Cobbler, The : Movie Review


Cobbler, The (2014) - Movie PosterThe premise of "The Cobbler" sounds like another broad, goofball Adam Sandler comedy, a fantastical variation on 2008's "You Don't Mess with the Zohan" revolving around shoe repair rather than hairdressing. With writer-director Tom McCarthy's (2011's "Win Win") more observant, character-oriented sensibilities, however, the film balances its comical whimsy with a welcome edginess and restraint—a sort of real-world fantasy, if you will. Sandler (2014's "Men, Woman & Children") is quite appealing when he's playing things in a low-key register, and this is certainly the case with his role as Max Simkin, a lonely fourth-generation cobbler who has taken over his estranged father's (Dustin Hoffman) shoe repair shop on New York's Lower East Side. When his stitching machine malfunctions and he starts to use an antique model in the basement, he is dumbfounded to discover it has the power to physically transform him into the owner of each pair of mended shoes he puts on. Max goes too far at first in taking advantage of his magical powers—he robs one guys on the street for his shoes, and later poses as a suave neighbor (Dan Stevens) in an attempt to pick up a woman—but the longer he lives with his abilities, the better he begins to see the error of his ways and understands the responsibility connected to them.

See Dustin Putman, TheFilmFile.com. for full review

Author : Dustin Putman, TheFilmFile.com.