User reviews

Ever hear of a movie that is suppose to be the extreme of one sort or another that doesn't live up to its billing? Little Nicky is one of those films. Roasted upon its release as one of the worst films of all time Little Nicky turns out to be an okay comedy. Actually this is the kind of movie that has all of the ingredients to be a screamingly funny comedy, but somehow things don't work.

Nicky, the son of the devil and an angel is sent to make his way in the world while one of his many brothers tries to take throne of Hell from their father. Casting everyone from Harvey Keitel to Rodney Dangerfield this is a film that fits into the Adam Sandler universe since several characters from some of his other films appear. Its a film that on star power alone should work, but it never catches fire. Sure there are laughs but on the whole nothing ever hangs together to form a full movie. I've seen the film several times and can't figure out what went wrong. Even Adam Sandler as Nicky, in one of the worst portrayals in screen history, isn't the reason this doesn't work. There is something else, some other reason.

Still its worth seeing if you like okay comedies. It never scales the heights its ideas and bits say it should be reaching. If its on try it and see if its for you, you certainly could do worse.

rental shelf, but even he has made the occasional winner, one of the best being Little Nicky. For some reason it's panned over other far worse ones he's churned out of the gumball machine (ever re-watch Billy Madison? What the hell were we/they thinking back then?), but when you part the curtains of Sandler Stigma™ and really just look at what the movie is in itself, it's a hoot. What other film can boast Rodney Dangerfield playing Harvey Keitel's dad in heell? That's right, Keitel is the red beast himself, coming down off a ten thousand year unholy monarchy, with no plans to retire. This infuriates his two wicked sons, played by Tiny Lister (must have been a different devil-mom) and a slick Rhys Ifans. They depart the inferno and set up their own devilish franchise up in New York City, raising all kinds of hell, the most amusing of which is lowering the drinking age to ten (where were these guys when I was that age?) and forcing Regis Philbin to say naughty things on live primetime. Their younger, slightly retarded brother Nicky (Sandler) must pursue them on their haunts and trap them in a magic flask before it's too late. Dumb concept, right? Sure it is, but try and tell me it's not hilarious m, especially with the amount of inane visual gags and trippy production design these folks have dreamed up. Between Hitler dressed as a slutty maid getting a pineapple repeatedly rammed up his rectum to a giant gorilla massaging mammaries that have sprouted on a dude's head like fleshy succulent pigtails, there's no shortage of wtf moments. Sander picks an odd character mask as usual, sporting a metal-head swoosh of a haircut and lisping his way through his lines sounding like he had a stroke from watching Billy Madison dailies one too many times. Patricia Arquette is in it, as a sweet, shy girl he meets topside and the closest thing to a sane person you'll find in this madhouse. Cameos abound, from usual Sandler cronies like Jon Lovitz, Rob Schneider, Kevin Nealon, Dana Carvey, Peter Dante and Allen Covert, to randoms like Michael McKean, Clint Howard, Laura Harring, Henry Winkler, Ozzy Osborne, Reese Witherspoon as Nicky's angelic mom and Quentin Tarantino as a blind preacher. I don't really know what else to say about the thing, because its it's own thing and you either rock out with it, or you don't. Visually it's never boring, the script was conceived in the toilet and jumped straight to the gutter, the performances are all garishly obnoxious and the overall tone is that of an sixth grade birthday party gone rogue.

The movie is super funny, wacky, and if you love dark humor, it is the movie for you...HOWEVER, the movie is totally ruined by Sandler's horrible acting I swear, it gets to the point you want stip watching the movie. If they would have picked a better actor or someone else with a funny face, maybe this movie would have been great. If you can bear Sandler's pathetic acting, you might enjoy the movie. Props for the dog character, he is the real star.

I like Adam Sandler a lot. I think he is very funny and I enjoy a lot of his movies. This one, however, was a bit too much for me. He's made some very bad films in addition to the good ones, and usually I know when to skip them. Based on the previews I've seen and what I've heard, I believe he's made worse films than this, but luckily I didn't waste my time with any of those. This is his worst film that I've seen.

The story is predictable and dull. They only focus on the jokes here, as it is one of those very low comedy type of movies. Those can be entertaining at times, but this one was not. The jokes are not even funny! I don't remember laughing a single time. It's all just a bunch of bad jokes, one after another, in an almost incomprehensibly bad movie. Far too over the top for me. Do not recommend.

