Movie review: That's My Boy
AWKWARD, ridiculous and painfully unfunny, That's My Boy opens with statutory rape, descends into lewd and crude jokes and geriatric sex then finishes with a dose of incest.
In Adam Sandler's latest comedy attempt he sure isn't afraid to tackle some pretty provocative themes.
It's just a shame he does so without tact and less humour than a political press conference.
The film opens with a young Donny Berger, a precocious 13-year-old seduced by his sex-pot teacher Miss McGarricle.
When the relationship goes public, the pregnant Miss McGarricle is sent to the big house while Donny becomes a pop culture icon who is left to raise a son when he is barely an adult himself.
Decades later a broke, washed up and drunken-has been, Donny attempts to reconnect with his estranged son, a neurotic and mentally scarred maths whiz about to get married.
There are a few actual funny moments throughout the film, mostly in throwaway gags and from the supporting characters but these are rare amongst the rest of script which attempts to sledge hammer the audience with stupidity.
Vanilla Ice playing himself as Donny's best mate is the highlight of the film and he plays the role with a cheeky sense of charm and fun.
The rest of the support cast boasts an impressive list of names but none are allowed to shine given the poor taste and badly written material they are given to work with.
It's painful, it's weird, it's crude and ridiculous; this is quite clearly not Sandler's return to his comedy glory days.
With That's My Boy you can beat he will be winning big again at this year's Razzies.
That's My Boy
- Stars: Adam Sandler, Andy Samberg, Leighton Meester, Vanilla Ice
- Director: Sean Anders
- Rated: MA 15+
- Verdict: 1 star
