1999 film directed by Dennis Dugan
Big Daddy is a 1999 American comedy film directed by Dennis Dugan, written by Steve Franks, Tim Herlihy, and Adam Sandler from a story conceived by Franks, and produced by Sid Ganis and Jack Giarraputo. The film stars Sandler, Joey Lauren Adams, Jon Stewart, Rob Schneider, Dylan Sprouse, Cole Sprouse, and Leslie Mann, with Allen Covert and Josh Mostel in supporting roles. The plot follows a 32-year-old man who gets dumped by his girlfriend for not accepting responsibility and then tries to be responsible by adopting a five-year-old boy who appears on his doorstep.
Produced by Giarraputo's Jack Giarraputo Productions in association with Out of the Blue... Entertainment, Big Daddy was released in the United States on June 25, 1999, by Columbia Pictures. Despite receiving mixed reviews from critics, the film was a success at the box office, grossing $235 million on a $34 million budget and becoming Sandler's highest-grosser domestically until Hotel Transylvania 2 (2015).[2] The film was nominated for five Razzies and Sandler won the Worst Actor category.[3]
Plot
In New York City, Sonny Koufax is a 32-year-old slacker and law school graduate who hasn't taken the bar exam, works one day a week as a toll booth attendant, has his food delivered by his friend Nazo, and lives off a $200,000 compensation from a minor accident which he was involved in two years prior to the events of the film. His girlfriend Vanessa threatens to break up with him unless he takes more responsibility. His roommate Kevin Gerrity proposes to his podiatrist girlfriend Corinne before he leaves for China to work on a case for his law firm and she accepts. Corinne vehemently dislikes Sonny because he constantly teases her about her former job at Hooters when she was in medical school.
The next day, Sonny wakes up to find Julian McGrath, a five-year-old left at their apartment. A note states that his mother is no longer able to care for him and that Kevin is his biological father. Sonny contacts Kevin who is puzzled by the news. Despite his selfishness and lack of parenting skills, Sonny assures him that he will take care of Julian until Kevin returns from China. To win Vanessa back, Sonny introduces her to Julian. However, he discovers that she is now dating Sid, whom – despite being much older than her – she reveres as more motivated and intelligent with a "five-year plan". After this, Sonny rants about it in a phone call to his father Lenny, who is shocked and infuriated with Sonny for trying to raise a child, due to his irresponsibility.
Becoming frustrated with parenting, Sonny poses as Kevin and takes Julian to his social worker, Arthur Brooks, telling him that Julian should return to his mother. However, Brooks informs Sonny that Julian's mother died of cancer and offers to place Julian into a foster home. Sonny instead decides to raise Julian his own way. They develop a strong bond and Julian helps Sonny find a new girlfriend in Corinne's lawyer sister Layla. Brooks finds a foster home for Julian and leaves messages for Sonny, but is suspicious when he does not respond.
After a meeting at Julian's school Sonny rethinks his parenting methods after Julian's teacher complains about the habits he has developed due to Sonny's influence. He turns Julian's behavior around. Days later, Brooks arrives to find out Sonny impersonated Kevin and threatens to have him arrested by the police officers downstairs if he does not hand over Julian. Sonny complies, but contacts Layla to help take legal action.
In court, Layla, Kevin, and Sonny's lawyer friends Phil and Tommy represent Sonny, while his friends and even Corinne provide positive testimony for Sonny. Julian also testifies and provides information regarding his birth in Toronto, which causes Kevin to silently remember something. Sonny then calls himself to the stand and asks his father to question him. Despite Lenny's fervent belief that he is not father material, Sonny convinces him that he will not fail at being a father. Impressed by Sonny's sincerity, Lenny vouches for him. Nonetheless, the judge states that Sonny should be incarcerated for defrauding the city. Kevin steps up and insists no charges be filed and admits to Corinne about the one-night stand during his and Sonny's trip to Toronto. The judge grants Kevin custody pending a DNA test. Sonny promises Julian that although he cannot be his father, he will always be there for him. He then passes Julian to Kevin and the two start to bond. Sonny still maintains contact with Julian through Kevin, often meeting up with him for activities such as basketball.
