![]() Wrapping up Sandler September, we have what I consider Sandler's last great comedy of his golden years. It's completely up for debate, but I find this to be where Sandler peaks in his comedy. His overall range is kinda complete here. We got the goofy Sandler with 'Billy Madison', the sarcastic Sandler with 'Happy Gilmore', the charming Sandler with 'The Wedding Singer', and the character acting with 'The Waterboy'. This brings it full circle where we finally get to see him act a little more serious while maintaining his sense of humor. I'd probably guess that this is about as close as he comes to playing himself. We meet Sonny Kaufax (Sandler), a slacker who refuses to complete his bar exam despite earning his law degree. In the meantime, he's living off compensation from an accident, and working an odd job as a toll booth attendant. In short, he's a bit of a low-life, but comfortable in how things are going; that is until his girlfriend, Vanessa (Kristy Swanson) threatens to break up with him if he doesn't get his act together. On top of that, his roomate, Kevin Gerrity (Jon Stewart) proposes to his girlfriend, Corinne Maloney (Leslie Mann), and he fears being left behind in the dust, not really knowing what to do about his situation. Enter a five-year-old boy named Julian McGrath (Cole/Dylan Sprouse) who shows up at Sonny and Kevin's apartment with a note that claims he's Kevin's son. Kevin, having headed to China on business, is confused by the phone call he gets about it from Sonny, but Sonny offers to help him out until he gets back. In doing so, he pretends to be Kevin in order to obtain custody of little Julian, mostly so that he doesn't have to stay in a group home until Kevin gets back to sort things out. This leads to an unlikely bonding between Sonny and Julian, and through their bond, they learn a lot about each other and themselves along with their individual potential. In the meantime, Sonny also falls for Lalya Malony (Joey Lauren Adams), Corinne's lawyer sister, so there's a bit of a love story here as well. But luckily, the brunt of the film is about the relationship between Sonny and Julian while Layla is more just a love interest to keep Sonny's development going - in other words, what will he do honestly to be with her. The pair are cute together, and it's easily one of the sweetest roles you see Adams ever play. It's also refreshing to see his three friends who are in almost anything with him together in more serious roles; Peter Dante, Allen Covert and Jonathan Loughran as his three best friends, again attributing this role to perhaps something closer to himself. This is another film that gives me the nostalgic vibe for 1999 for a variety of reasons. For one, the soundtrack is about as 90s alternative as a soundtrack can get (save maybe a couple of songs), but above that, I used to watch this one with my friends almost religiously. It was just that movie we'd throw on for something to laugh at almost every time. It's humor isn't so off the wall its crazy, but there's enough of that blended with a more straight-man type of humor, making this great for just about any Sandler fan. Again, I might mention that this is one of the first times we see Sandler really emote, and It shows his range pretty well. Sandler has gone on to impress and un-impress us time and time again. He can shine in dramatic roles like 'Rein Over Me' and 'Uncut Gems'. He's shown great voice acting as Dracula in the 'Hotel Transylvania' movies. But he's also just delivered a bunch of Netflix trash, most of which I've never seen because its reviewed so often as such. One day I'll give them a chance, but I do feel that much like with his counterbalance of 90s comedy, Jim Carrey, he had his time and there's a part of me that just sees him as yesterday's news. All five films I've reviewed this month hold a special place in my heart for different reasons, though, and I do claim this to be the last of the golden years of Sandler, ending those years on a truly sweet and memorable note.
