Eight Crazy Nights

Despite its' well intentioned theme of kindness to all, this film should have practiced what it preached and should have been kind to all by never have been being made. Banking on the popularity of the Adam Sandler brand of immature toilet humour, this animated musical/comedy/debacle is a complete blueprint of Sandler's warped and juvenile mindset. While this juvenile and unripe humour worked for perennial Sandler classics such as 'The Waterboy' and 'Happy Gilmore', as of late Sandler has deteriorated into a one-hit wonder running the same gags in premeditated recycled junk. This animated waste of crayon falls superbly in that category and heralds Sandler's career as a 'has been'. Or has it? This critic enjoys theorizing and will do so with the following statements. Just recently Sandler has attempted to diversify in the Paul Thomas Anderson film 'Punch-Drunk Love' and with all due respect - it works. And now, at the time of this writing, he will star opposite Jack Nicholson in the upcoming comedy 'Anger Management'. Therefore, we ask the question - is Adam Sandler's career really faltering? This critic thinks not, the only assumption we can make is that Sandler's name usually guarantees some green provided he is in the immature context.

Furthermore, it helps if you own your production company and have 'carte blanche' over a film. Such is the case with Sandler's 'Eight Crazy Nights'. His production company Happy Madison produced the film and as a result, this truly is Adam Sandler's film. Unfortunately, it is not a crazy movie and it might have the kiddies irk a smile but for the devote Sandler fan, it will utter devastation as this film is one for the trash. The animated film incorporates characters Sandler featured in his Comic audio CD's and gives some story to the elder Whitey Duvall (voiced by Adam Sandler), a soft-spoken senior who lives with his fraternal twin sister, Eleanor. What seems to be a film centered on the animated character that looks awfully similar to the real life Adam Sandler, in reality, it is about the elder Whitey who takes in the distraught Davey Stone (also voiced by Sandler). The film happens to occur throughout the Hanukkah Holiday while we see the formulaic transformation of an inebriated and rude man undergo a major transformation under the wings of the elder man. In terms of plot and sheer fun, this movie passed through three writers (Brooks Arthur, Allen Covert and Brad Isaacs) upon a story Sandler had concerted and is an utter waste of time. The animation is simplistic and the story runs at a snail's pace. Furthermore, this film is a testament to the power of Sandler in Hollywood. Even the worst of films can be made as long as there is a star attached to it. How many times have we seen this happen? The film simply seems like a hobby Sandler had and he incorporated all of his childish and clichéd funny segments into an unfunny and boorish film.

Moreover, while I appreciate his attempt in diversification, it is a major disappointment to see Sandler's mass appeal reduced to such a disenchanted status in terms of the comedic abilities that made him what he is. It would be an overstatement to suggest avoiding this film at all costs. While I did not expect a great film, I at least expected a film that would place me in the Holiday spirit. Not even that expectation was accomplished. On a final note, for all those Sandler fans that anticipate the third version of his famous Hanukkah song, they will have to sit through this sluggish film in order to hear the song. Trust me, it isn't worth it.

Giancarlo's Rating: *

Just watched the DVD and was very disappointed. It could have been a nice holiday movie for the whole family but the unnecessary crudeness only makes it a vulgar adult animation that only teenagers would appreciate.

Boy, am I glad that I didn't watch Adam Sandler's Eight Crazy Nights during the holiday season. I would've been more morose than when I watched Bad Santa two weeks before Christmas last year. But after viewing that I was morose in the kind of way that is a tad more welcoming than hurting. If I had seen this film weeks leading up to Christmas, I'd feel slightly contemptible and sad inside.

