitas?"

Sandler plays Jack, a hassled family guy and advertising exec whose goofy, farting twin sister Jill has come to stay for "the holidays": that is, Thanksgiving. This, of course, is Sandler again, in profoundly unhilarious drag. Jack desperately needs Al Pacino to take part in a planned TV commercial. Al's not interested – but uh-oh! Hold your horses! Maybe he will agree, after all! Because the moment Al sets eyes on Jill, hubba, hubba, has he ever got the hots for the comedy unattractive man-lady who is Jack's sibling! Incredibly, Pacino plays himself.

The script is so leaden and formulaic that Jack and Jill do everything but go up a hill to fetch a pail of water. There's incidentally a scene where Jack and Jill go to a cinema, to demonstrate their zanily identical mannerisms. Perhaps to claim a high lineage for this movie's cross-dressing premise, the film they are watching is Some Like It Hot. This adds vicious insult to serious injury.

Adam Sandler's 2009 film Funny People was about a jaded self-hating comedian who has starred in high-concept movies like Re-Do, in which he was a big baby with an adult head, and Mer-Man, in which he played a Mer-Man with a big fishy tail. (A groupie girl he goes to bed with actually demands that he do the mer-man "cry" while they have sex.) Jack and Jill is very like those imaginary films – it could easily have been a single-joke poster shot in a deleted scene from Funny People. Only it is less funny and less interesting.

Katie Holmes plays Jack's wholesome, good-natured wife, and her performance looks as if it has been Photoshopped in from some other film or some other planet. As for Pacino, he socks it over gamely enough, and even sportingly sends up his reputation. Perhaps he figures that a film this awful can't hurt his prestige. John McEnroe puts in a cameo so fleeting and depressingly pointless that I may have dreamt it.

Well, there were only two of us in the audience for Jack and Jill, so maybe the cinemagoing public is voting with its feet. Only that thought stops me booking the next flight to Zurich.

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REVIEW: “Jack and Jill” (2011)

Adam Sandler has become a machine that produces what seems like an endless number of garbage comedies. Whether he’s the lead actor, writer, or producer, his movies feel like retreads that hit many of the same notes and feature the same sloppy filmmaking. In “Jack and Jill” his one attempt at originality has him playing dual roles as brother and sister. Then again it’s hard to call it original when everyone from Tyler Perry to Jean-Claude Van Damme have done it. But here Sandler manages to create one of the most obnoxious and unfunny characters to go with this obnoxious and unfunny film.

Sandler plays Jack, a Los Angeles advertising executive who has made a good life for himself. He’s married to Erin (Katie Holmes) and has two eccentric children. Each year at Thanksgiving his compulsive, neurotic twin sister Jill (also played by Sandler) comes to visit from New York. Jill drives Jack (and the audience) crazy with her quirkiness and bizarre behavior even though his wife and kids are crazy about her. Al Pacino plays himself in what could be defined as the low point of his career. He’s completely unhinged and over-the-top as evident by his infatuation with Jill. There’s also a host of cameos ranging from Regis Philbin to Shaquille O’Neal. None of them add much to the movie with the exception of Johnny Depp who provides a couple of the film’s few laughs.

“Jack and Jill” bombards us with overused sight gags, pathetically lame dialogue, and tons of boring comedic clichés. Apparently farts, diarrhea, and armpits are still funny in Sandler’s world and he’s so kind to give us so many of them. But in many ways he has to rely on that nonsense since there is nothing redeeming about the script. It’s pure laziness and there isn’t enough here to even make for a satisfying SNL skit much less a full length movie. There’s also a shamelessly large amount of product placements in this film that did more to make this movie feel like one big cash grab by everyone involved.

Then there’s Jill, a character that is so cartoonish it’s impossible to find a real human quality in her. She’s so outlandish that once the movie tries for sympathy and sentiment it feels like a complete fabrication. And I never saw Jill as anything more than Adam Sandler in drag. She’s certainly not interesting or convincing and she has absolutely no charm whatsoever. She’s like fingernails on a chalkboard and I found myself just wishing she would shut up. And since the biggest joke of the movie is Sandler dressed as a woman, it’s complete and utter ineffectiveness is the ultimate death knell.

I can only remember two scenes that got any kind of laugh out of me. Everything else in “Jack and Jill” is mind-numbingly bad. This is one of those movies that should have been an automatic bomb at the theaters but somehow made almost $150 million. Is this what we’ve grown to call comedy? I understand that comedy and humor is subjective. But how can such poor conception and shoddy filmmaking get a pass? And what on earth is Al Pacino doing here? Does he need money this bad? Early in his career, Adam Sandler made some pretty funny films. But now he’s a one-trick pony who seems more interested in dollar signs than the quality of the movie. Even worse, “Jack and Jill” may be the worst movie on his resume and that’s saying a lot.

VERDICT – 1 STAR

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4 thoughts on “ review: “jack and jill” (2011) ”.

Thanks for taking one for the team and reviewing this film. 😉 I saw that Sandler was up for a record 11 Razzies for this film, including worst actor and actress. Judging from your review he has a good chance to win quite a few.

Absolutely nothing redeeming about this picture. What baffles me is that Sandler’s movies keep making money. I swear, the state of the comedy isn’t good!

Reblogged this on The Film Discussion .

