With fall season just around the corner and the school year beginning, a day of relaxation filled with movies is just what one needs to decompress. What better way to carry that out than with Adam Sandler movies on a lazy Saturday?
Here’s our list for the five movies to best fit this vibe.
Happy Gilmore
Start off the lazy Saturday by traveling back to the 90s with one of Sandler’s earlier comedies, Happy Gilmore. Sandler plays Happy Gilmore, an aspiring ice hockey player who unfortunately has no talent for the sport. After failing to make his hockey team again, Happy discovers his grandma’s house is being repossessed by the IRS.
In a desperate ploy to help his grandma, Happy enters a pro golf tournament after discovering his hidden talent for the long drive. What starts as a means to get the grand prize and buy his grandma’s house back turns into a hilarious underdog journey of mastering the art of golf.
Filled with classic Sandler humor like his trademark shouting (“That’s your home, are you too good for your home? Answer Me!”), sight gags like an overly large prosthetic wooden hand, absurd one-liners, and wacky side characters, this is a wonderful film to tune out to and laugh along with. A sequel was recently released on Netflix as well.
Where to Watch: Netflix.
Big Daddy
Another 90s feel-good comedy perfect for the lazy Saturday is Big Daddy. Sandler plays Sonny Koufax, an early-30s law school graduate/slacker who spends his days avoiding adult responsibilities. That changes when his girlfriend breaks up with him and a five-year-old boy, Julian, is dropped at his doorstep claiming to be his roommate’s son.
Sonny then calls his roommate, Kevin, which ends with them both equally confused about the boy. They confirm to bring him to social services and locate his mother. Sonny soon begins a friendship with Julian in the few days they spend together. He decides to keep Julian as his own in an attempt to prove his responsibility to his girlfriend.
Comedy mixed with drama, Big Daddy offers plenty of slapstick humor like tripping rollerbladers with sticks, putting newspapers over any kind of spill, and Sandler screaming for somebody to get the kid a happy meal.
Where to Watch: Netflix.
Grown Ups
Watch Sandler goof off as he stars with his real-life buddies Rob Schneider, Chris Rock, Kevin James, and David Spade in Grown Ups. Sandler is Lenny Feder, a Hollywood agent with a beautiful fashion designer wife. He returns to his hometown to bury his beloved childhood basketball coach. Lenny’s friends also return for the funeral and catch up with one another through playful jabs towards their careers, appearances, and personalities. To celebrate their coach and Fourth of July weekend, Lenny rents a lake house for his and his friends’ families.
Hilarity ensues in typical Sandler fashion with the bonus of Schneider’s floppy toupee, Rock’s roasts about his mother-in-law, James’s pratfalls, and Spade’s sarcasm. At the house, it’s revealed the gang has each faced hardships they were hiding. After everyone makes up, Lenny’s childhood rival demands a rematch to their championship game back when they were kids. The guys accept and finish it with a moving message carried out by Lenny.
This particular film is a prime example of how Sandler took all of his friends to the top with him. The friendship and antics between him and his co-stars leaps from the screen and wraps its viewer in a fit of giggles.
Where to Watch: Netflix.
Grown Ups 2
As one of the sequels Sandler has been in, Grown Ups 2 serves as a great movie to sink into the couch and laugh away on a lazy Saturday. Lenny has moved back to his hometown to be closer to his friends and give his children the childhood experience he had. It’s the last day of school for the kids, and Lenny spends it driving a school bus he swiped from the bus driver to go pick up his buddies. They then goof around at a K-Mart before attending Lenny’s daughter’s ballet recital.
At the recital, Lenny runs into his childhood bully and is immediately frightened of him still. Throughout the day’s events, it’s determined that Lenny and his wife will host an impromptu 80s-themed backyard bash to celebrate the start of summer. Once the party begins, Lenny stands up for himself and confronts his bully.
Filled with beloved banter and slapstick humor from the first movie, plus new pratfalls like the bus driver surfing the bus before crash-landing into a store, this sequel will fit right in on a lazy day relaxing with the Sandman.
Where to Watch: Netflix.
Murder Mystery
Add mystery into a lazy day with Murder Mystery starring Adam Sandler and Jennifer Aniston. Sandler and Aniston play Nick and Audrey Spitz, a married couple from New York. Nick is a cop and Audrey is a hairdresser. On their 15th wedding anniversary, Audrey calls out Nick for them never having their European honeymoon. Nick then states he did book the trip for them, and they set off for Europe.
During their flight, Nick and Audrey meet a billionaire named Charles Cavendish who invites them to his family yacht for the wedding of his elderly uncle and ex-fiancee. At the party, Cavendish’s uncle declares his entire fortune will go to his fiancee, shocking all of the guests. Right before he signs his will, the lights go out. When the lights turn back on, Cavendish’s uncle is stabbed in the heart.
Nick and Audrey investigate the whodunnit murder through humorous moments and revelations about themselves and their marriage. As the death count rises, the couple race through Europe to solve the mystery. Action, mystery, and comedy blend well with an intense car chase finale, featuring a funny moment of Nick wanting to drive a supercar but getting in on the wrong side not realizing it’s European-made, thus leading Audrey to drive the car he made a point of wanting.
Where to Watch: Netflix (and also earned a sequel).
Why these movies?
Everyone deserves a lazy day every now and then, and Adam Sandler movies provide a wonderful outlet for one. As schoolwork piles up and the busy fall season approaches, it’s important to carve out to time to relax and enjoy some comedy. These five films will offer the perfect laugh-out-loud combo for a lazy Saturday.
