LOST AND FOUND ** (out of five stars) A review by Jamey Hughton
Starring-David Spade, Sophie Marceau, Patrick Bruel and Artie Lange Director-Jeff Pollack Rated PG
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David Spade has a snide, sarcastic sense of humor that works perfectly on the TV sitcom Just Shoot Me. It also served as a good showcase for him when he co-starred, opposite the late Chris Farley, in Tommy Boy and Black Sheep. Lost and Found marks the comedian's first attempt at going solo in a movie, and it also reveals that when Spade doesn't have a reliable back-up system, his brand of humor seems more desperate than one may expect.
David Spade is not the problem with Lost and Found. He plays Dylan Ramsey, the sweet main character, to the best of his abilities. The story revolves around Dylan's obsessions with his beautiful new neighbour, Lila Dubois (Sophie Marceau, from Braveheart), and her terrier named Jack. Dylan believes that the best way to a woman's heart is through her dog. And so he kidnaps Jack, planning to stage a fake rescue, in hope to win Lila over.
There are three good things about Lost and Found. The first is Spade. The second is Sophie Marceau, a lovely actress who's been planted into the wrong movie. Lastly, there's the dog, who is used here in a similar context to Puffy from There's Something About Mary. Unfortunately, director Jeff Pollack finds more humor in putting Jack through a cycle in the drier than he does with simply making him look cute. This kind of physical humor is dead. Pollack does everything but beat the poor pooch with a baseball bat to get laughs, and this procedure is cheap, unfunny and resoundingly cruel.
This is where I start to get fuzzy. Also in this unusual blend is (apparently) a sweet-natured love story between Dylan and Lila. Given the mean-spirited comedy that the movie is obviously striving for, I found this hard to swallow. And, why does Dylan even deserve someone like Lila, after kidnapping her precious dog and putting it through such pain? Predictably, Lost and Found opts for a happy ending, one that feels so sentimental, gooey, and rings so false that it sets off a siren in your head that makes you feel a bit cheated.
David Spade (who also co-wrote the movie) tries hard, so very hard, to make this project amusing. There are some choice scenes that are quite funny, but the movie is only sporadically funny. Patrick Bruel plays the stock character of Rene, the pompous jerk who also wants to win Lila over, with his good looks and money. Jon Lovitz and Martin Sheen are welcome additions in two tiny supporting roles.
Despite a few positive attributes, Lost and Found just doesn't work. If you're searching for an enjoyable romantic-comedy, you could do far better than this obvious, misguided failure that shows a blatant disregard for what it's trying to present.
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Jamey Hughton was a 1999 Writing Finalist in the YTV Achievement Awards and writes a Published Column in The StarPhoenix (Saskatoon Sk. Canada).
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