Reviewer's grade: C

In Adam Sandler's latest summer silliness, "You Don't Mess with the Zohan," the Sandman plays a superheroic Israeli commando who yearns to cut hair and make the world "silky smooth." To pursue that dream, he fakes his own death in a battle against a Palestinian terrorist (the always-game John Turturro) and seeks a new life in a rundown New York salon.

He has sex with portly older women, slathers hummus everywhere, falls in love with his Palestinian boss (Emmanuelle Chriqui), fends off attacks from a Palestinian cab driver (the always-gamey Rob Schneider) and kicks around a cat like a soccer ball. If such shenanigans elicit chuckles, you're bound to appreciate this comedy, which is a few cuts above Sandler's typical fare.

Co-written by comic heavyweights Robert Smigel and Judd Apatow, "Zohan" has its inspired moments, provided you're willing to endure the usual scenes of idiocy. PG-13

"? Phil Bacharach

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