Don't Mess with Adam Sandler

Move over, Dolphy. Here comes the new Bombilya King...Adam Sandler, would you believe!?!

In his latest outing, Columbia Pictures’ You Don’t Mess With the Zohan, Sandler plays a top Israeli commando who fakes his own death in order to pursue his dream of becoming a hairstylist in New York. Zohan is an expert not only with the ladies’ hair but also with their most personal needs, satisfying their “hairy” requirements as much as their kinkiest fantasies with his “endowment,” the same one that adds to Dolphy’s macho appeal.

Recall how Warren Beatty treats women in those steamy scenes in Shampoo, multiply that by 10 and you get Zohan in action, so hilariously funny that he fills up the screen more than just with suds. Among his co-stars are two Fil-Am actors, Rob Schneider (as Zohan’s nemesis) and Alec Mapa (as Zohan’s fellow hairstylist).

Sandler is as funny in person as he is on the screen. The first time I interviewed him was in March 2004 in Honolulu for 50 First Dates, his romantic-comedy starrer with Drew Barrymore.

He has such a deadpan face. When he learned that I’m from the Philippines, he quipped, “You are not called Baby, are you?” When I said I was not, he smiled. “You see, everybody from the Philippines that I know is called Baby.”

I met Sandler again last week at the function room of Four Seasons in Beverly Hills for his latest movie — Zohan — and he’s as funny as ever still in a poker-faced way.

“You look thinner,” he said, looking at me from head to foot, sounding as if we were that close.

When I handed to him a copy of my last interview with him, he said, “Thank you. Are you giving me a copy of your next articles?”

Yes, of course. But first, I said, “Can we have a photo together to accompany my story?”

He gently pulled me closer to him and said, “By all means!”

Click, click, click!!!

Oh yes, I developed bellyache during the preview of Zohan the night before. He made me laugh and laugh in I Now Pronounce You Chuck & Larry (with Kevin James and Jessica Biel), Spanglish (with Tea Leoni), Anger Management (with Jack Nicholson), The Wedding Singer (with Drew Barrymore) and a few others, but I never almost died laughing as I did with Zohan which, I heard, was a smash hit in Israel. Yes, Sandler is Jewish.

That’s what I like about Sandler, his derringdo. He dares rush in where angels fear to tread, all for laughs. Har, har, har!

Reminder: Watch out for the cameos of Dave Matthews (of his eponymous band), Kevin James, Michael Buffer (the “Let’s get ready to rumble!” announcer), John McEnroe and, brace yourselves, Mariah Carey gamely plugging her latest album, E = MC2.

Obviously, Zohan is your sexiest movie so far.

“Right. You saw it, didn’t you?”

I did. It’s very sexy and very funny.

“You think so?”
Yes, of course. The movie opens with you on an Israeli beach nude (private part covered by table). So obviously, you don’t have any qualms about going nude.

“Obviously!”

How far would you dare go?

“People wouldn’t want to see the front, would they?”(Laughs) “That would be a career-ender.”

And obviously, Zohan has this phallic fixation.

“Yeah. But I like to think that it’s just a matter of fact. He’s actually not a dirty man but somebody who just enjoys playing with women.”

What physical preparation did you do for the role? Did you do more time in the gym, maybe for some muscle-toning?

“Oh, I did a lot of running and running, a lot of push-ups and a lot of muscle-toning.”

(According to Zohan scriptwriter Robert Smigel, “Adam worked very, very, very hard. He worked out with a Navy SEAL for four months. Lifting weights, running miles, doing sit-ups, taking no snacks.”) “And I made love to my wife in 15 different positions.”

Of course, you’re not serious.

“What do you think?” (Then he breaks into laughter)

You have such an impeccable Israeli accent. How did you get it?

“I worked hard on it. I got a lot of help from our script supervisor, Ronit (Ravich-Boss) who is from Israel, especially, with the pronunciation and word usage. Sometimes, I would ask her if she knew the Hebrew word for something and if it was a word that sounded funny, he would use it.”

Judging from the movie, you all had so much fun on the set, and so now are moviegoers.

“Yeah, yeah! It’s because Zohan is a funny character and I was laughing at him all the time. I was actually watching and laughing at myself being Zohan.

(According to Israel actor Ido Mosseri, who plays Zohan’s guide to all things American, “It was a great acting school for me to watch Adam work. He’s so kind and giving, and he’s a very fun man to be with. He’s like a child sometimes. It’s important to love what you do and I can see all the time how Adam loves his work, and how he enjoys it and how much he wants everyone to feel the same way.”)

I’m curious. How are you similar to Zohan who is very hilarious and terribly, terribly funny?

“I’m good with handling women; I always drive in the car behind my parents; and I can give people the right hairdo. I can give you one if you need it, do you?”
I’m sure that after this movie, people will look up to you as a sex symbol. How do you feel about that possibility?

(With a straight face) “I’m worried...really, really worried. It’s great! You should have asked me how my wife would feel about it. What if women line up in front of our house every day? Could you imagine that!”

Those who have seen the movie and those who are going to see it will laugh at how Zohan is mighty proud of one part of his anatomy. What part of your body are you most proud of, aside from your brain?

“Well, I have beautiful arms and my back is perfect.” (Again, with a straight face) “But now that I have a kid, I was running with her two days ago and she was laughing and saying, ‘Daddy has boobs!’ I looked down and, there it was, I have a cleavage! That’s the part of my body that I’m most proud of.” (And then, he laughs again)

Zohan is very good with the ladies. How are you with the ladies in real life?

“Perfect! No lady would ever claim that she wasn’t satisfied with me.”

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