In You Don't Mess with the Zohan, Adam Sandler presents a commentary on the age-old fighting in the Middle East and how Middle Easterners settled in America aren't really at odds with each other, but, instead, have to struggle against rich land developers to stay above water as progress threatens to put them in the streets... and comedy ensues. This may sound like a heavy theme to carry in a comedy, but Adam Sandler's brand of comedy centers on character and physical comedy, so it works well around pretty much any plot. If anything, You Don't Mess with the Zohan should pretty much prove this point.
Adam Sandler plays the title role as The Zohan, the best counterterrorist agent in the Israeli army. At the beginning of our story, Zohan is cooking fish naked on the beach, trying to take a break from the constant fighting. His festivities are interrupted by a military helicopter coming to take him to a briefing on the imminent operation to capture a Palestinian agent, The Phantom (John Turturro). The Zohan is upset to find out that they're going after The Phantom again, as he had captured him recently, only for him to be traded back to the Palestinians for prisoners of war. The Zohan makes short work of the mission all by himself, in a fight scene that reminds one of the Matrix or a Superhero film, gone horribly tongue-in-cheek. However, in the final showdown with The Phantom, Zohan fakes his death and flees to America in order to pursue his lifelong dream of cutting and styling hair, a dream of which his parents do not approve.
The Zohan finds himself in Manhattan, trying to get his shot at the hair styling business and trying to put fighting behind him. He finds out, soon enough, however, that he can't turn his back on fighting, as there are things worth protecting in Manhattan, including his new-found home and the woman who owns the salon that he works in, who may turn out to be more than just his boss.
The most unsettling thing about The Zohan is his casual and completely uninhibited ideology of sex. He sees sex (with anyone, anytime) as a beautiful thing and, resultantly, as soon as he makes a woman more sexy by doing her hair, he makes love to her in a back room. This turns out to be a very popular gimmick, and he becomes the most popular hair stylist in all of Manhattan, with a line that goes down the street and around the block. These rampant sexcapades aren't overly revealing, but probably would have affected the ratings had this version been rated.
You Don't Mess with the Zohan is a funny, cute, although raunchy comedy that doesn't stray from Adam Sandler's brand of comedy. If you are a Adam Sandler fan from way back, you might think of The Zohan as having a similar view of sex as the mother from the skit where Adam's mother suggests that he "free" himself by the pool in front of his family and "knock them around a bit," with his brothers. That same unnerving, unabashed sexual openness is a primary aspect of The Zohan's character.
Some of the special features help to illustrate how the differences between Israelis and Palestinians were investigated during the making of You Don't Mess with the Zohan. Not only is it addressed in the movie, but it naturally came up with the actors, since there were Palestinian and Israeli actors working together. It is evident in watching the special features that several of the actors were deeply touched and changed by their interactions with "the other side." They came to realize that they actually share a lot in common, culturally. It was also interesting to see how the special effects were done. Adam Sandler had several body double/stunt men, but he also got into a wire harness and did some of the stunts himself.
Look who Stopped By is a featurette about the multitudinous cameos in You Don't Mess with the Zohan. I saw most of them in the movie, but you don't realize just how many there are until you see them all together in one short bit of time. There are guest appearances by: Dave Matthews, Kevin Nealon, Chris Rock, Mariah Carey, John McEnroe, George Takei, Bruce Vilanch, (John) Paul Mitchell, Ahmed Ahmed and Henry Winkler, to name but a few.
If you keep a keen eye out (and push in various directions when in the DVD menus) you can find (at least) two "secret" features. They're not earth-shattering, but they are somewhat amusing. One is a practical joke and the other is, apparently, the way that the cast would blow off steam during the shoot.
If you're easily embarassed and made uncomfortable by sexual innuendo, you won't want to watch The Zohan, at least not with anyone else. If, however, you're not on a first date and you're a fan of Adam Sandler's comedy, then Don't Mess with the Zohan: Unrated Version gives you a great movie with a lot of insight and extra features.
