By Joe ZarroAssistant Opinion Editor
Robin Williams is an interesting actor. Some of his movies will beabsolutely remarkable, such as Dead Poet’s Society, and others willjust be embarrassing (Flubber). He’s like Charlie Sheen — if he’sgot the right script and is in his element, he’s great.
Williams is hilarious as Rainbow “F**king” Randolph in Death toSmoochy. The comedy in the script is great, but Williams does awonderful job executing. He is allowed to play the wild and freecomic role he excels at.
And it’s also refreshing to see someone who does wholesome Disneyentertainment make several high-quality, profane jokes.
Death to Smoochy is a comedy about corruption and evil inchildren’s entertainment. When Rainbow Randolph, a popular children’sentertainment personality, not to mention moral degenerate andcorporate tool, is arrested for taking bribes from parents to gettheir children on the show, Randolph is fired.
The TV station that fires Randolph desperately seeks an actor ofcharacter to replace Randolph. They find it in Smoochy (Ed Norton), astraight-edged vegan with the life motto, “You can’t change theworld, but you can make a dent.”
Randolph suffers from a delusional and violent mental depression,and sets out to regain his old job by sabotaging Smoochy. On top ofRandolph’s efforts to defame Smoochy, the evil corporate worldattempts to corrupt Smoochy’s character.
The screenplay is hilarious, full of wonderful one-liners thatmany viewers will be quoting for days after they see it.
But it’s also much more than just one-liners. The underlyingmessages and themes of Death to Smoochy are relatively powerful. Thecomedy attacks the commercialization and lack of regard for thechildren in children’s entertainment.
Many viewers complain because it doesn’t live up to expectations.Walking into Death to Smoochy expecting to see a brilliantly profoundcomedy by your favorite actors Ed Norton and Robin Williams, who bothcan claim leading roles in outstanding films (American History X,Fight Club, Dead Poet’s Society and The World According to Garp)would be a mistake.
Death to Smoochy will make you laugh out loud, provide someinsight and demonstrate that Williams and Norton are both skilledcomedians. However, it is a comedy, and it’s not going to be one ofthe cinematic masterpieces of the new millennium.
Death to Smoochy ranks somewhere in the middle on theNorton/Williams achievement scale. Williams plays a great psychotic,and Norton does a great job as playing a wholesome, dorky pink rhino.They work well together in a funny movie, but given the caliber ofthe two actors, it may not live up to some viewer’s expectations.
