Sticks of Fire: a Tampa blog

Sandler plays it safe with mainstream “gay” humor

I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry (opens July 20)

(PG-13; 115 minutes)

In a country where gay people are still fighting for basic civil rights, there’s a surprising amount of mass-market love for tame little comedies that make light of the issue.

With goofy-guy superstar Adam Sandler in a lead role, “I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry” stands to become the latest example of how we seem so much more tolerant with our movie choices than with our real-life views.

A rough remake of a 2004 Australian effort called “Strange Bedfellows” that went straight (so to speak) to video in this country, “Chuck and Larry” gets its laughs from the notion that two rugged dudes might have to fake a homosexual relationship when they’ve been known for years as heteros.

This tame, sitcom-style piece works from a thin premise indeed. It seems that Larry Valentine (Kevin James of TV’s “King of Queens”) is a widowed New York City firefighter with two youngsters to care for. A quirk in regulations denies the kids a stake in his insurance protection unless Larry has a spouse — or a domestic partner.

That brings in Sandler as Chuck, Larry’s longtime best buddy and an incurable womanizing bachelor.

You can see the jokes coming from three theaters away. The two rugged firemen figure no one will find out about their well-intentioned scheme — but that’s before a weasely city inspector (Steve Buscemi, a champion in the weasel department) starts investigating their case.

The results are sporadically amusing, thanks to James’ sturdy earnestness, Sandler’s studied sweetness and a gala supporting cast including Ving Rhames as a closeted type, Dan Aykroyd as the fire station captain and Jessica Biels as the woman who thinks Chuck is gay and so doesn’t mind letting him rub her bosom to make sure “they’re real.”

You’ve heard of safe sex. This tepid mainstream exercise is safe comedy. Wake us when Sandler dares to play a guy who really is gay.

We give this phony partnership a C.

As always, you can get your film fix at BobRossMovies.com.