Strange Wilderness is the newest comedy from Adam Sandler’s Happy Madison production company that fails worse than anything Rob Schneider could ever churn out. Scene after scene, it feels more like a compilation of skits from a failed comedy show. So it’s no coincidence that the film is actually about a failing television show - a wildlife show to be exact - struggling to stay on the air.
Steve Zahn stars as Peter Gaulke, an idiotic television host riding off the wave of his father’s success but fails to reach the same height. His dad’s technique was comparable to that of Jack Hanna, while his own hosting abilities are more Bob Saget-esque in technique. Gaulke spends no time reporting facts on the animals he and his stoner crew photograph. Instead, he gives this elementary commentary, like a third-grader obsessed with fart jokes.
The network threatens him two weeks to pull his show out of the gutter. They have become more interested in a more serious wildlife show that presents facts instead of childish observations. But Gaulke isn’t ready to let his show, Strange Wilderness, which was started by his father, come to a end that easily. So he and his crew head to South America on a tip they got about the location of Big Foot.
Strange Wilderness was co-written by Peter Gaulke and Fred Wolf (who also directed), and it’s no coincidence that two of the main characters are named after them. Was this some brilliant metaphor for their careers or was it simply out of a creative void? Clearly a lot went into writing a scene where a turkey bites a man’s penis and then has to be “stroked” to release its bite. Who has time to concentrate on character names?
The film has a relatively strong cast too. Zahn himself proved his talents greatly surpass schlock like this with his performance in Werner Herzog’s Rescue Dawn (2006). Jonah Hill, who plays one of Strange Wilderness‘ odd crewmembers, was a riot in last year’s Knocked Up and Superbad. This film is a giant step backward for both. Even Ernest Borgnine, who has made his fair share of cinematic mistakes, should have had no problem turning this down. These are prefect examples that material really does matter in the grand scheme of things, no matter how funny or great you’ve been in the past.
There is not too much to be found here. Even the most devoted Sandler troupe fan will find themselves disappointed. The premise of a comedy about the behind-the-scenes antics of a wildlife television show sounds like it would be easy to shape. Strange Wilderness isn’t that lucky. Neither are those who subject themselves to it.
