Adam Sandler has always been a favorite of general audiences, and his Hustle is set to be another people-pleaser, as it combines the best of his serious and silly movies. But because of the polarizing reception that audiences and critics have of him, a lot of his biggest movies don't have the warmest receptions.
Between fans calling his dumbest movies masterpieces and criticizing his most acclaimed roles, Redditors have some hot takes about the comedy actor. But whether it's his performance as a dodgy jeweler or a movie star with cancer, Sandler remains misunderstood.
Funny People Is A Great Drama
Funny People sees Sandler playing an exaggerated version of himself as a movie star who gets cancer, and knowing that the clock is ticking, he decides to return to stand-up comedy. The movie is far from beloved, but Talulabelle makes a great point that Funny People was simply mismarketed, which led to a lot of disappointed viewers.
The Redditor notes, "I feel like maybe it was a drama for comedians as opposed to a comedy. Unfortunately for everyone, it was billed as a comedy." However, the dramedy is still full of hilarious moments, whether it's uninterrupted stand-up sequences, archive footage of Sandler making prank calls in college, or self-aware jokes about Sandler starring in awful family comedies.
Uncut Gems Isn't Good
Uncut Gems isn't as good as people make it out to be. The Redditor posits, "It was far too long, the acting was subpar, the story was one dimensional and uncompelling and I knew how it was going to end in the first 10 minutes." While Howard's (Sandler) fate is obvious, that's part of what makes it so engaging, as every mistake he makes is one step closer to angering the wrong person. And that's why the crime thriller is so anxiety-inducing.
Ironically, working with the Safdie brothers for their next project too.
Happy Gilmore Was A Jerk
Though it's one of their most-watched comedies, Happy Gilmore. The Redditor argues, "I've come to the realization that Happy is not a likable guy... sure he seems sweet, as the movie portrays him that way. But in reality, he's just a violent a*****e." But that's the whole point and what makes it funny in the first place.
Happy Gilmore wouldn't be half as hilarious and the jokes wouldn't even work if Happy wasn't a jerk to begin with. The same goes for other beloved comedies like best golf movies ever.
Sandler Gives A Genuinely Great Performance In The Longest Yard
Uncut Gems and The Longest Yard that this deleted thinks features the comedian's best performance.
The Redditor posits, "this movie feels like he's actually genuinely giving a decent performance as an actor, and not as somebody who got his buddies to come along on some long field trip." Between Just Go With It, Sandler has starred in so many movies that are based in Hawaii or some other exotic location, which has led some to believe that he chooses movies based on where they're set. But given that The Longest Yard takes place in prison, the 2005 film feels like a genuine ion project of his.
Big Daddy Is A Masterpiece
Almost nobody is calling any Sandler movie a masterpiece, except for a few fans of director Paul Thomas Anderson who think Punch-Drunk Love is his best film. But NoWest7670 believes that 1999's Big Daddy is exactly that, arguing, "Big Daddy is a masterpiece, the score is perfectly crafted into the scenes and it has some great jokes."
The film has a typically ridiculous premise and an unsurprisingly sentimental ending. Not to mention that all of the regular comedy actors that audiences expect to see in a Sandler comedy are in every scene. However, Big Daddy is simply hilarious, every joke lands, and Sandler putting down used newspaper to soak up both milk spills and potty accidents will never not be laugh-out-loud funny.
Murder Mystery Is Sandler's Best Work In Years
a murder mystery renaissance, and the 2019 comedy is actually surprisingly fun.
Murder Mystery is certainly far from the worst Netlfix exclusive starring the comedy actor, as the streaming giant has released some universally hated Sandler films including Hotel Transylvania is a well-liked animated movie series, the goofy comedy is far from his best work.
You Don't Mess With The Zohan Is Sandler's Funniest Movie
There are two types of Adam Sandler comedies: the ones where he's an everyday average guy, and the ones with an outrageous premise where he plays an out-of-this-world character. You Don't Mess with the Zohan is the peak of the latter, as it follows an Israeli counterterrorist commando with dreams of being a hairstylist in New York, replacing machine guns with hairdryers and trading in grenades for clippers.
A deleted calls Zohan, "Adam Sandler's funniest movie." While the film isn't going to win any Academy Awards, it's colorful, amusing, and full of over-the-top visual gags. More than anything, there's something weirdly wholesome about Zohan and its jokes about Mariah Carey being a genius and hair-dressing bringing people together.
The Waterboy Is A Bad Version Of Forrest Gump
One Forrest Gump." There are a lot of parallels between the two movies, such as the fact that both lead characters meet their relatives for the first time. Waterboy meets his father at the end of the movie just as Forrest meets his son for the first time.
However, the 1998 comedy is a cult classic that stands on its own and is one of the most-loved Sandler movies ever. The Waterboy is full of Sandler jokes that haven't aged well and it's definitely a product of its time, but it's still charming and full of heart, and many of the gags still hold up today.
Click Is Heart-Wrenching
Click is a strange movie, but at the same time, it's everything viewers have come to expect from a Sandler film. The 2006 release is one of those movies where Sandler plays an everyday guy, but it also has a wild fantastical premise, and the result is overly sentimental.
But Sk6776 thinks the weird time-traveling science-fiction-fantasy premise works well, and they argue that it's even extremely relatable. The Redditor posits, "For anyone who has had any sort of strained family relationships or poor/work-life balance, then this movie gives you a great perspective over those life choices." While the tone of the film is all over the place and it might not make every viewer cry, it encourages audiences to make the best possible choices in life.
Little Nicky Doesn't Get Enough Credit
Little Nicky is one of the most out-there movies of the 2000s, as Satan's three sons destroy Earth because their dad refused to hand down hell to them. MovieBuff90 its that the movie is stupid and annoying, but they know that it doesn't get enough credit for what it does.
After explaining the premise of the film, the Redditor notes, "It could have fallen apart easily, but everyone involved truly commits..." Between Little Nicky and Dogma, there was an odd little pocket trend of surreal comedies about angels and demons visiting Earth in the late '90s and early 2000s. And while they weren't all that influential, they're totally unique and outright dumb fun.
