Big Daddy Review
by Akiva Gottlieb (akiva AT excite DOT com)July 22nd, 1999
Big Daddy ***
rated PG-13
Columbia Pictures
93 minutes
starring Adam Sandler, Joey Lauren Adams, Jon Stewart, Cole and Dylan Sprouse, Josh Mostel, Leslie Mann, Allen Covert, Rob Schneider, Kristy Swanson, Steve Buscemi
based on the story by Steve Franks
written by Steve Franks, Tim Herlihy and Adam Sandler directed by Dennis Dugan
Adam Sandler makes more money than any other 32-year-old comic on the planet, but he also takes more slack from the critics than basically anyone else. To him, and to his fans, it should be a breath of fresh air when I admit that I enjoyed his latest film, "Big Daddy".
The boyish Sandler stars as Sonny Koufax, a New York City law school graduate who's a toll booth collector while preparing to eventually take the bar exam. His life, however, is taking a turn for the worse, as his girfriend(Kristy Swanson) dumps him for an older man. One day, while his roommate(Jon Stewart) is in China on business, a child(played by twins Cole and Dylan Sprouse) comes to the door with a note saying that he is Julian, the product of a one-night-stand that Sonny's roommate had 5 years before.
Seeking a sense of responsibility that he knows he has lost, and partly to impress his girlfriend, he decides to become the father of the child, named Julian. He decides to give him the life that his father never gave him; a life where the father will not give orders; he will merely make suggestions. This way of parenting makes the two of them very good friends. They piss on walls; they trip oncoming skaters, and they do what basically any Adam Sandler-raised child thinks is cool.
Julian also helps Sonny get a girl named Layla, played by Joey Lauren Adams of "Chasing Amy" fame. She turns out to be the sister of his roommate's girlfriend(Leslie Mann), but she is charmed by his wit and his newfound sense of "responsibility".
The usual eclectic clan of Sandler characters is back. Rob Schneider plays a foreign delivery boy who comes to Sonny's apartment to Indian wrestle him; Steve Buscemi plays a homeless man who desires a Sausage McMuffin; and Allen Covert plays Sonny's gay friend(a sign of Sandler becoming more PC). Sandler's early films, "Billy Madison" and "Happy Gilmore", were unashamedly dumb, but also incredibly funny. His two latest, and more popular, films, "The Wedding Singer" and "The Waterboy" are my two least favorite of his. "The Wedding Singer" misfired by trying to portray Sandler as a romantic lead. "The Waterboy" went back to his dumb roots but turned out to be quite unfunny. "Big Daddy", however, is a step in the right direction.
"Big Daddy" has taken "Happy Gilmore" director Dennis Dugan and successfully combined Sandler's comedic and dramatic ability. "Big Daddy" has its share of predicability and throwaway lines(not to mention the cheesiness factor), but it's consistently funny and entertaining, warmhearting and accessible.
Accessibility really is Adam Sandler's whole routine. He represents those who may not have "talent", but he is showing them(and us) that anyone can make it big. At heart, Sandler is still a teenager obsessed with fart jokes. As for those who have talent and still don't make it big...
a review by Akiva Gottlieb, The Teenage Movie Critic
[email protected]
http://teenagemoviecritic.8m.com
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