0 Comments
![]() Here's about where Sandler really started getting on critics' nerves, and audiences started to get a little bit split on whether or not Adam Sandler was funny or annoying. Being 1998, and being that I was 16 at the time, it was still very much up my alley, and to this day, I have an appreciation for it, and it still gets a good laugh from me when I watch it. It's not quite in the classic vein like 'Billy Madison' and 'Happy Gilmore', but it stands on its own, featuring honestly one of the more charming characters he ever plays. As the film opens, we're introduced to the kindly but seemingly mentally disabled Bobby Boucher (Sandler); the water boy for the University of Louisiana's football team, the Cougars. The team bullies him, but he takes it because all he cares about is whether or not the team is hydrated. So just to forewarn audiences, there's definitely a mean-spiritedness to the film. But don't worry, without spoiling anything, it does lighten up significantly by the end. However the film does start with his being fired by the team's coach, Red Beaulieu (Jerry Reed), as he's such a distraction to the team. Bobby lives with his strict and overprotective mother, Helen (Kathy Bates) who explains her overprotectiveness away with the story of Bobby's father, Roberto (Frank Coraci) who apparently died of dehydration in the Sahara Desert while serving in the Peace Corps before Bobby was born. Even in such a goofy comedy as this, Kathy Bates is one of the best things about it. You believe she loves and cares for Bobby in such a way that it's almost disturbing. In some ways, she brings a bit of her 'Misery' role to the character; ready to kill anyone who messes with her son. Bobby eventually finds a job at South Central Louisiana State University, working for the failing and depressed Coach Klein (Henry Winkler), once again playing the role of water boy. Once the new team starts to dig into him a little, Bobby finally snaps and tackles one of the team members with such force that Klein asks him to play on his team, the Mud Dogs; a team on a forty game losing streak with a handful of alcoholic cheerleaders who have given up. While the main plot revolves around Bobby's newfound football career, there's a whole subplot involving Bobby torn between doing what makes him happy and following the demands of his Mother. While overbearing, she is one of the only people who care for him. But she soon finds competition in Vicki Vallencourt (Fairuza Balk), a rebellious, tough southern girl who has a bit of a thing for Bobby, mostly just because he's such a sweet guy. The real clencher to the whole thing is that Bobby sees Vickie and plays football behind his disapproving mother's back. As mentioned before, one thing that sort of stood out to me this time was just how mean-spirited things got with it. Nowadays, I would think the filmmakers would have trouble getting it off the ground because a lot of it has to do with people making fun of someone with a mental disability. On the other hand, it's not like Bobby doesn't come back with a perfectly decent revenge plan, somewhat equivalent to finally punching that horrible bully of yours right in the nose. These bullies get what they deserve, no more, no less. Again, it bears mentioning that it all ends very positively, and it's kind of a good movie for several different types. If you are a jerk who picks on people, here to watch Sandler, you might learn something. If you're an overprotective family member, you might learn something. If you're the person getting picked on, you might learn something. It's another very split movie where Sandler fans love it for what it is while critics pan it just because it's predictable, harsh and stupid. It is all of those, but it's also a lot of fun, clearly not to be taken too seriously, and most of the laughs you get aren't actually at Bobby's expense. It's just a solid underdog flick done in classic Sandler fashion. ![]() When it comes to Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore, you're a little har-pressed to think of a lot of cuter couples. Between 'The Wedding Singer' and '50 First Dates', both are rather charming romantic comedies featuring the two falling for each other in one way or another. I never did see 'Blended', but I've also heard that it's not so good, so I may just stick with the first two. In Ridgefield, New Jersey, wedding singer Robbie Hart (Adam Sandler) performs at a wedding where he meets a waitress named Julia Sullivan (Drew Barrymore). Here we learn that Robbie is getting ready to marry his fiancée, Linda (Angela Featherstone), and Julia is anxiously awaiting a wedding proposal from her beau, a successful businessman named Glenn (Matthew Glave). On Robbie's wedding day, however, Linda ditches him, sending him into a downward spiral. He still attends weddings for work though, and eventually develops a solid friendship with Julia, as she helps him through his hard time. Meanwhile, she has finally been proposed to - a wedding Robbie promised to sing at when they first met. Holding to his promise, he starts to develop feelings for Julia, and though things are relatively predictable from here, the execution is interesting. It's one of the first (if not the first) films that call back the 80s, just 8 years after they ended. I remember going to the theater to watch this, and