Dear Melissa McCarthy, don't become the next Adam Sandler

Melissa McCarthy

Like most moviegoers, I first became aware of Melissa McCarthy when I saw her in her breakthrough, Oscar-nominated role in the blockbuster film Bridesmaids.

And like most of America I fell in love with her improvisational, outrageous comedic style. She practically stole the movie with her lovable performance as Megan, the bridesmaid who dreams of starting a fight club.

I was thrilled the Academy Awards gave a rare nod to a comedic performance and was also excited to see someone who did not fit conventional Hollywood standards of beauty and stardom become a household name almost overnight.

But then came Identity Thief, The Heat and Tammy -- each film seemingly more conventional and contrived than the last (although I must admit I haven't seen Tammy and don't intend to). Suddenly the buoyancy and unpredictability of this undeniably talented comedienne has metastasized into something far worse: shtick.

Don't get me wrong, some of my favorite comedians of all time have scored repeatedly by playing roughly the same notes of their signature persona. For instance, while I've appreciated Will Ferrell's attempts to stretch as an actor, I've always liked him best when he plays a clueless blowhard buffoon.

But his movies tend to have "ideas" in them, some satirical take or even strains of dark humor. What has troubled me about McCarthy's mainstream hits of late is how formulaic they've seemed.

At first Identity Thief seemed like it might be inspired. The casting of Jason Bateman and McCarthy as a modern day Odd Couple had a lot of potential. But the movie tries to reign McCarthy in my giving her a maudlin backstory that's supposed to tug at our heartstrings.

The Heat went too far in the opposite direction. While I admire the film's front-and-center female relationship, it casts the McCarthy character as almost an over-the-top cartoon. There's nothing "funny" about police brutality, I don't care who's perpetrating it. And it seemed like director Paul Feig (who also helmed Bridesmaids) gave McCarthy full reign to do whatever she wanted, instead of helping her shape a performance that resembled a plausible human being.

Identity Thief

In Bridesmaids, McCarthy was wild and crazy but she also came across as humane and likable.There was certainly humor derived from her size but there was also plenty of more cerebral gags and glimpses into her character's sort of unusual worldview.

One of my favorite bits in the film was that her character was actually an extremely successful and powerful figure in the government with the "highest possible clearance."She may have seemed like a nut, but she was formidable and nobody's fool.

One of her best scenes, which conveniently passes the Bechdel test, was opposite Kirsten Wiig during the film's denouement.

It's a combination pep talk/beat down and it shows a real depth to her character as well as her considerable comic chops.

Her upcoming film St. Vincent, opposite Bill Murray, looks promising, if for no other reason than she seems to be playing a down-to-earth person who could actually exist on planet Earth. I was relieved when her new film Tammy under-performed because my hope is it'll give her pause before she churns out more generic comedies where she yells and screams for 90 minutes only to later reveal that she has a heart of gold.

Does that persona sound familiar? It's pretty much what Adam Sandler has been doing for nearly 20 years. Again, like McCarthy, I think Sandler is talented. His early comedies showed a real knack for utterly strange humor and intensity. And his dramatic work in Punch-Drunk Love showed he can give a fully-realized performance if he pushes himself. But Sandler seems content to rake in big bucks making subpar films with his old SNL buddies. People keep showing up and buying tickets but his "brand" will forever be associated with junk.

I'd hate to see McCarthy meet the same fate. The movies need more voices like hers.