A peculiar suitcase brings together various people from all walks of life in Big Trouble directed by Barry Sonnenfeld and based on Dave Barry's Pulitzer Prize winning novel of the same name.
Originally scheduled for a September release, Big Trouble has finally found its way to theaters now here in early April. It was delayed after September 11th because it has a plotline that involves a bomb on a plane. Starring Tim Allen and a host of other notable actors, is Big Trouble a film worthy of its illustrious pedigree or is it an unfunny and just plain dumb farce?
The direction by Sonnenfeld is for the most part sharp and right on the money. He doesn't delay too long before moving from one funny situation to another. He's working from a script by Robert Ramsey and Matthew Stone. Their script takes a while to get going but when it does it quickly becomes very funny. The film's script goes more for the subtle laughs instead of the obvious slapstick material and its smarter for it. How many slapstick comedies do we really need? Also, even with such a large cast, the script doesn't give short shift to any of its cast members. They each get fully developed characters.
The actors each also manage to take full advantage of their screen time. Tim Allen's performance is quite possibly his best in years at the Cineplex. It easily surpasses his overdone acting seen in Joe Somebody. Rene Russo has a performance in which she is thankfully, not as annoying as she can be at times in films such as Showtime. As Russo's wife, Stanley Tucci's enactment is subdued and fits his character to a tee. The rest of the large ensemble cast acts with panache and admirable effort in all facets of acting.
The film also is lucky to have the obvious talents of production designer Garreth Stover. His talents give the farcical comedy the appropriate look and feel. The various sets and locations are given the perfectly jubilant and lighthearted appearance. The cinematography by Greg Gardiner befits the lightheartedness of the film and gives the joyous sets ample screen time and even adds to the feel of the picture. The music, like the rest of the film, goes the way of being lighthearted and thankfully so. It features a wide array of tunes that are perfectly chosen by James Newton Howard.
Overall, Big Trouble is a very funny comedy that's the perfect return to form for Barry Sonnenfeld after the debacle that was Wild Wild West.
Rating: 89
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