Little Nicky is the story of the son of an angel and "the" devil. It is not a smart comedy but it is hilarious and a good time. Just hang back and enjoy. It is definitely funny and the cameo's make it worth it. Stars like Ozzy and a good sh*t-ton of heavy metal music make for a good time. If you have some portion of morbid humor and like some heavy metal, I'd say bring some friends over and have a good time.

This movie is so bad it's one of the handful movies in my life I stopped watching in the middle. I wish it was possible to give zero Stars here.

I must be missing something here. I was under the impression that this was some kind of comedy. Evidently not. Oh well, at least there are a raft of top class actors and comedians queuing up for cameos and supporting roles – maybe they will be able to inject some class into proceedings. Nothing doing there either, I'm afraid.

This is rubbish. Thoughtless, childish pap that adds considerable credence to the notion that Adam Sandler is as overrated as he is irritating. It is a sad state of affairs when filmmakers believe they can simply unleash this goofy, rubber-faced moron on a trusting and frankly deluded public and gleefully scoop up gazillions of dollars in takings. But why wouldn't they think that? Sandler is a veritable Box Office cash cow.

This has been a mystery to me for years. Sandler is a comedian who (in his films at least) HAS NO GAGS! Not only does he not do jokes, but his physical comedy is pretty ordinary too. His success is based purely on the pathos generated by the losers he plays. The man is obviously no mug. He has worked out that producers are falling over themselves to offer him twenty million bucks a throw to fall over a couple of times and wear bad 1980s clothing. Nice work if you can get it.

I will grudgingly give him The Wedding Singer where he fortuitously stumbled on some decent chemistry with Drew Barrymore, but aside from that his movies are generally overly sentimental and woefully short on substance.

Little Nicky is another opportunity to build a weak, convoluted story around one of Sandler's lovable schmucks. Well they got it half right. His eponymous 'hero' (and I use the term in its loosest possible sense) is certainly a schmuck, but he is about as lovable as herpes.

Nicky is the youngest son of the Devil (Harvey Keitel. Really.). When Dad reaches pensionable age (10,000 years in this case), he is supposed to retire and hand over the reins to an heir. Not believing any of his diabolical offspring suitable for the job, he decides to stay in charge himself. This incenses his other two sons (Rhys Ifans and Tom Lister Jr) and they decide to snub life in Hades in favour of running riot up on Earth. Their departure freezes over the gates of Hell and begins to physically debilitate old Satan. If parity cannot be restored and the naughty boys returned down below, Harvey is in serious danger of disappearing into thin air (which, it strikes me, would actually be a blessing).

Anyway, sweet-natured, not-evil-enough-to-rule, Earth-virgin Nicky is dispatched up to retrieve his errant brothers. With hilarious consequences, obviously. Well, I guess that's the theory.

But the expected barrage of fish-out-of-water stereotypes never materialises. Instead, there are a series of bizarre, contrived scenes many of which centre around the toilet habits of an annoying talking dog.

The biggest problem (and there are many) is Sandler. His previous characters may have been absurdly insipid and one-dimensional, but at least he injected them with a modicum of warmth. A thirty-four year old man shuffling about in a duffel coat and trying to portray a blushing adolescent is more frightening than cute. He is severely hindered by an appalling nasal whine that may have sounded amusing on a thirty second Saturday Night Live skit, but begins to grate when affected for the entire duration of a ninety-minute feature. He sounds like a cross between a hood on the Sopranos and Muttley out of the Wacky Races. In short, the character is decidedly unlovely, borderline creepy and, most importantly, relentlessly unfunny.

No supporting cast can sustain a lead like that. Keitel, Rodney Dangerfield, Quentin Tarantino, Patricia Arquette and Reese Witherspoon (as a Clueless-cliché angel) do not disgrace themselves but won't see this as their finest hour. Ifans at least looks like he's approached the project with his tongue firmly in his cheek. His perpetual look of amused bewilderment almost made me smile. Almost.

Dreadful.

