Year: 1996
Directed By: Dennis Dugan
Written By: Tim Herlihy and Adam Sandler
RYAN’S REVIEW
Now this is an Adam Sandler movie I will stand behind. It is arguably just as stupid as any other Adam Sandler movie but this one came out when I was 12 and it has had me laughing for 16 years now. This was Adam Sandler at his best and in my opinion it has nearly been all downhill since. He still has a rather large fan base despite what I think though. Sandler is really funny in this movie and that makes it memorable. It is also memorable simply for being a golf comedy. It is no Caddyshack but it is second only to that. Even those that don’t appreciate this film have to find themselves laughing and enjoying the epic fight between Sandler and Bob Barker.
I wrote down my opinions about Adam Sandler in our recent review of Grandma’s Boy. He wasn’t in that film but it was made by his production company Happy Madison. I think Sandler was great in the 90s but I haven’t been able to stomach him since The Wedding Singer. That movie wasn’t even particularly funny but I still enjoyed the film. I don’t think Sandler has ever been able to get back to the kind of comedy that made him funny in the 90’s but I have enjoyed all of his efforts into being a serious actor. I enjoyed his serious roles in Punch-Drunk Love and Spanglish. I think he has a lot to offer as a serious actor and I would really like to see more of that from him. Years ago I heard that he was really interested in the lead role as the hitman in Collateral. A role that ultimately went to Tom Cruise. If I remember correctly he was turned down because the role was too violent for his image. Well I think that’s a shame because I would much rather see a violent Sandler than more of the same crap he has been doing for years.
This movie has a fun cast around Sandler. I have always liked Christopher McDonald as Shooter McGavin. It is the role I have always associated him with. I think Carl Weathers is really funny and I liked what he brought to the film. I thought Julie Bowen was really hot but looking at her today I find myself repulsed by how unnatural and different she looks in Modern Family. Ben Stiller has a cool cameo that was part of a story line mostly cut out of the film. Deleted scenes include Happy going back to the old folks home and confronting Stiller about the racket he has been running. I thought it was funny but it must have proved to make the movie too long. Allen Covert plays a role he was made for. As Happy’s homeless caddy he has virtually no speaking lines. I like Covert but I think he was really bad as the lead in Grandma’s Boy. Last but not least I cannot fail to mention Bob Barker, in one of the greatest cameos of all time. “The price is wrong bitch!”
This is a fun movie that I think even the mature can still enjoy having not grown up with it. I won’t stand behind too many Adam Sandler films and tell you they are worth your time but this one offers a good time and a lot of laughs. If you get a chance to see it then your time will be well spent.
AMBER’S REVIEW
I can recite almost this entire movie. Instead of going on about how you should watch this movie, (because I know that you have seen it already, right?) I am going to put my favorite quotes.
“Hey, my girlfriend is dead, you know. She fell off a cliff and died on impact.”
“You can trouble me for a warm glass of shut-the-hell-up! Now, you will go to sleep! Or I will PUT you to sleep. Check out the name tag. You’re in MY world now, grandma!”
“Did that go in? I wasn’t watching, did it go in? I didn’t see it, could you tell me if it went in?”
“But she’s an old lady. I mean, look at her. She’s old. You can’t just take her stuff. She’s too old.”
“Just taaap it in. Just taaap it in. Give it a little tappy. Tap Tap Taparoo.”
NEXT MOVIE: Harlem Nights (1989)
The Movie Snobs 