How I Allowed Sandler To Fool Me Again, This Time With “Grown Ups”

I find Kevin James to be hysterical (although I’ll always think of him as Doug Heffernan). I think Chris Rock is pretty funny (though not really in movies). I know that Rob Schneider’s deal is acting like a retard with lots of semi-serious lines punctuated by awkward silences. I don’t get David Spade and never have. I don’t understand Adam Sandler anymore in a movie setting, especially when he paints himself in the leading-man role with the hypothetical hot wife and rocking career (see “Funny People,” et al).

Even knowing that Sandler had co-written “Grown Ups” and enlisted longtime crony Dennis Dugan to direct it, I thought I would take a gamble on it based on the presence of James and Rock. I didn’t know Salma Hayek was also in it, which was a nice surprise as the movie unfolded.

But that’s where the fun ended.

“Grown Ups” reeks of a movie that was done for Sandler and his posse and no one else. I would guess that 70% or so of the flick was ad-libbed, and the film was littered with laugh-at-their-own jokes moments, at times coming off like a bad Jimmy Fallon–era Saturday Night Live episode (or is that redundant?).

Of course, there were a number of funny moments, but it was like it got stuck between being a comedy, a kid’s movie and a film-with-a-message. And that just never works. The movie was also marred with occasionally confusing plot lines, a meandering direction and mostly obvious humor, but that was not a shock considering the director and the lead writer.

I’m guessing that Hayek got the sense that this was a bomb-in-the-making, because there were reports that she got her name removed from the billing, both on the poster and the title. I guess she saw that this SNL reunion tour movie looked like a solid idea, but didn’t quite fulfill those expectations.

If I could offer Sandler any advice (not that he needs any), I would ditch the Hecrew (“Hebrew” + “crew”) and concentrate on the safety of movies like “Bedtime Stories” (review here) and the occasional reach with depth, like “Reign Over Me” (review here). Also, I would totally give a buttload of money to me.

But if you’re into self-serving flicks with the occasional chuckle mixed in with rather uncomplicated and low-brow humor, I suggest you check out “Grown Ups.” Then go through with that lobotomy you’ve obviously been putting off.