it seemed like a big deal to look back on what the 80s was like. But when you compare it to thinking of 2012 today, using that 8 year gap, it doesn't feel like enough time has passed for it to really matter. I suppose the best similarity nowadays would be 'Avengers: Endgame', as they time travel to 2012 and the setting of the first 'Avengers' film. It felt like time passed, but it didn't feel like a whole new era. It just felt like part of the same long 11-year era. That's just how big the divide was between what was considered "80s" and what was considered "90s" was (although it can't be denied a lot of the 80s spilled over into the early 90s). Back tot he film at hand, however, this was the film that made Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore a new, solid, on-screen power couple of sorts. I personally considered them to be taking the baton from Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan ('Joe vs The Volcano', 'Sleepless in Seattle', and 'You've Got Mail', released the same year as this). Drew is constantly charming us with her sweet, good nature, and Adam is constantly charming us with his sense of humor and music. The film ends with such a feel-good scene involving a new song by Robbie, and at the risk of presenting a spoiler (22 years later), he's accompanied by Billy Idol, who adds the little cherry on top of it all. I did have a bit of a hard time going between which romantic Sandler comedy was better; this or '50 First Dates'. Truth be told, there's a part of me that likes '50 First Dates' just a touch more, but this was the movie that started it all between Sandler and Barrymore, and we are looking at his "Golden Age" after all. I'd personally consider this one of the finest feel-good movies out there. It gets dark in moments during Robbie's breakdown, but it's very much a film that reminds you that when things look their darkest, there's some sort of light at the end of that tunnel. It always leaves me with a charmed smile on my face. Angela Featherstone ![]() If you were ever a Sandler fan back in the day, the coin flip tended to be between 'Billy Madison' and this for his best movie - the coin ultimately landing on this most of the time. The humor involved is a little less goofy than 'Billy Madison', leaning a little more on sarcasm, but still keeping enough of that randomized humor we've come to love so much with Sandler films (at least the older stuff). Though I do tend to lean towards 'Madison' a bit more, it makes more sense to recommend this one to the masses for what it is. Happy Gilmore (Sandler) is an aspiring hockey player, and though he's not entirely good on the ice, he has an insanely strong slapshot. We learn through the intro that since his Dad passed away, he became a bit of a trouble-maker with a short fuse, and he holds the record for the only skater in the league to take off his skate and try to stab someone with it. But there is balance in his life, as his kindly, loving grandmother (Frances Bay) shows us his soft side, as he'd do anything for her. That "anything" now involves paying the IRS a lot of back taxes that she owes, or else her house gets repossessed. During a bet with two of the repo men, Happy learns that he can makes some cash hustling people at the driving range when he smacks a golf ball an incredible distance. This eventually leads him to Chubbs (Carl Weathers); a former golf pro who sees Happy's skill, and takes him under his wing to play professional golf. Happy denies him at first, but when it comes to getting back his grandmother's house, he listens to the sound of the potential money he could make on tour. Here, he meets golf favorite, Shooter McGavin (Christopher McDonald) who quickly becomes his nemesis, disapproving of Happy's style, and claiming him as pretty much an insult to the game (like a punk rocker at a ballet). Public relations head Virginia Venit (Julie Bowen) on the other hand is very impressed by Happy's long drive and overall skill, and implores Tour Commissioner Doug Thompson (Dennis Dugan) to allow him to stay on, but while watching his outbursts, and trying to keep them under control. It's relatively predictable how it all goes, but it can't be denied that the execution of it all is hilarious, and it fits very well as a blend of the sports movie craze of the 90s, as well as the Sandler craze of the 90s. It would all eventually come around again with 'The Waterboy', but that's a review for a couple of weeks from now. A few more things that make this one a bit more memorable for people include some celebrity cameos, not the least of which is former 'Price is Right' host, the late Bob Barker - who gets in a fist fight with Happy, providing us with a pretty funny and unexpected fight. But also on board are the late Richard Kiel as Happy's former boss. He'd be most recognized as Jaws in the 'Bond' film 'Moonraker', but he was also the voice of Vlad in 'Tangled'. Let's also not leave out a fellow Canadian, Joe Flaherty, as "Jeering Fan" (or as I like to refer to him as, the "Jackass" guy) or Ben Stiller as a nursing home orderly with a short fuse. 