This is a cynical, depraved film that, even worse, has no reason to be so cynical and depraved. It's expected of Sandler to include scatological humor and slight-offensiveness in his films, sure, but it's unexpected of him to include such derogatory representations of his own culture and unnecessary rudeness in the time of the holidays. I can only imagine the stunned reactions of parents that were lured into this with the appeal of Christmas images and holiday sweetness on TV only to be met with one smarmy, laugh-free punch after another. It's so rare we get a film that deals with a holiday aside from Christmas during the December month; did the one Hanukkah film we get have to be directed by Adam Sandler? He voices several characters in the film, one of them Davey, who he also resembles, a Jewish man in his mid-thirties, deeply loathing of the holidays and all the cheer they bring to people. After being convicted of public drunkenness in yet another offense, just when he's about to go away to prison, Whitey Duvall (voiced by Sandler, as well), the local youth basketball coach, offers him a job as a referee down at the gym to which he accepts. Whitey is a short, kind old man, who lives with his wife Eleanor (also voiced by Sandler), and whole-heartedly believes that Davey could do right if he put his mind to it. The problem is Davey doesn't have any ambition to do right and consistently puts everyone around him down because he himself can't be happy with the cards he has been dealt.

There's only so many times I can watch a man belittle and harass a sweet older man until it becomes nearly unwatchable. The constant abuse Davey brings to Whitey's life is mean-spirited just for the sake of being mean-spirited and rarely results in a laugh or a smile. Davey's attitude, alone, never sparks any particular laugh either. There's a big difference between someone who adopts a sour attitude because of past life experiences that have scarred him and a person who adopts one purely out of choice. Davey has one event in his life that happened at a young age that was supposed to spawn this cynicism and disgust for human happiness and holiday cheer. That was years ago and you think the anger and hostile would've worn off with the passage of almost two decades. Not a chance. He remains as mean and as nasty as if the event occurred yesterday.

The film is also a musical, which isn't as awful as that sounds. Some songs, particularly "Davey's Song," are kind of infectious in their contempt for the holidays. "Technical Foul," the song Whitey sings when he's introducing Davey to all the rules of his own, is a cute little anthem as well. However, none of which allow Eight Crazy Nights to surpass its codger attitude to everything it sets up. But it feels even more insincere when the film abandons its mean-spiritedness for the fluffy, Hallmark-card cuteness that it feels obligated to tack on in the last act of the film to show Davey really has come a long way as a human. I would've had more respect for the film had it stayed true to its inherently grumpy roots.

Adam Sandler's Eight Crazy Nights is an unhealthy film for the holidays. A cheap, trite ordeal, at only seventy-six minutes, it's an obnoxious pictures that gives a new meaning to the word "humbug." It's a blatant ripoff of A Christmas Carol, and tries to justify its mean-spirited qualities as the formula for a "reformation," change-of-mind story that we've seen time and time again in better, more tolerable films.

Voiced by: Adam Sandler, Jackie Titone, Austin Stout, and Rob Schneider. Directed by: Seth Kearsley.

Adam Sandler's first (and to date, only) animated feature, "Eight Crazy Nights," takes a cue from his infamous "Chanukah Song" in celebrating the Jewish holiday -- as well as good old commercial Christmas -- musical style. With all the typical Sandler comedic hallmarks, it's certainly not a children's feature, but is admittedly a lot softer and more toned down than, say, "Happy Gilmore" or "Billy Madison."

The story revolves around the self-loathing loser, Davey, who is essentially a by-the-books "Happy Madison" character. Since his better days have passed him by, he spends most of his time being drunk and unhappy while simultaneously making everyone around him miserable. Because justice apparently takes a holiday, he is let off the hook for a drunken misdemeanor in turn for some community service. Davey must coach a youth league basketball team with the help of a bizarre little old man by the name of Whitey who has a disturbingly hairy body and who still lives with his sister. Slowly, Davey starts to redeem himself and even takes a stab at winning back the girl who got away from him.

Aside from being typical Adam Sandler fare, "Eight Crazy Nights" is rather vibrant in both its animation style and its musical numbers. It's simply a predictable, yet feel-good story that no doubt has worked its way into becoming somewhat of a holiday classic. Adam Sandler provides the voices of all three main characters, while the usual gaggle of co-horts in Jon Lovitz, Kevin Nealon, Rob Schneider and Allen Covert show up, too.

It's Adam Sandler, so you get what you expect. Very crude humour (especially toilet humour) and a ludicrous plot. I laughed a lot and that's what matters to me.