Big Daddy

Big Daddy (1999) is about a man who wants no responsibility ending up looking after a child. Sonny finished law school and does not practise; he lives off an accident settlement and does nothing. His girlfriend leaves him for failing to grow up. A five year old is left at his flatmate's door, and with the flatmate out of town the boy is left with Sonny. He takes the child on not as a responsibility but as a plan to get his girlfriend back. He lets him go to bed when he likes, eat what he likes, follow no rules at all. The second half changes register and becomes a custody hearing. The usual Sandler template is here: crude humour, sudden explosions of anger, and sentiment underneath. The boy is played by the twins Cole and Dylan Sprouse, who shared the scenes and became known through this film. Sandler made it with his own production company and it was among the highest grossing comedies of that year. Critics disliked it; the box office did the opposite. As usual in his films the same company recurs: Rob Schneider, Steve Buscemi and Jon Stewart in support. Some of the humour has dated and a few jokes are plainly a problem now. It runs 93 minutes. Good for: Sandler comedy, the nineties, and undemanding viewing. Less good for: the humour is crude, some jokes belong to their period, and the emotional shifts are abrupt.