Yeah, I read that Sandler made a new razzies record with this film. It’s unfortunate, because I totally dug Sandler’s older films like Happy Gilmore, Mr. Deeds, The Wedding Singer, etc. I loved the old Sandler and laughed at most of his jokes. I tend to wonder if Sandler will ever recover, much less DESIRE to recover from these crappy movies he’s putting out. I didn’t see Jack and Jill because I didn’t think I would be able to handle it. This review only confirms that.

Definitely curious about Johnny Depp’s cameo in the film now.

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Movie Review: Jack and Jill Is a Disgrace

The new Adam Sandler picture Jack and Jill is just the sort of asinine comedy that the movie star played by Adam Sandler disparaged in Judd Apatow’s serious cancer movie Funny People . I don’t think all Sandler’s comedies warrant shame, but this one is a disgrace. The joke is having Sandler play both a producer of commercials and his twin sister, but Sandler is not only the ugliest transvestite ever to appear on-camera (I’m counting Divine), he’s the least committed. Part of the gag is that Jill isn’t especially feminine, but Sandler passes up every opportunity to play with his own strange, passive-aggressive, adolescent-male persona and imagine what a female version might be like. His Jill is a whiny shrew, an underminer, with shoulders like a linebacker and a speech impediment that makes her sound like an idiot. (A running gag is that she can’t remember the titles of movies but insists, when presented with the correct ones, that they’re wrong.) The Anti-Defamation League should picket the movie for crimes against Jewish women. The Friars Club should picket it for crimes against comedy.

Jack and Jill has more product placements than any recent film, some of them woven into the script. The plot centers on Jack’s attempt to woo Al Pacino for a Dunkin’ Donuts commercial, a prospect made both easier and more difficult when Pacino falls hump over heels for the nightmarish Jill. (He’s onstage for part of the film as Richard III.) I make a point of never commenting on awards in my reviews, but I passed the time at Jack and Jill , savoring the prospect of Razzies for Sandler (Worst Actor and Actress), Pacino (Worst Supporting Actor), and Katie Holmes (not that terrible as Sandler’s cheerful, innocuous wife, but the film puts you in a really bad mood). In the end, Pacino watches his commercial and solemnly tells Jack, “This must never see the light of day.” I can imagine him at the first screening of the movie saying the same thing. Sandler ought to join Lindsay Lohan at the morgue for this one. Watching him bathe corpses would be more amusing.

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Review: Jack and Jill (2011)

Jack and jill (2011).

Directed by: Dennis Dugan

Premise: The oafish sister of a middle aged man (Adam Sandler) comes to visit for the holidays.

What Works: There is nothing good to say about this film.

What Doesn’t: Adam Sandler’s filmography is a rap sheet of crimes against cinema and Jack and Jill may be Sandler’s single greatest offense. There is literally nothing good to say about this movie. In most of his films, Adam Sandler plays barely tolerable characters but in Jack and Jill he is cast as both the lead character and as his female twin and he manages to create two despicable characters that the audience cannot care about and cannot wait to be rid of. It isn’t just that Jack and Jill recycles the cross dressing joke that was old when Robin Williams did it Mrs. Doubtfire , that Martin Lawrence beat to death in three Big Momma’s House films, and that Tyler Perry’s finally buried in his Madea stories . Jack and Jill isn’t just unfunny; it is actually an unpleasant film to watch. Viewing this film is like listening to fingernails scratch across a blackboard for ninety minutes. It’s that cringe inducing to sit through. Part of this is due to Sandler’s dual performances, and some of it is due to the appearance of cameo after cameo of talented actors popping up repeatedly to remind the audience of all the better movies we could be watching instead. But this movie is also very mean-spirited and not in the subversive meanness of Gremlins or Bad Santa . The whole joke of Jack and Jill is that the sister is obnoxious and tortures everyone around her with her insufferableness. Viewers don’t have to be particularly sophisticated to detect the underlying misogyny in Jack and Jill , and just as I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry relied on homophobia for its humor and then tried to make a statement for equality, Jack and Jill tries to have it both ways. After ridiculing this woman for an hour the film tosses the viewer a disingenuous message of acceptance. Although all that should be enough to indict this film as among the worst pictures of 2011, there is another dimension to Jack and Jill that makes it all the more frustrating to watch. There is an important difference between Adam Sandler and other hack actors and filmmakers. Performers like Rob Schneider and Larry the Cable Guy recognize the limits of their talents and influence and create a niche for themselves, producing awful works for a small but receptive audience. But Adam Sandler has proven his ability to transcend this kind of industrial, lowest-common-denominator filmmaking with pictures like Big Daddy , Reign Over Me , and most recently Funny People in which he played a version of himself. What Sandler never seems to realize is that once he crossed that threshold and proved he could make good work, going backward was no longer an option. When Sandler’s production company spews out drivel like Grownups , Zookeeper , and Jack and Jill it reveals that Sandler is fundamentally lazy. He could be making films like Funny People or even Click , pictures that were amusing and even insightful, but he chooses not to. And that makes Sandler’s pictures far worse than the efforts of lesser talents (such as the performers who consistently populate Sandler’s films) because viewers should realize they are intentionally being served a substandard product.

Bottom Line: Films by Saturday Night Live alumni are often criticized for overextending comic concepts, but Jack and Jill would never have worked even as a ten minute skit. This is a horror of a film and it may be the lowest point of Adam Sandler’s career.

Episode: #267 (December 6, 2009)

Jack and Jill (I) (2011)

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