Post by StevePulaski on Oct 5, 2012 9:30:33 GMT -5
Rating: ★
The nineties were kind to Adam Sandler, what with his Saturday Night Live career taking off to new heights and movie deals coming left and right. Many say it was the best time of his career for comedies. If I didn't know any better, I'd think it would've been his worst.
And here I am, where I usually wind up after rewatching an Adam Sandler movie; appalled and dismayed. Billy Madison is a wretched, unpleasant comedy exercise from the beginning, with Sandler playing yet another rendition of the hopelessly unlikable schlub. Call them "stupid movies," call them "turn your brain off films," I call these kinds of films, "anti-character studies," when we're given a character who doesn't even try to be remotely likable and one simply not worth studying.
Sandler plays the title character and we open on the desperately unfunny note of Sandler lounging in his pool, spraying sunblock on his stomach, and eagerly anticipating the arrival of his "nudie magazines" in the mail. Upon driving his go-kart to the mailbox, we see Billy is quite drunk and hallucinates a large penguin that he begins to chase through his yard. As you can infer, Sandler's character is a lame-brained, overgrown child also equipped with one of the most annoying, insufferable accents of his career (second to only The Waterboy).
Billy's life is made; he doesn't need to work because his father is filthy rich and he is permitted to act like a senseless buffoon as long as he doesn't interfere with his father's line of work. But when he does, his dad reveals to Billy that he will not be handing over the company to his son but to a fellow employee because he views his son as unfit and incompetent. He too reveals that he paid all of Billy's teachers, from first to twelfth grade, to pass him no questions asked. Billy proposes that if he were to go back and repeat every grade for two weeks each, and pass with a test, that he could be given ownership of the company. His father accepts and so unfolds a comedy of dead ends.
Some people will be in tears watching Sandler's character yell, scream, and fight as he repeats every grade and some will even list it as one of their favorite films. Not me. I chuckled once and fell into a dreary, never-ending silence for the remainder of the picture. It takes more than stale sight gags, a childish character, and a ridiculous accent for me to laugh.
Immaturity seems to be running ramped in comedies today, and when handled delicately, with heart and wit, it can be quite funny and sometimes quite entertaining. Here, it's so dumbed-down, cloyingly idiotic, and jaw-droppingly childish that any expectations are crushed upon arrival.
All likability for the Billy Madison character is destroyed after the first few minutes as well. What's his reason for acting so goofy and simple? How did he become so ridiculously incompetent when he has an immensely successful father? And why does he so often commit random acts of senselessness like throwing dodgeballs at young kids and even making his shampoo and conditioner argue in the bathtub. Those questions can all be answered with, "for a laugh."
Billy Madison's formula is contrived and hopelessly unremarkable. Its humor stems directly from laughing down at the character when we wonder if he can actually help it or not. Sandler's screen presence grows stale and unbelievably intolerable after only a few short minutes and we are left with an implausible story, a monotonous line of events, and a character we feel nothing for. I'm astonished when people call this "the best Adam Sandler movie." Have these same people seen Reign Over Me? Probably not; they would not give an Adam Sandler drama the time of day.
Starring: Adam Sandler, Bradley Whitford, Bridgette Wilson, Norm Macdonald, and Darren McGavin. Directed by: Tamra Davis.
The nineties were kind to Adam Sandler, what with his Saturday Night Live career taking off to new heights and movie deals coming left and right. Many say it was the best time of his career for comedies. If I didn't know any better, I'd think it would've been his worst.
And here I am, where I usually wind up after rewatching an Adam Sandler movie; appalled and dismayed. Billy Madison is a wretched, unpleasant comedy exercise from the beginning, with Sandler playing yet another rendition of the hopelessly unlikable schlub. Call them "stupid movies," call them "turn your brain off films," I call these kinds of films, "anti-character studies," when we're given a character who doesn't even try to be remotely likable and one simply not worth studying.
Sandler plays the title character and we open on the desperately unfunny note of Sandler lounging in his pool, spraying sunblock on his stomach, and eagerly anticipating the arrival of his "nudie magazines" in the mail. Upon driving his go-kart to the mailbox, we see Billy is quite drunk and hallucinates a large penguin that he begins to chase through his yard. As you can infer, Sandler's character is a lame-brained, overgrown child also equipped with one of the most annoying, insufferable accents of his career (second to only The Waterboy).
Billy's life is made; he doesn't need to work because his father is filthy rich and he is permitted to act like a senseless buffoon as long as he doesn't interfere with his father's line of work. But when he does, his dad reveals to Billy that he will not be handing over the company to his son but to a fellow employee because he views his son as unfit and incompetent. He too reveals that he paid all of Billy's teachers, from first to twelfth grade, to pass him no questions asked. Billy proposes that if he were to go back and repeat every grade for two weeks each, and pass with a test, that he could be given ownership of the company. His father accepts and so unfolds a comedy of dead ends.
Some people will be in tears watching Sandler's character yell, scream, and fight as he repeats every grade and some will even list it as one of their favorite films. Not me. I chuckled once and fell into a dreary, never-ending silence for the remainder of the picture. It takes more than stale sight gags, a childish character, and a ridiculous accent for me to laugh.
Immaturity seems to be running ramped in comedies today, and when handled delicately, with heart and wit, it can be quite funny and sometimes quite entertaining. Here, it's so dumbed-down, cloyingly idiotic, and jaw-droppingly childish that any expectations are crushed upon arrival.
All likability for the Billy Madison character is destroyed after the first few minutes as well. What's his reason for acting so goofy and simple? How did he become so ridiculously incompetent when he has an immensely successful father? And why does he so often commit random acts of senselessness like throwing dodgeballs at young kids and even making his shampoo and conditioner argue in the bathtub. Those questions can all be answered with, "for a laugh."
Billy Madison's formula is contrived and hopelessly unremarkable. Its humor stems directly from laughing down at the character when we wonder if he can actually help it or not. Sandler's screen presence grows stale and unbelievably intolerable after only a few short minutes and we are left with an implausible story, a monotonous line of events, and a character we feel nothing for. I'm astonished when people call this "the best Adam Sandler movie." Have these same people seen Reign Over Me? Probably not; they would not give an Adam Sandler drama the time of day.
Starring: Adam Sandler, Bradley Whitford, Bridgette Wilson, Norm Macdonald, and Darren McGavin. Directed by: Tamra Davis.