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This is a pretty silly live action movie version of the popular
kids cartoon which the kids will probably like but has insufficient
charm or intelligence to keep adults occupied.
Matthew Broderick stars as the mild mannered security guard
who is transformed into the gadget laden crime fighter after
being badly injured in an explosion. His gadgetry is installed
by Dr Brenda Bradford (played by Joely Fisher) and as in the
cartoon, the bumbling Inspector has little or no control over
his mechanical body parts, leading to all sorts of supposedly
comical episodes. Rupert Everett overacts the part of Gadget's
arch nemesis The Claw, while Michelle Trachtenberg plays Gadget's
niece Penny (who in the cartoon is the real brains behind the
crimefighting, but in the movie her only triumph is to talk
one of The Claw's henchmen into renouncing his evil ways).
The redemption of The Claw's henchman Kramer (Andy Dick) actually
supplies one of the film's two genuinely funny moments. Kramer
goes to an Alcoholics Anonymous clone for Minion Rehabilitation
whose other members include other famous minions such as Mr
T, Jaws (from James Bond movies) and Tatoo (from Fantasy Island).
The other funny moment occurs when an evil version of Gadget
is terrorising the town Godzilla style and a fleeing Japanese
man wails 'This is the reason I left Tokyo'. Also look out fora
brief cameo of the voice of Don Adams (the original cartoon
voice of Inspector Gadget).
Apart from that, this film has little to offer the adult viewer.
The best kids movies work well for both children and adults.
Inspector Gadget does not provide much intelligence or charm
to keep the adult viewer entertained. This is disappointing
because the orginal viewers of the cartoon are probably now
approaching their 30s so there was a golden opportunity to provide
these viewers with some nostalgia (something that would be much
more difficult in something like Pokemon: The First Movie).
This film also includes a horrendous number of very blatant
product placements.
Plenty of sight gags, stunts, a hip talking car, and very simple
storylines will keep the kids entertained. Adults will be glad
that it is only 78 minutes long.
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