4/10

The unwritten law from the Ben Stiller Book of Comedy, is Play It Straight and They Will Laugh; and Woody Allen will tell you that Less is More. Unfortunately, neither Stiller nor Allen were involved with this movie, which in the final analysis, is much `less.' As in `witless,' `tasteless' and `humorless.' Oh, it'll make you laugh at times, but you'll hate yourself in the morning for it. Simply put, in regards to credible comedy, `Little Nicky,' directed by Steven Brill, comes in somewhere near the bottom of the food chain, cinematically speaking. One of the running gags in this film has Nicky responding metaphorically to whomever, when they ask where he comes from, `The south-- the ‘deep' south--' Which is somehow ironic, because that's exactly where this kind of humor seemingly originates, and belongs.

Satan (Harvey Keitel) has come to the end of his ten-thousand year reign in Hell, and has called together his three sons, Adrian (Rhys Ifans), Cassius (Tom `Tiny' Lister Jr.) and Little Nicky (Adam Sandler), to announce which of the three he has chosen to succeed him as ruler of the Nether world for the next ten-thousand years. Suffice to say that his decision is not well received by the boys, however-- at least not by Adrian and Cassius, who rebel by bolting from this most southern of regions to take up residence in the topside world of the mortals, the souls of whom it is their inherent duty to corrupt. But in so doing, they inadvertently freeze the fire at the gates of Hell, rendering them impassable to all the fallen souls who would enter there; and so it is destined to remain until the two return, which they are not likely to do of their own accord. The situation quickly takes it's toll on the health of Satan, who in his suddenly weakened state is unable to pursue the errant pair himself, and since only a spawn of Satan can match up to another spawn of Satan, the job falls to Little Nicky-- the only other one around who meets the criteria-- who is summarily dispatched to earth to collect his brothers and bring them back down to Hell, whereupon the fire will be rekindled, the gates reopened, and all will once again be...well...'bad.' It's a tough assignment, though, as Nicky's brothers have the ability to possess anyone in the world they so choose, which will make identifying them something of a problem. Not to worry, however; Satan is providing some help for Nicky-- a dog named Mr. Beefy (voice of Robert Smigel), who has experience among the mortals, and will be able to help Nicky negotiate what to him will be virgin territory. And with that, Nicky is off on his quest-- and the laughs begin. Not!

The story itself is a flight of fancy, a fantasy, which on paper at any rate probably had some possibilities; if only it had been placed in more capable hands. Brill was given a golden opportunity to deliver a movie with some real snap and zing to it, but he dropped the ball, big time, and instead presents the material with little imagination, and the result is a very basic what-you-see-is-what-you-get type of film. There's just nothing beneath the surface at all. Sure, it's a comedy (and that's debatable), but even a film that's not supposed to be taken seriously has to have some substance to it, and this one does not. It almost seems as if Brill approached the project with the attitude that Adam Sandler's presence, alone, would make whatever he put up on the screen work. Bad miscalculation. Scenes that could have been clever, or at least mined for some real humor, are for the most part simply crude, and in most cases lack any redeeming merit whatsoever. His biggest mistake, though, was putting all his eggs in one basket by expecting Sandler to carry the day (and the film) just by showing up. He apparently didn't understand that Sandler is an actor who needs a director who can keep him on task-- he needs direction, and plenty of it-- and he didn't get it from Brill.

Sandler has been better-- much better; as Robbie, in `The Wedding Singer,' for instance, or even as Bobby, in `The Waterboy.' Both films in which he created a character that was at least credible or viable within the context of the story. But his `Nicky' just doesn't get the job done, because he fails to even really create a character at all, but instead `plays at' creating a character, which is something else entirely. Someone-- and the most likely suspect would be Brill-- should have told him that merely contorting his face and exaggerating the perpetually pubescent whine in his voice is not what it takes to `create' a real character. And, regardless of the genre in which the actor is playing, it's absolutely essential that the character he presents is real and believable within the environment and the setting of the story. If he's playing a devil in Hell, that devil had better be real, or it's simply not going to work; and this film proves it. And lowering the bar to go after cheap laughs can't save it, either.

