Family shenanigans ensue in the new Blended trailer. The comedy will bring Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore back together, this time as single parents who find themselves trying to get along while on a luxurious African vacation. The trailer teases some of Blended's promising cast, which includes Wendi McLendon-Covey, Kevin Nealon and Terry Crews, the latter of whom plays the resort's singing host. Also among the cast are Joel McHale, Dan Patrick and Jessica Lowe.
The trailer focuses on a series of funny moments that patch together a little bit awkwardly but do a fine job of setting up the story. Sandler's Jim and Barrymore's Lauren have a terrible first date. Both are single parents trying to keep their lives afloat. And as fate would have it, their lives re-collide in Africa, where everything goes wrong in comedic fashion. Romance will presumably work its way into this story, resulting in the blended family the title implies.
Anyone who loved Sandler and Barrymore in The Wedding Singer is likely hoping that Frank Coraci will be able to bring some of that magic back for this film. The family element and some of the humor we're glimpsing in the trailer -- ostrich riding, parachute catastrophes -- seems like it would be well staged for this film to include a younger audience, but the PG-13 rating implies that Blended may not be suitable for younger kids, which puts a limit on what families will be able to see the movie when it arrives in theaters Memorial Day weekend.
In terms of the trailer, I'm not sold yet. Whether it's a kid calling his own mom hot, Sandler botching a kid's face-paint or everyone hearing a different song as Jim's beautiful daughter comes sauntering in, the jokes aren't bad, they just feel a bit crammed in. Granted, trailers do that, and comedies want to show off some of their big jokes in the previews, but the rhythm of this one isn't really working for me. That's the trailer though, and it may not be a fair indication of the pace and humor of the film. Or I'm just trying to be optimistic that the film will find a good balance of charm, adventure, family and goofy humor, which appears to be what Blended is going for. At the very least, cuteness seems inevitable...
The Wedding Singer was great, and Sandler and Barrymore managed to recapture some of that magic with Peter Segal's 50 First Dates. Will they be three for three with Blended? We'll find out May 23 when the film arrives in theaters. In the meantime, here's the previously released trailer for Blended:
