Happy Gilmore
28 years on, Adam Sandler’s absurd golf comedy remains a hilarious hole-in-one.
PRE-GAME ⛳️
Welcome back to Balls on Film! 👋🏻
I started this newsletter back in May, and I’m quite surprised that it’s taken us this long to get to the golf sub genre of sports movies. Of all the major sports, the golf movie is probably the one I’ve seen the least of. There’s quite a lot out there though, so let me know what other ones I should check out and add to the upcoming schedule. If there’s any other sub genre of sports movie that I haven’t covered yet that you’d like me to soon, please let me know too.
The NFL is back this week, so I thought I’d check out a relatively new release that I’ve not seen yet for the next review. More on that in the post-game, though!
Maybe it’s just a coincidence, but since choosing Happy Gilmore for this week’s review, I feel like I’ve seen Adam Sandler pop up everywhere over the last week, from media appearances to surprise stand up specials appearing on Netflix without any prior notice. More on that later!
Let’s get to it.
FIRST HALF ⛳️
It’s been a while since I last watched Happy Gilmore. In fact, this is only my second viewing of the film and it’s probably been around 25 years since I saw it. I said a couple of weeks ago in my BASEketball review, that despite really not enjoying the movie, I’m certainly not above silly, juvenile comedy as long as it’s actually funny. Going into this rewatch, I was a little worried that Happy Gilmore would befall the same fate as BASEketball in 2024, and not have aged well. Thankfully, this is a silly, goofball comedy that’s done right and still holds up today.
The story follows Happy Gilmore (Adam Sandler), an aggressive, short-tempered hockey player who discovers he has a natural talent for golf after trying and failing to make it in professional hockey - despite having a powerful shot, his hockey skills pretty much end there. Desperate to raise money to save his grandmother’s house from repossession, Happy enters professional golf tournaments and uses his unorthodox playing style to rise through the ranks, drawing the attention of other players and coaches.
It’s all very much classic 90s Adam Sandler comedy. It’s over-the-top, with plenty of slapstick humour and absurd situations, like Gilmore’s surreal but amazing brawl with Bob Barker. Sandler’s performance as Happy is unhinged in the best way, balancing moments of explosive rage with a sense of heart that makes the whole thing actually work. His character is a quintessential underdog, and Sandler’s ability to bring both comedy and vulnerability makes Happy an oddly endearing hero - even when he’s full of rage.
It’s when Happy catches the attention of golf coach Chubbs Peterson (Carl Weathers) that the story really gets going. Peterson helps him land a spot on the professional golf tour, but his explosive temper and unconventional behaviour obviously don’t fit in with golf’s more buttoned-up image, prompting established pro Shooter McGavin (Christopher McDonald) to try to push him out. Despite this, Happy’s antics draw in high TV ratings and attract new fans, proving his undeniable popularity. The golf scenes are completely over the top, and unrealistic - not something that would usually be a positive in a sports movie. Here, though, it works. The more outrageous, the better.
Speaking of Weathers and McDonald, one of the things that I love most about this film is its supporting cast, particularly McDonald as Shooter. His performance is wonderfully smarmy, particularly as he embraces Gilmore’s ways of playing. I couldn’t help but laugh watching him trash talk his grandmother and try to get inside Happy’s head in the third act. Ben Stiller also makes an appearance as the wonderfully evil nursing home orderly, who has Happy’s grandmother fearing for her safety. Stiller is so good these roles, and he’s so brilliantly over-the-top here that you could argue he’s the true villain, despite his limited screen time.
Carl Weathers is great in the mentor role as Chubbs, and the relationship between him and Happy is actually quite sweet - although Weathers’ final appearance in the film is utterly bizarre and feels so out of place, even for this movie. It’s certainly a memorable moment to say the least, and I’d completely forgotten about it on rewatch. I genuinely yelled out ‘what the fuck!’ at the tv at the end. I love Julie Bowen as Virginia Venit, and her relationship with Happy goes a long way to help make him a much more likeable, grounded character as the story progresses. Bowen is such a great comedic actress, and Claire Dunphy is still one of my favourite sitcom characters of all time.
It’s these more heartfelt elements and fun supporting characters that add depth, and elevate the film beyond the silly, crude jokes that make up a lot of the humour. Not to keep bringing up BASEketball, but this is how you do dumb comedy right.
I appreciate that Happy Gilmore won’t be for everyone. Adam Sandler shouts a lot here, and the scenes in which Happy flies off the handle can feel a bit rinse-and-repeat. If you’re not a fan of his loud, goofball comedic style that featured in many of his early movies, you’ll probably find the film a bit grating. There were some cheap jokes that didn’t land with me at all on rewatch, but everything around it was likeable enough that it didn’t hamper my enjoyment of the story. I’m really curious to see what kind of direction that the upcoming sequel takes.
Despite some of the humour feeling a bit dated and overly-dumb, it still works because of the film’s unapologetic embrace of its silliness and the fact that it’s all done with such a big heart. Happy’s fight with Bob Barker, for example, is as joyous as it is absolutely insane. Sandler always manages to remain likeable as Happy - even as he’s having another meltdown, being arrogant and hurling abuse on the golf course. The movie consistently delivers laughs, and even though it’s not highbrow comedy in any way, it never tries to be. Happy Gilmore knows its audience and plays directly to it.
