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IADDAMSFAMILYFHAS ONEENJOYABLESUBPLOTReview by HENRY SHEEHANThe Orange County Register‘Addams Family Values’ ’ least has avoided the trap many sequels,: which tend to be much broader than their originals. After all, there was.no way any movie could be any broadertha;hjft®ej^(^am But this outing-also is no better. It’s as hampered by herky-jerky storytelling, repetitious jokes, mishandled, slapstick,, hdmmy acting, and are-we-ha v-ing-fun-yet hysteria as the firstWith one exception.Christina Ricci, who played the Addams daughter Wednesday to such memorable if brief effect in the first outing — remember her saying, ‘‘Let’s play God” in perfect deadpan — has beenfgiven ?a|gq6d-sized subplot very much of her own this time, and it’s quite a bit of fun.So let’s dispose of the main stuff first: Uncle Fester (Christopher. Lloyd) is in the sights of a beautiful gold digger, Debbie Jellinksy (Joan Cusack), who has wormed her way into the family’s trust by posing as a nanny after Morticia (Anjelica Huston) has had a baby.In reality, she is a Black Widow type who has left a trail of rich, dead husbands behind her from coast to coast. Her plan is to ' marry Fester, isolate him from his family by moving him into a garish Long Island mansion and then kill off the poor fool.Thanks to playwright Paul Rudnick (“Jeffrey”) there is a nice current of campy humor running through the plot, particularly when it comes to jealousand Pugsley (Jimmy trying to kill their new sibling. But mostly it’s the same tiresomely screechy stuff the first outing.Barry Sonnefeld, once a noted cinematographer, still doesn’t display the slightest notion of how to stage physical comedy satisfactorily. A comic tango danced by Morticia and Gomez (Raul Julia) is a particu-NEW ARRIVAL: Baby Pubert is a new member of the Addams family in the sequel movie;CHILLING CHORE: Gomez (Raul Julia) has his hands full keeping baby Pubert out of mischief.•,ermmamtimimmMm.mmv.', r » . ■ ••. ^ . . • . - . - A* d »r V -V'. v J •X*v:.HERE WE ARE - ALONE: Fester (Christopher Lloyd) and Debbie (Joan Cusack find a romantic spot outside the mansion.larlynoteworthy example of primitive technique, with crudely speeded-up action taking the place of lampooned savoir-faire.But Ricci almost makes up for it. Still a preteen, she has the kind of translucent skin and expressionless China-doll features that make her a far more suitable Addams than the over-‘^Tnhadtrprldtdts-arorimd ‘ her ,iJAndgdynou ssnioulMiB BromoM'Addams Family Values'► Stars: Anjelica Huston, Raul Julia, Christopher Lloyd, Joan Cusack, Christina Ricci► Behind the scenes: Directed by Barry Sonnenfefd; written by Paul Rudnick; produced by Scott Rudin► Playing: Opens today throughout Orange County► Running time: 1 hour 30 minutes► Rating: P6-13 for some language and sexual situations► Grade: B- ’► Bottom line: Aside from a subplot featuring Christina Ricci's Wednesday, this sequel is as clumsily made as the original. *’ • # 6Wednesday and Pugsley are packed off to camp at the urging of the scheming Debbie. Therethey encounter true horrors: Camp directors Beck (Christine Baranski) and Gary Granger (Peter MacNicol), relentlessly upbeat types who make a career out of catering to snotty rich kids.9The action revolves around Wednesday’s refusal to take part in Gary’s musical tribute to Thanksgiving (“Don’t you want to help me realize my vision?” he shouts/implores at her), but is moved along by her general refusal to fit in with a world that values looks, conformity, social standing and glibness above all else. So besides being the funniest scenes, they’re also the mostnebbishy loner, most likely implies some personal identification by writer Rudnick. In any case, unlike the main story, the camp portion builds steadily and cleverly to a nicely sabotaged pageant.But it wouldn’t work without Ricci, who can really hold the screen. At one point, the always-deadpan Wednesday has to smile in order to escape punishment. Ricci plays it out wonderfully, the smile struggling to break across her face as her eyes bulge into a sort of mad malevolance. “She’s scaring me!” says one of the other camp girls.And how.I .. -;il!No surprise, since the presence ► profile: Joan Cusack ready (al- Mt.If , 4!lt;5kerid TOmffolt?. Page 141
Newspaper Details
Santa Ana Orange County Register
Santa Ana, California, US
Fri, Nov 19, 1993
Page 188
Full Page
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USA 21 Sep 2022
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