I going to give you a short rundown of this movie and you guys let me know if you can see the blaring issue. Really Adam Sandler? This is the blight you release to the public? Because this movie pissed me off, I’m spoiling the crap out of it. So here is your warning for those of you who plans to see it. Please don’t if you know what’s good for you. Save yourself the trouble.
Anyway, the movie introduces the audience to a man that from a young age sees patterns that he can follow and exploit within video games but he can’t turn that into a real world skill as he ages. He is friends with the president who is clearly an idiot but for some reason, he is a “nerd” from the nerd bar a play on the geek squad. He, for some reason, doesn’t have a reputable job even though his friend the president of the United States. Anyway, as a nerd bar employee, he visits a client’s child who is all too eager to tell a complete stranger the family’s problems. Then the client also overshares with this complete stranger (apparently oversharing is a family trait). Sandler attempts to kiss his client, creating an awkward situation, then challenges her by saying that she didn’t kiss him because he wasn’t a millionaire. Even though his financial status may have played a small roll, there is a huge list of offenses that he committed that anyone would reject him for.
Unfortunately, the love interests didn’t immediately list the several reason Sandler didn’t deserve a kiss. Aliens shortly attack the planet and after three battles, Adam Sandler saves the day and gets the girl despite him being gross and a total jerk to her the entire time. They are together on screen at the end because reasons. The best part is that in actuality she saved the day but doesn’t get credit really since the majority of it is given to Adam Sandler’s character.
This movie was created as a way for Adam Sandler to get paid to hang out with his friends. I respect the man’s hustle but I am sick of him doing it at the expense of the general population. Happy Madison used to mean good comedic films. Now Happy Madison is synonymous with poorly made films like this or “You Don’t Mess with the Zohan”. The film was directed by Christopher Columbus who apparently hasn’t discovered a decent project since Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. The screenplay was written by Tim Herlihy and Timothy Dowling. Tim Herlihy must be used to mediocrity since the vast majority of his credits are for working with Adam Sandler. While Timothy Dowling worked on gems such as “Role Models” and “This Means War”; both films are completely underrated and hilarious in their own way. The original short film that inspired this movie was written by Patrick Jean and was a whole lot better than this film and should have stayed as a short. Key members of the Cast included Kevin James (Paul Blart and king of queens), Michelle Monaghan (Source Code), Peter Dinklage (Game of thrones) and Josh Gad (Frozen). So I’m sure hanging out with your friends for a few months won’t actually hurt them plus I’m sure they are getting paid for the movie so it can’t hurt to be in front of the camera and hanging out with friends while making money. That’s the dream, right? So I can’t really knock Adam Sandler and friends for going cool places and hanging out for the summer. I can, however, call you on the crap you presented to the public in order to hang out with your friends for the summer and have a tax write off.
The characters in this movie grew older, not smarter. They basically have man sized children running around, making executive decisions about the entire human race and I am not okay with that. The president in this movie is a complete imbecile. Kevin James’s President couldn’t find anyone with military experience that was also a gamer? That is ridiculous. I know of several military individuals who are gamers that are much more competent than Adam Sandler. So instead of doing a thorough search, nepotism plays a role because your friend is in a soul-sucking job that they can’t stand and needs to feel important. Let’s move on to Michelle Monaghan’s character, a recently divorced woman with a young child eagerly opens up to a complete stranger for no reason other than to give exposition. Her son also seems to have the same problem because he allows a stranger into the house and details his life to a complete stranger. Honestly these people must have an imbalance of some kind to readily offer this much information to an unknown man. The fact that the president went on a date in the middle of a crisis for no reason at all is CRAZY!
If I had to guess, the themes of this movie are friendship and love but neither of these is highlighted in the film. As far as friendship goes, the lesson it teaches youngsters is to not help your struggling friend unless it is beneficial for you. It also teaches us that love is good and it is better to be with the first jerk that looks your way even though he is horrible to you than being alone. Other things I have learned from this movie includes playing video games and even becoming a champion is basically meaningless and you should not attempt to capitalize on your talent because it is futile, children are basically useless, and freeing criminals from prison doesn’t always work out the way you plan. These are just a few of the things I learned from this movie.
I have no clue what people would like this movie besides die-hard Adam Sandler lovers. This would also be the group that I recommend seeing this movie. If you feel Adam Sandler can do no wrong cinematically, this movie is for you. If you haven’t seen a Sandler film that you haven’t liked, this movie is for you. If you have never sat in an Adam Sandler movie wondering if it’s not too late to get a refund, this movie is for you. All others, steer clear. This movie is rated pg-13 which I’m sure is only because they know that younger people are more likely to enjoy this.
I expected better. Don’t ask me why but I did. When I saw the previews a last year, it looked interesting albeit not interesting enough to pay for it in theaters but interesting all the same. When I finally got the chance to see this movie I jumped at it. That was my first mistake. This movie was one of the worst I’ve seen from Adam Sandler in a while. Please note that the last Sandler movie I can remember seeing was grown-ups 2. Don’t watch this movie! Save yourself! I was warned and didn’t heed the warning. Heed my warning before it’s too late! This had the potential to be a really good movie. The previews made it look beautiful but between the plot holes and Adam Sandler trying too hard to be hilarious, it became sad to watch. At this point, I just want you to stay down Sandler. You’re passed your prime and I can’t keep watching you take the beatings.