Happy Gilmore is currently available to stream on Netflix.
HALFTIME ⛳️
Let’s take a break for halftime.
Here’s what else I’ve been enjoying this week:
Marmalade (2024)
Joe Keery sports one of the worst wigs in movie history in this fun heist/crime tale that feels like a mix of early Coen Brothers with a dash of True Romance. Keery and Camila Morrone have great chemistry together, and Aldis Hodge steals the show as Keery’s cellmate in prison. There’s plenty of twists and turns along the way, despite the story often veering too far into overly-familiar and predictable territory. A fun way to spend 90 minutes.
Available to rent/buy on digital platforms now.
Slow Horses - Season 4
Jackson Lamb and his gang of misfits are back in this thrilling British spy drama. I saw a viral tweet the other day that said that if Slow Horses had aired on the BBC, it would be the biggest show on UK television at the moment, and I can’t agree more. This show has gotten better with every season, and the season 4 opener has set the stage for a new story that looks set to follow that same trajectory. Slow Horses is one of the best shows on TV, and I can’t recommend it enough. Jump in now, and catch up on three gripping seasons, if you haven’t already.
Available to stream on Apple TV+
Adam Sandler - Love You
When I came across this whilst scrolling through Netflix, I had no idea what it was. Surely an Adam Sandler comedy special would have arrived with more hype and fanfare? I guess I completely missed an announcement, because this was a total surprise - but a welcome one given that Happy Gilmore was on deck for this week’s review. Directed by Josh Safdie, this isn’t your conventional stand up show. It feels like Sandler just riffing and meandering his way through a bunch of topics - albeit in a way that only he can. It’s presented in a very intimate and chaotic way, which isn’t a surprise given the director. As much as I enjoy Sandler’s absurd and goofy humour in his movies, it didn’t quite work for me here - fantastic direction aside.
Available to stream on Netflix.
I’m off to see Beetlejuice Beetlejuice tonight, which I’m excited for. The original is one of my all-time favourite movies, and I can’t wait to see Keaton reprise the role on the big screen. I’ll be back with my thoughts on it here next week!
As usual, let me know what you’re watching, reading, playing, listening to - anything at all. Let’s get back to Happy Gilmore, and the second half.
SECOND HALF ⛳️
Let’s jump into some awards and bonus content.
BEST SCENE 🏆
The Happy Gilmore-Bob Barker fight scene is peak sports cinema, and takes this award, especially considering it almost didn’t happen - more on that later in trivia.
BEST LINE 🏆
Happy Gilmore (fighting Bob Barker): The price is wrong, bitch!
MVP AWARD 🏆
Even though this is one of Sandler’s most iconic roles, I have to give this to Ben Stiller for how hilariously evil and over-the-top he is, in a fairly minor role. I cackled every time he appeared on-screen.
BEST LETTERBOXD REVIEW 🏆
IMDB TRIVIA HIGHLIGHT 🏆
Bob Barker wasn't sure if he wanted to be in the movie. When he learned that he was going to win the fight with Adam Sandler, he accepted the role.
BONUS FEATURE 💿
In tribute to the 25th anniversary of the film, Adam Sandler dusted off his driver and recreated that famous swing to pay homage.
And there’s five minutes of great outtakes from the film here. Why don’t we get more outtakes from recent movies and tv shows? I miss them.
POST-GAME ⛳️
I hope everyone enjoyed Happy Gilmore. I’d love to know what you thought of it. Which golf movie should I watch next?
The NFL is back, and next week we’re stepping back on to the gridiron…sort of. Our next review will be 80 For Brady. I’ve never seen it, but a road trip movie about a group of friends who try to achieve their life-long mission of going to the Super Bowl and meeting Tom Brady sounds like just the kind of comedy I need right about now.
See you next week! 👋🏻
~James
I quote this movie ALL the time! Another good golf movie to check out is Tin Cup with Kevin Costner and Rene Russo.
Aka back when Sandler was actually TRYING, so his movies were solid. A podcast I regularly listen to ("No Such Thing as a Bad Movie") just did a "Summer of Sandler" where they did a Sandler movie every week all summer, mostly his modern Netflix flicks + Pixels, Grown Ups, etc. They wrapped with an older one - Jack and Jill - and really marveled over the difference, in Sandler's energy, the sense that he was still giving it his all. Since then, like his recent special, he mostly show up and just...riffs a bit, and not in a particularly engaging way. The Grown Ups movie is essentially him and his crew sitting on a porch repeating jokes at each other, plainly ad libbing and not even doing that tremendous of a job with it.
But Happy Gilmore belongs to a different era of Sandler, and there's a reason he became a megastar. And you know what, let a human coast after they make it, especially if they remain popluar even while coasting. His later career isn't for me, but he left him mark and we will always have movies like Waterboy, Gilmore, Wedding Singer, etc.