One year later, a more mature and responsible Sonny is now a successful lawyer. He is given a surprise birthday party at Hooters by his friends with Kevin, Corinne, and Julian in attendance. It is shown that he is now is married to Layla and they have a baby. With Nazo sticking around for a short time due to his other deliveries, Sonny encounters Vanessa working there as a waitress with Sid working as a cook, revealing that his "five-year plan" did not go as she had hoped. Sonny's friends and Layla celebrate Sonny's birthday.
Cast
- Adam Sandler as Sonny Koufax, an unmotivated slacker and law school graduate who becomes Julian's guardian.
- Joey Lauren Adams as Layla Maloney, a lawyer, Corinne's sister, and Sonny's new girlfriend.
- Jon Stewart as Kevin Gerrity, a lawyer who is Sonny's roommate.
- Allen Covert as Phil D'Amato, a lawyer friend of Sonny's
- Rob Schneider as Nazo, a foreign delivery guy for Cozy Soup 'n' Burger known for his very bad deliveries who is one of Sonny's friends.[a]
- Josh Mostel as Arthur Brooks, Julian's social worker.
- Dylan and Cole Sprouse as Julian McGrath, the biological son of Kevin.
- Leslie Mann as Corinne Maloney, a podiatrist and Kevin's fiancé.
- Jonathan Loughran as Mike, a lawyer friend of Sonny's.
- Peter Dante as Tommy Grayton, a lawyer friend of Sonny's and Phil's boyfriend.
- Kristy Swanson as Vanessa, Sonny's ex-girlfriend.
- Joseph Bologna as Lenny Koufax, Sonny's father who is a lawyer currently living in Florida.
- Steve Buscemi as a homeless guy who keeps encountering Sonny and who has a father in the military.
In addition, Carmen De Lavallade appears as the judge[b] during the custody hearing, Geoffrey Horne appears as Vanessa's current boyfriend Sid, while other Adam Sandler film repeat regulars include Edmund Lyndeck as an elderly bar patron named Mr. Herlihy who claims that Sonny "fights like a girl", Steven Brill as lawyer Ted Castellucci who assists Brooks at the custody hearing, Sandler's wife Jackie Sandler as a waitress at the bar Sonny frequents and his niece and nephew Jillian and Jared Sandler as two people named Jillian and Jared. Dennis Dugan has an uncredited appearance as a reluctant trick-or-treat giver.
Production
Principal photography took place in New York from September 24 to December 21, 1998. Pete Davidson auditioned for a role.[4]
Reception
Critical response
On Rotten Tomatoes, Big Daddy has an approval rating of 39% based on 93 reviews, and an average rating of 4.9/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "Adam Sandler acquits himself admirably, but his charm isn't enough to make up for Big Daddy's jarring shifts between crude humor and mawkish sentimentality."[5] On Metacritic the film has a weighted average score of 41 out of 100, based on reviews from 26 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[6] Audiences surveyed by CinemaScore gave the film a grade B+.[7]
Nathan Rabin of The A.V. Club called it "Sandler's best movie", noting that "Sandler possesses an innocence that makes the mean-spiritedness inherent in much of his work surprisingly palatable."[8] Robert Koehler of Variety called it "a step forward for Adam Sandler, as well as a strategy to expand his audience. While the loyal male-teen aud[ience] core will not be disappointed with the spate of gags just for them, story contains solid date-movie material."[9]
Kenneth Turan of the Los Angeles Times said: "There's no doubt Sandler is talented, but if he persists in believing that, like Elvis, his presence alone covers a multitude of omissions and inconsistencies, he will squander his gift and make a series of forgettable films in the process."[10] Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times gave the film one-and-a-half out of four stars, describing the main character as "seriously disturbed" and the story as "predictable", although he did praise Joey Lauren Adams's character as "entertaining".[11]
Director Paul Thomas Anderson is a noted fan of the film, considering it one of his favorites.[12]
Accolades
