Up and Adam Big Daddy
By Ross Anthony I'm an Adam Sandler fan, so I was eager to see "Big Daddy." However, it's not one of the most memorable films he'll ever make.
Basically, Adam's a 30-year old still living the life of a teenager and liking it. But, his girlfriend has had enough of his non-committal attitude; so 1) she takes a hike, 2) small child arrives at his doorstep, 3) Sandler decides to adopt the kid in hopes that he'll (Sandler) will learn those adult characteristics so desired by a girlfriend that the filmmakers didn't spend any time making us care about.
There's really not much to say about this film. It was refreshing to here Sandler use his regular voice and not one of his stupid character voices. You see, I think he's both very funny and very talented on screen -- he doesn't need the cartoon voices. Let me just go way out on a limb here and say -- Adam Sandler has the same kind of dramatic talent in him that an actor like ... say Tom Hanks ... has. Now, there I've said something profoundly dissonant haven't I? Speaking of drama, "Big Daddy" is much more of a light drama than a comedy. It certainly has comedic moments, and even though they weren't very uniformly or artfully distributed (for instance the ending is strangely more silly than the rest of the film); it's still moderately funny/dramatic overall.
Starring Adam Sandler. Directed by Dennis Dugan. Screenplay by Steve Franks, Tim Heruhy & Adam Sandler. Produced by Sid Ganis and Jack Giarraputo at Columbia. Rated PG-13.
Grade..........................B+
Copyright © 1999 Ross Anthony, currently based in Los Angeles, has scripted and shot documentaries, music videos, and shorts in 35 countries across North America, Europe, Africa and Asia. For more reviews visit: http://RossAnthony.com
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