If you ask any Adam Sandler fan what their favourite Adam Sandler movie is then you will likely get a variety of answers, depending on whether or not that person likes his comedy work or his more dramatic performances. But most would at least mention Happy Gilmore as a contender, which makes this a belated sequel with no small amount of pressure on it.
The years have passed, a tragic golf-related accident has caused the death of Virginia (Julie Bowen), and Happy Gilmore is left with a bunch of children and a whole load of debt. And a drinking problem. His years of golfing success are far behind him, but getting back on the fairway could be the solution to all of his problems. If he can stop drinking and return to the form of his glory days. He's older now though, although not necessarily any wiser.
Where Sandler used to get his friends together and film something in a sunny and picturesque environment (making it a bit of holiday time alongside the filming), he now tends to make films that have roles available to his family members. At least four of them appear here. His wife, Jackie, his daughters, Sadie and Sunny, and his mother, Judith. They don't spoil the film, generally doing great work, but it's worth noting because of how many times the Sandler surname pops up throughout the cast credits. Thankfully, the 114-minute runtime allows for a whole range of eclectic supporting players (sometimes literally), from a number of real-life golfers all joining in with the fun to returning favourites like Ben Stiller and Christopher McDonald. Benny Safdie has a blast as Frank Manatee, the douchebro looking to take golf somewhere new and exciting, Bad Bunny is a lot of fun as a waiter-turned-caddy named Oscar, John Daly plays a fictional version of John Daly, and Haley Joel Osment proves to be formidable competition on the golf course. I wouldn't have the space here to name everyone else onscreen, but some of the more memorable cameos come from Margaret Qualley, Eric André, Post Malone, Steve Buscemi, Eminem, Nick Swarsdon, Jon Lovitz, Boban Marjanovic, Ken Jennings, and Guy Fieri.
Although Tim Herlihy and Sandler are back on the writing duties, Kyle Newacheck is in the director's chair this time (with Dennis Dugan, director of the first HG movie, joining the names I just mentioned to have some fun in front of the camera). Newacheck does a decent job, delivering what is his best feature so far, but it feels like an easy gig. Once the screenplay was written, knowing how much of the film relies on goodwill and nostalgia, all Newacheck had to do was ensure that he had plenty of coverage while everyone was enjoying themselves. The jokes here are obvious and silly, but they're nicely in line with what we got the first time around. In fact, admittedly, many of them are just the same jokes, maybe slightly reworked, with flashbacks to remind people of what they laughed at the first time around.
I'm not going to waste time rating the various performances of everyone in the cast. Some do much better than others, but the film is anchored by Sandler doing his very familiar schtick. You'll already know if you want to watch it or not. Highlights are definitely Safdie and Bad Bunny though, but McDonald is very welcome whenever he appears, and I was surprised by how much I was able to laugh at lines delivered by the likes of Rory McIlroy and Scottie Scheffler. Scheffler may well be the ace up the sleeve for the third act of the movie, which is something I never expected.
There are a number of expected montage sequences, the soundtrack has the energy required to accompany the standard "underdog comes good" plotting, and if you're surprised by anything that happens here then I would have to assume that you forgot everything that happened in the first movie. There are times when I want something new, or something thought-provoking. This wasn't one of those times. I just wanted some more silly jokes about someone rough-around-the-edges being unexpectedly good at whacking a golf ball. I just hoped that it wouldn't disappoint those, like myself, who rated Happy Gilmore as one of Sandler's very best comedies. I wasn't disappointed. This was everything I wanted it to be. It was familiar, comfortable, and, most of all, it made me laugh. I'll still rewatch the first film more, but I would happily make time for this again whenever I'm in the mood for some crazy golf.
7/10
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