Some posts I just can’t explain…but they need to be written anyway. Today we have one of those tales. It’s the first day of Summer. For whatever reason, unbeknownst to me, it just does not feel like summer time until I’ve watched Adam Sandler’s hit family comedy classic Grown Ups….and maybe even its sequel, too.
Now, I know what you’re going to say. Damn, Stoney – Sandler hasn’t made a good movie since Mr. Deeds….well, you may be right. Just for the sake of fairness, let’s look back at Mr. Sandler’s movies since Mr. Deeds.
Eight Crazy Nights
Anger Management
50 First Dates
Spanglish
The Longest Yard
Click
I Now Pronounce You Chuck & Larry
You Don’t Mess with the Zohan
Jack and Jill
That’s My Boy
Pixels
and a bunch of other shit I’ve never heard of.
Yeah, that’s what I thought. Shut y’alls critical asses right the hell up!
So, what is it exactly about these films that speaks to my heart? Well, it’s the family camaraderie…it’s the zany mishaps that put our main characters in awkward situations. It’s the general bro-hood of Sandler and his boys.
But, most of all – it just brings backs those childhood feelings of the last day of school and family vacation. There’s something about it that just speaks to my inner child. I can remember the excitement of the impending summer time. I can remember laying awake at night counting down the days until the weekend getaway in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee.
I guess you could pretty well sum it up by saying it makes my soul feel the same way it feels when I smell the first fresh cut grass of the season. How is that for a film review?
Anyway, you don’t believe me that these movies are fun as hell? Let’s hear what some of the critics have said about the fine institution of American film:
Straight from Rotten Tomatoes:
“It’s not so hilarious that you need to rush to see it but not so bad that you will suffer unduly if you take a chance on its more-or-less family friendly charms.”
I, for one, am a big fan of family friendly charms.
“Grown Ups delivers precious few laughs for the sheer volume of comedy talent on offer.”
See! It delivers precious laughs!
On the highly-acclaimed sequel:
“A movie of fools, by fools, for fools.”
I tried to tell y’all it’s relatable.
Just to provide thorough, unbiased review, I even reached out to our own film critic, “Nature Boy” Brandon Vick, to see what he thought of the franchise…
Back in 2010, Grown Ups seemed like a good idea, mainly because of the ensemble cast. Sure, they’re all Sandler’s buds, but they are some funny dudes in their own right. Besides a few laughable parts, the movie quickly becomes a lame, pointless excuse for everyone in it to get paid to hang out. Now I would do that in a heartbeat too. No judgement there, but Sandler’s squad doesn’t give a shit about entertaining the audience. Lazy antics and cheap gags is enough for them, so it should be enough for us as well.
Wrong.
And don’t even get me started on that god-awful sequel.
See! Brandon even called ’em “some funny dudes.”
I’m trying to tell y’all. It just ain’t summer until you watch Grown Ups….so go watch Grown Ups.
Stoney Keeley is the Editor in Chief of The SoBros Network, and a Dogs Playing Poker on velvet connoisseur. He is a strong supporter of Team GSD, #BeBetter, and ‘Minds right, asses tight.’ “Big Natural” covers the Tennessee Titans, Nashville, Yankee Candle, and a whole wealth of nonsense. Follow on Twitter @StoneyKeeley.
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