Sandler Finds Niche In The Safety Of “Bedtime Stories”

Now that I have a child, it’s a little more socially acceptable to watch kid’s movies (right?). So I didn’t feel too immature when “Bedtime Stories” hit the mailbox recently. Honestly, I figured it’s more in Adam Sandler’s ballpark than most any other genre, and I thought he’d probably hit this one out of the park if he stuck to what he knew and did best. And he did.

Sandler directed in addition to starring, and he helped create a clever, well-constructed story that is undoubtedly a hit with kids but still has enough funny stuff to please the adults as well. The plot wasn’t too complicated, and you get away with a lot more “coincidences” in kid’s movies because that kind of stuff goes over their heads and they’re more interested in fart noises and bug-eyed rodents. So I just kind of accepted that Sandler’s sister (a strung-out-looking Courtney Cox) sort of randomly disappeared at one point and Sandler had to watch her kids, with the help of another randomly placed babysitter, that chick from “Felicity.”

Hilarity ensues as Sandler (the aptly named Skeeter Bronson) tries to recapture his youth by telling the kids bedtime stories. He spins fantastic tales that gain momentum after he learns that, on some levels, they actually begin to come true. The side story is that his sister never allowed her children any of the benefits of being kids, like hamburgers, TV and destroying the environment (one of their books was “The Organic Squirrel Gets His Bicycle Helmet” -- I laughed).

Anyway, I’m sure you can figure most of the rest out on your own. Predictably, Sandler enlists many of his usual cast of characters from his buddy circle (although Guy Pearce seemed like a rather strange inclusion), but it all works and delivers about what you hoped and expected -- get in, get laughs, get out in right at 90 minutes. I, for one, was happy to see Sandler acknowledge his wheelhouse and give up the notion that he was going to become a “serious” actor. To borrow a line from “Hitch,” this is where you live, Sandler. This is where you live.