Columbia Pictures, Happy Madison Productions, Sony Pictures Entertainment (SPE),
Adam Sandler, Taylor Lautner, Steve Buscemi, Salma Hayek, Maria Bello, Milo Ventimiglia, Kevin James, Andy Samberg, Chris Rock, Maya Rudolph, David Spade
Lenny (Adam Sandler) moved to Hollywood and became a big talent agent, but he grew tired of the rat race and decided he wanted to bring his kids back home to grow up in the town where he grew up. But he also wanted to see his friends and their kids. They had a big weekend 3 years ago, and Lenny misses them. So he moves back and plans a little get-together for his buddies but naturally everything gets out of hand. Everything seems to go awry with this bunch every time they get together, and this one is no different in this sequel to the original Grown-Ups.
This movie is pretty funny. This is, of course, Adam Sandler’s version of Hangover where the good old boys who never grew up get together and lose their minds. It’s a similar plot, but this series is nice in a way, as there is also really good talent here, and it’s more down home and friendly compared to the rat race of Las Vegas. The guys are really friends, and stick up for each other, but they are just so incompetent that it’s funny to see how it all goes wrong. Whether it hits the mark or not depends on your own preference. Talk to different people and some will swear this is much funnier than the original and the funniest movie they’ve seen, where other don’t get the slapstick and crude humor and find it a bore. Personally I enjoyed it, but I like these guys. I can agree that it’s not quite as good as the first film, but there are some advantages. We know the characters now, and so they don’t have to spend so much time getting us into who they are. So they get to the humor quickly. Several people really stand out. Salma Hayek is hysterical playing Lenny’s wife, as she does the “foreign chick” so well (much like Sophia Vegara in Modern Family) and he rarely knows what she’s saying to him. Steve Buscemi is hysterical in his role as well. He plays the creepy maniac guy so much, that it was refreshing to see him having a blast playing a quirky (of course) guy who is amused by everything. He was really funny and stood out. Kevin James, Chris Rock, and David Spade all have great moments. Kevin James has to try to do Zach Galifianakis, which he just isn’t as good as, but he tries really hard and is really funny in this film. I enjoyed the humor, though obviously juvenile as any other Sandler movie, but the added depth of the guy’s families made it a lot of fun. Then, of course, there’s Taylor Lautner and his gang of loser college frat boys who think they’re tough, but just go to a small town college. All in all well worth the rental, and if you’re a fan of the first, you’ll no doubt enjoy it a lot.
EdG – EdsReview Dot Com – A Movie Review Blog