The supporting cast includes Rodney Dangerfield (Lucifer), Patricia Arquette (Valerie), Peter Dante (Peter), Jonathan Loughran (John), Dana Carvey (Referee), Jon Lovitz (Peeper), Kevin Nealon (Gatekeeper), Michael McKean (Chief of Police), Quentin Tarantino (Deacon) and Reese Witherspoon (Holly). A real artist will earn every laugh he gets, and it's genuine; it's something real, and it's worthwhile. This film generates some laughs, to be sure-- but they're not earned, and consequently, they're plastic, and they're disposable. And yes, there IS a difference. Any doubts, just ask Ben Stiller or Woody Allen. Or Steve Martin; or Lucille Ball, Joan Davis, Red Skelton or W.C. Fields. And while you're at it, maybe you can pass on what you learn to Adam Sandler. It may help. 1/10.

When I first watched this movie, I was cracking up! And it was one of those incidents in which I was in a crowded theater where I was pretty much the ONLY one laughing at most of the gags! It wasn't exactly embarrassing, but kind of weird. Then again, most of the people that came to see it were mothers and fathers with little children. Please ignore the PG-13 rating--this is NOT a movie for the young ones! I think anyone who has seen Sandler's previous films should know that by now. His sense of humor may be immature, but that doesn't mean it's appropriate for little eyes to see.

I watched this movie again, after I bought the DVD. First of all, I was impressed to discover the cool Easter eggs! It's actually the first DVD to be presented in InfiniFilm. But since it was used as an Easter egg, it wasn't credited as the first InfiniFilm feature. Well, as I learned a lot more about the behind-the-scenes work on this movie; mostly involving special effects, makeup, costume and set design; I gained a better respect for those who were responsible for making "Little Nicky." I thought of it as more than a shallow comedy. It's obvious that the producers of Sandler's previous films didn't have to bend over backwards to produce any flashy effects--in fact, most of them were made on a modest budget.

However, the laughs faded away a little. Since this is a silly, superficial comedy, don't expect to pick up on any subtle humor that you might've missed the first time around. I always found Sandler's schtick very silly and meaningless. But he's one of those guys who can make me laugh at things for no apparent reason. Almost as if I'm laughing AT him. I've seen "Billy Madison" countless times and I still roll with laughter every time. But with "Little Nicky" most of the jokes that I found silly-funny on my initial viewing were just silly on my second.

One thing to anticipate is a stellar cast. You'll be surprised at the kind of celebrities that pop up in the cameos. Some of the big-name stars include Harvey Keitel, Patricia Arquette, Quentin Tarantino, Reese Witherspoon and (my personal hero) Rodney Dangerfield! And that's just to name a few. It would also help if you've seen Sandler's past films, especially in one particular scene with one of our mystery cameos. You'll be treated to a great inside joke. And of course, expect to see many of Sandler's regulars including Allen Covert, Clint Howard, Peter Dante, Blake Clark and Jon Lovitz.

"Little Nicky" is not a thoughtful piece and will probably do nothing to contribute to mankind. But it's a very funny comedy that I simply advise you don't watch over and over again. You'll enjoy it a lot the first time! Of course, the DVD has some really cool features, so if anything pick that up.

My score: 7 (out of 10)

I have never seen a movie turned into such a piece of garbage by one character. I don't mean Adam Sandler the actor, I mean the way over the top way his character was presented. I've never seen such extreme overplaying of a character. He's a whining, stammering, bent-over, fidgeting, totally annoying basket case of humanity with his long hair plastered down over his face, and on and on. It was like the creators of the movie stayed up way too late dreaming up ways to make this character pathetic.

This might have been an ok movie, but every time Sandler's character came into a scene (most scenes), I just cringed by the pathetic overacting. After seeing this movie, I hated Sandler for a while until I recalled him in The Water Boy, a movie I enjoyed. It wasn't Sandler so much as the incredibly stupid way he was directed and how his character was designed.

There was a lot to like about the movie otherwise, but that character kept coming in so often, that the overall enjoyment of the movie was completely ruined.

I guess you might like Little Nickey if you enjoy the sights and sounds of a shivering miniature poodle that won't stop whining and barking for a second. On second thought the poodle isn't as obnoxious.

Words fail me. This movie totally stank thanks to that one character.

Geeze, this movie got the shaft! I thought it was a lot of fun and pretty funny. The Ozzy Osbourne line, 'Here, kill him with theeees' cracks me up every time. I don't know why this is disdained so much. Sure, it's no "Rushmore", but it has its place and I enjoy it for what it is--a kind-hearted, dumb, funny comedy in the vein of "Dumb & Dumber" or "Tommy Boy"--both classic movies in and of themselves. In that category, I give "Little Nicky" a 10! Blow-hards and elitists need not apply....

