Spanglish (December 13/04)

Viewers who missed Adam Sandler's astounding work in Punch-Drunk Love will probably be surprised by his level of ability in Spanglish, but the truly shocking thing is just how different Barry Egan (Punch-Drunk Love's protagonist) is from Spanglish's John Clasky. On the surface, the two characters have a lot in common - primarily a pathological streak of niceness - though it quickly becomes evident that Sandler is doing something entirely different here. The film should effectively cement Sandler's status as more than just a comedic performer (let's hope he never entirely abandons that aspect of his career).

Spanglish, written and directed by James L. Brooks, revolves around a Mexican immigrant named Flor (Paz Vega) and her daughter Cristina (Shelbie Bruce). After several years of working in a predominantly Hispanic area, Flor takes the plunge and applies for a housekeeping job with the wealthy Claskys. John (Sandler) is a famous chef on the brink of superstardom, while Deborah (Tea Leoni) is still reeling from a recent job loss - taking out her frustration on anybody in close proximity.

Brooks' films often focus more on character development than plot, something that often works extremely well thanks to an emphasis on people that are engaging and intriguing (think Jack Nicholson in As Good As It Gets or Albert Brooks in Broadcast News). But that's ultimately not the case here, as Flor never entirely becomes the engaging figure that Brooks clearly wants her to be. Exacerbating matters is the fact that John and Deborah - and even their kids - offer far more promise than Flor, making it impossible not to wish that Brooks would've just focused exclusively on the Claskys. And while Vega is very good in the role (despite being hindered by an accent that's occasionally difficult to decipher), the character is generally overshadowed by virtually everyone around her.

As a result, Spanglish is Brooks' most uneven film to date - veering wildly between sequences that are just as effective as anything he's done before to those that feel woefully out of place. In the former category are the all-too-rare moments between John and his plump daughter Bernice (Sarah Steele). Their chemistry feels genuine, and Steele does an amazing job of capturing the sort of angst that goes with being an overweight pre-teen (Spanglish marks the actress' debut, incredibly enough).

The most prominent casualty of the film's focus on Flor is Leoni, who just isn't able to turn Deborah into a terribly sympathetic character. But more than that, it's difficult to accept the fact that laid-back John would remain married to high-strung Deborah - and since Leoni receives relatively little screentime, the character essentially comes off as a shrill malcontent.

Spanglish is far from mediocre, but it's hard not to expect more from Brooks - particularly considering how much time he takes in between films.