Nowadays, it’s pretty hard to imagine that Adam Sandler was once considered, by some at least, to be… well… funny. The former Saturday Night Live funnyman burst onto the big screen with cult hit comedies Billy Madison and Happy Gilmore, but over the years, Sandler has refused to abandon his man-child onscreen persona and churned out critically reviled releases like Jack and Jill, That’s My Boy and the Grown Ups films. With his fanbase seemingly diminishing, it was no surprise that Blended turns to Sandler’s two-time co-star Drew Barrymore for a much-needed boost.
While neither The Wedding Singer or 50 First Dates was heralded as a cinematic masterpiece, both were commercially successful, and the former is still considered among Sandler’s most beloved comedies. In Blended, Sandler and Barrymore play a pair of single parents who – after a disastrous blind date – wind up forced to spend a weeklong vacation in Africa, with their kids in tow. Its title comes from the fact that they have stumbled on to a trip devoted to strengthening the bonds of “blended” families (get it?). The scenario is right out of the pilot for a particularly bad sitcom and sadly yields just as many laughs.
Much like virtually Sandler’s entire filmography (aside from his intermittent detours into drama), Blended goes for cheap, unimaginative laughs whenever possible and features the kind of over-the-top physical and scatological humor that a 12-year-old would conjure. In short, its repertoire consists almost exclusively of stereo-typically derived gags and a preoccupation with painting its two leads as comically mismatched people who just might be perfect for each other. The story smacks of predictability and desperation at every turn, to the point that moviegoers may almost feel Sandler turning towards the camera and prompting them to laugh on cue.
However, even amidst its sea of lame jokes and hackneyed plot turns, Blended does have a few bright spots. Barrymore is as likable as ever on screen, though this is truly more of a testament to her natural charisma than the mediocre film she’s trapped in. Likewise, the subplots involving Barrymore and the young actresses portraying Sandler’s daughters (Bella Thorne, Emma Fuhrmann, Alyvia Alyn Lind) lend the film its few moments of genuine heart, infusing the film with a sentimentality that (once again) clashes with the sophomoric “comedy” around them. It’s like Sandler’s Click (a true tearjerker masquerading as a laughfest) all over again.
Joel McHale, Wendi McLendon-Covey and Abdoulaye NGom also provide solid support in minor roles, but it is Terry Crews (The Expendables) that emerges as the sole comedic highlight of Blended. Crews plays the MC at the African resort where the lead characters are staying, and just as he memorably did in Mike Judge’s Idiocracy, the actor embraces both his imposing physical presence and fearless ridiculousness. His all-too-brief appearances throughout the film serve as a necessary respite from Sandler’s tired antics and yet remind viewers at just how little Blended truly does with its fish-out-of-water premise.
Director Frank Coraci previously brought the world Sandler vehicles like The Wedding Singer, The Waterboy and Click, but sadly, Blended is the low point of the duo’s collaboration thus far. With a better script and a more interested, top-of-his-game male lead, Blended could have been a sweet and funny story that would have played as a modern take on The Brady Bunch. As is, it’s just an excuse for Sandler – at his own admission – to take a lavish vacation in Africa. If only the film that resulted was able to capture even the smallest percentage of the fun he must have had.
Rating: 1.5 out of 5
Blended stars Adam Sandler, Drew Barrymore, Kevin Nealon, Wendi McLendon-Covey and Terry Crews. It is directed by Frank Coraci and is now in theaters.