'Billy Madison' didn't have much of that, unless you count Chris Farley as the bus driver, but even that's really just an SNL attachment. I'm not entirely sure what else can be said about 'Happy Gilmore', sadly. It's a great way to see Sandler in his prime, and it's great that the comedic formula does a sort of shift from 'Madison' to 'Gilmore', showing us a decent range for him right off the bat. I'd say that if you wanted to see a more stereotypical goofy Sandler, 'Billy Madison' is the one to watch, but if you prefer his comedy through anger and sarcasm, this is the one to lean towards. Otherwise, on the surface, it's really just another underdog sports movie with a bit of a twist. But still, it yields hilarious results, and a lot of the comedy in this isn't even from Sander as opposed to the dry and seemingly accidental deliveries from Christopher McDonald. So definitely check it out if you are a little curious about Adam Sandler's early work. Hell, back-to-back 'Billy Madison' and 'Happy Gilmore' just to say that you've seen the films that lead to Sandler's production company, 'Happy Madison Productions'. Let's face it, that's a company with more misses than hits, but there are a few titles under their belt that I can say I still enjoy. If it weren't for these movies bringing Sandler into the spotlight as almost a direct competition to Jim Carrey, who knows what could have happened to the randomized comedy I've grown to enjoy so much from Adam Sandler - unless we're talking about 'Zohan'... dammit, that was just too random. ![]() Believe it or not, there was once a time when Adam Sandler was considered the creme of the crop when it came to goofy comedies. Nowadays, we've pretty well outgrown him as the goofball, and thanking the Good Lord he's moved onto some serious acting. But at one point in time, he was pretty well neck-and-neck with Jim Carrey for who the better comedian was. 'Ace Ventura' came out in 1994, one year before this one, and each was respectively their big breakout film (at least from my perspective). Those who know me well know that I have a big soft spot for this movie. I remember seeing it in the theater upon its release when I was 12, and to this day, it may take the cake for the most I've ever laughed during a film. It was here that I found my fondness for what can only be described as completely random comedy. The whole time, I'm laughing my ass off, but at the same time going "this is so stupid!" To this day, it remains one of my favorite comedies, and something I like to throw on for a good laugh, or to cheer me up. This is one of those great Rotten Tomato dividers, where the critics give it a 40% but audiences give it a 79%, and I fully side with the audience. The film centers on Billy Madison (Adam Sandler); smart aleck son of the wealthy owner of Madison Hotels, Brian Madison (Darren McGavin). One day Brian has a talk with his son about handing the company over to Eric Gordon (Bradley Whitford) who is a BAD, BAD MAN! Billy is about to miss out on inheriting the company due to his slacking, childlike nature, and the fact that he only graduated because his father paid the teachers to give him decent grades. But the idea of Eric getting the company provokes some seriousness within Billy. He agrees with his Dad that if he can do first grade through twelfth grade all over again, do each grade in two weeks, take the tests, re-graduate, and proove to him that he's not an idiot, he gets to take over Madison Hotels. In truth, it doesn't make much sense that he's able to do what he does in the movie and physically go back to the first grade, and try to see it through to the end. The idea of a grown man in a classroom full of kids who says he's there to be educated can only come across as creepy and weird today, and as something that could probably never happen. The idea here seems to be that his Dad is just that rich - you throw money at anything, and it'll work out in your favor. But for as odd as it all sounds, it really makes for some of the best comedy in the movie. His interactions with these kids are more likened to him being everyone's crazy, fun "Uncle Billy". Once Billy gets to third grade, he meets his teacher Ms. Veronica Vaughn (Bridgette Wilson), who becomes Billy's love interest through the movie, and she's a pretty good example of a strong female character from the mid-90s. She comes along and helps Billy focus on what's important, and some of this may include a scene where she beats the crap out of him. She was also Sonya Blade in 'Mortal Kombat' later that year, so she definitely had this toughness about her. She was a good character to contrast Billy's personality. If you feel like turning off your brain completely for about an hour and a half, this is a good go-to for such a thing. You just sit back and laugh with this movie, and you don't for one second take anything seriously. Aspects of it might be a touch dated, but I can't help but have fun with it. Make no mistake, it is Adam Sandler in one of his silliest roles, so first-timers may not get quite as much a kick out of it. But one has to understand that this was when Adam Sandler was just leaving SNL, and he was such a hit with us kids that a whole bunch of us had his material on CD and would gather friends in a room, listen and laugh. A lot of his material is still openly available, and if you've ever been a fan, I recommend checking some of it out. This probably is my favorite Adam Sandler comedy, and has been since day one. It helped me find my random sense of humor, and I'm forever thankful. |
Categories
All
Archives
September 2022
|