Funny, If You Like Sandler

I often find it odd that people apply the same standard to every single movie comedy. A broad comedy like Grown Ups 2 should not be measured with the same standard as a Mel Brooks movie or something from Judd Apatow. Lets face it, Adam Sandler movies are what they are. They can be raunchy, juvenile, and extremely low brow, but so what? When you watch one of his movies THAT is what you should expect. Occasssionaly, he does something like "Punch Drunk Love" or "The Wedding Singer", but the majority of his stuff is going to resemble "That's My Boy" or "Big Daddy." Sometimes you just want to watch something easy on the brain. The actors in this movie seemed to be having a good time and the movie cruised along at just over 90 minutes. I acutally liked it better than the first one and I laughed quite often.

The only real issue I had with the movie is the lack of any reference to Rob Schneider's character. The trivia section said Schneider had a scheduling conflict. Really? I checked Schneider's filmography and he had no major movies or TV roles during this time. His ill-fated sitcom (which I thought was pretty funny) was off the air by mid-2012. Why no reference to his character at all? I wonder if he and Sandler had a falling out of some kind. I'd be interested to know the story.

This movie also focused more on the kids than the first one. I thought it handled the various children's relationships pretty well. The kids all came across as well-rounded, normal teens/pre-teens. I did notice the wives came off worse in this sequel than in the first one (which is saying something). They seemed to just be foils for their husbands with no real depth. Maya Rudolph was almost non-existent after forgetting her anniversary and Maria Bello came across as unbalanced in her small time on screen. Selma Hayek had the most screen time of the ladies, but like in the first movie, she just seemed to frown and complain, which made her an unlikeable character. Why you turn someone as gorgeous and sexy as Hayek into a shrew is beyond me.

Several of the supporting roles were handled nicely. I've always been a fan of Nick Swardson and he plays a disturbed bus driver who has the funniest scene in the movie when he plays around with inflatable rafts. Sheri Oteri is off her rocker as a former childhood "girlfriend" of Sandlers. Wrestler Steven Austin even takes a comedic turn as a former childhood bully. Fans of MTV's Girl Code will recognize April Rose as Austin's wife. (I recognized her...ummm...assets and had to look her up to remember where I seen her before). As usual, several members of the Sandler's Happy Madison universe appear as they do in most of his movies along with several former SNL alums. Shaquille O'Neal is an odd addition to this group and the joke about his free throw shooting is outdated and has run its course.

If you like Adam Sandler, you will certainly enjoy this movie. If you find his humor grating, don't bother watching this. I enjoy movies where a cast of friends make a movie about being friends (the far superior "This is the End" is another of these types). I'm not saying this is the funniest movie I have ever seen, but it was a funny 90+ minutes of entertainment.