Review: Adam Sandlers Eight Crazy Nights

Adam Sandlers Eight Crazy Nights /

Adam Sandler’s Eight Crazy Nights is one film that I know I shouldn’t like, but despite my attempts of resistance, I still have feelings for. I found Sandler’s previous effort, Mr. Deeds, to be just as dull as a luke-warm, melted container of ice cream. Despite what many think, Eight Crazy Nights has a unique flare that has potential. I can’t quite call Sandler’s efforts an exercise in holiday magic, but the short, but enjoyable running length of an hour and eleven minutes is surprisingly tolerable.

The film opens up to a short skit called: “A Day with the Meatball,” where we get to see Sandler’s dog, following his daily schedule. He is a big, fat, and stubby canine with an interesting presence. He makes odd noises, makes love to women of another species, and drives all cat lovers insane. This is to add to the extremely short running time, but it distracts from the film. The short-clip is stupid, unlikable, and on top of it all – Sandler’s dog isn’t funny. Little did I know that things would thankfully recover.

The animated portion of the cut is much better than the live action sequence. The video almost immediately moves to a 33 year-old trouble-maker, named Davey Stone, who looks exactly like Sandler. He is an adult, but doesn’t act it; and the local judge has sentenced him to everything except real jail time. When Davey refuses to pay a dinner bill, he is sent to the courthouse once again. When the judge threatens to sentence him to ten years in prison, the local basketball referee, Whitey Duvall, immediately steps in and offers an alternate sentence. He proposes that due to Davey’s tremendous skill at the game, he be a co-ref with him, which would initially count as community service.

When Davey begins to call the shots in the youth league, he isn’t exactly one of the most giving referees. He makes fun of kids, directly insults them, and talks trash at their parents. Davey is one of the most discouraging people the county has ever seen. One of the most comical skits in the film is the first of the many basketball sequences. When a rather pudgy player’s chest begins to shake when running down the court, Sandler’s character proceeds to say “Hey jelly jugs, next time you come on my court wear a bra.” The rather hurt youngster then starts to cry. Trying to be helpful, Whitey, the veteran ref, comforts the kid by saying “He’s just kiddin’ son, you have very nice boobs!” We of course later spot him in a Victoria’s Secret dressing room, where an employee finds him, which leads to another traumatic childhood breakdown.

The animation is completely hand-drawn, and does not match up to any of today’s masterpieces in CGI, but it has a distinct, homey, look to it. The various characters are not the thing I liked the best, though they do have an interesting look to them; but the backgrounds are the highlight. The nice looking, glowing backdrops are magical, and give off the comforting feel of the holidays. It’s hard to make a film’s look match up with its dialogue, but Eight Crazy Nights is able to pull this off. The disgusting and crude humor, which is also funny, takes on the bodies of the characters. This flick would undoubtedly work as a live-action Sandler movie.

Adam Sandler’s Eight Crazy Nights is pleasantly surprising. I don’t mean to say that it is a masterful work of art, but rather comfortably durable. We are able to get involved in the story, and have a good time, which has become seemingly rare among today’s films. Entertainment is worth everything in the industry today, and Eight Crazy Nights is just this. It was smart and witty of filmmakers to put Adam Sandler to animation, and it worked. If they can rack in success at the box office, I look forward to seeing a sequel. If the studio is motivated enough, fans would have no problem seeing a Sandler style flick for each and every holiday, to be released straight to video and DVD. I am in shock that I was able to enjoy this one, but like it or not, the Eight Crazy Nights are extremely likable.

-Danny, Bucket Reviews