So, after becoming a gigolo, a teenage girl, an animal and making a lot of copies, Schneider becomes unrapeable. And it works for me.
One thing will dictate whether you'll like this movie: 1 - Rob Schneider. I like him, but he's made some real turkeys (Animal comes to mind), so I was unsure of what to expect. If you don't like him, you probably won't like this. Probably, but not surely, because this is one of his best movies.
Here he enlists the help of a good ensemble cast AND David Carradine, who steals every scene he's in, by playing a parody of himself straight-faced. This is essentially a prison comedy movie, and the best one I've seen since "Mean Machine" and "Life".
This time, instead of becoming a Stapler as his previous movies would indicate, he becomes a martial arts expert in order to cope with life in prison. You know, because he doesn't want to get raped. That's pretty much his only agenda, of course until he gets to know the inmates better and the usual clichés unwhirl.
The irony in seeing the diminutive actor kicking more ass than Chuck Norris is what makes this movie so entertaining, and in a way, even inspiring (if completely unbelievable). There are several laugh out loud scenes here, including one in which he "bans" rape from prison.
The only real problem with this film, aside from being deliciously silly and a tad too long, is that is pretty much divided in two extremely different parts, the buildup and the actual prison scenes. But in the end all is well, because laughter is what Schneider wanted, and that's precisely what he got out of me with "Big Stan".
So, good job, Rob, and try to keep it up.