Now this is the one Adam Sandler movie I do not get the rating off I mean if people like stuff like chuck and Larry and Happy Gilmore then why the hell do they not like this. Anyway the movie centers around Nicky a very geeky devils son who is sent on a mission to get his evil brother back for his Daddy Satan. The film is a must watch for Adam Sandler fans and just goes to show that people take movies too seriously now days like Adam Sandler movies are meant to be watched and after you watch them you are meant to say "man that was a no brain comedy". Overall watch this movie for a laugh and not particularly for anything else. I rate this film a fair 73% for making me laugh.

The only reason I'm not giving this a one is because it annoyingly made me laugh when he made the Deep South joke. But the actual film was stupid, crap and not funny, fully wouldn't recommend. Adam sandler has made some funny films but this definitely isn't one of them.

This film is about one of the sons of Satan coming to Earth to prevent a disaster of apocalyptic proportions--though why Satan and Nicky would want to prevent this is beyond me.

Adam Sandler is talented and has made some decent films. However, he's also made a lot of crap. For every good film like THE WEDDING SINGER or THE WATERBOY, he's made lame films like an unnecessary remake like MR. DEEDS (with Sandler having the nerve to try to replicate a film classic that starred the great Gary Cooper) as well as LITTLE NICKY. Sure, there are a few films that fall towards the middle (CLICK comes to mind), but in general his films tend to either be very good or very, very bad. I am a high school teacher and can tell you that most kids seem to like all of Sandler's films, but if he ever wants to address a wider audience or be seen as an artist and not a buffoon, a few more films like LITTLE NICKY will kill these dreams forever! Of course, he's richer than the Pope, so perhaps he doesn't mind that he often makes crap.

Why is LITTLE NICKY so bad? Well, the biggest problem is that is just isn't very funny and often substitutes dirty and smarmy material for real laughs. While making a comedy about Satan and Hell is already a tough job, it could have come off much, much better (such as the case of BILL AND TED'S BOGUS JOURNEY). Here, it just seems like a film written by 7 year-olds--the sort of kids that might find Bevis and Butthead's humor a bit too sophisticated and cerebral!! Crude jokes (such as an obnoxious and sexually obsessed dog as well as a scene where demons shove pineapples into Hitler's rectum) almost always fall flat and at almost no time does the script head towards the clever or the funny. It's just crude and nasty.

Low, stupid and completely without value. Heaven help us, a lot of people amazingly think this is a GOOD film!! Look at all the people who actually gave this crud a score of 10 and act as if it's comparable to films such as GONE WITH THE WIND or DR. STRANGELOVE!!! This is ample evidence that, in general, people are stupid and will pay to see anything! In addition, the fact that people like this is proof that the predictions in the film IDIOCRACY aren't too far from true today!

By the way, you might find it very interesting to look at the statistics for the ratings. About as many people loved it as hated it. However, if you look by demographics such as age, you'll see that the older you get, the more likely you'll hate the film. I am now 44, so I can't imagine hating this film even more when I am in my 60s! In addition, the top reviewers on IMDb and IMDb staff rate the film significantly lower than the general public.

For those who said that this was a movie for Sandler fans only...what b.s. I enjoyed Billy Madison, Happy Gilmore, Wedding Singer, but Little Nicky was downright awful. Perhaps the joke is on me, as I paid to see the darn thing. I kept waiting for the film to hit its stride, make me laugh...but unfortunately, that moment never came.

Some silly special effects (talking dog), but haven't movie-goers seen this before?

Sandler fans...wait til this one comes out on video, or maybe cable...which could be in a few weeks...2 out of 10.

When the time came for the Devil to hand over hell to one of his heirs and retire, he decided to keep the power for himself. But they didn't like it, and they decide to run to Earth to create their own hell there. Because the children were on Earth, the Devil began to fall apart. He sends his younger and beloved son Nikki after the rebellious brothers.

Satan has decided to stay in charge of Hell for a few more years, a decision that enrages two of his sons (Adrian and Cassius) who decide to create their own Hell on Earth and rule there instead. Whenever they leave Hell, Satan's powers begin to fade and has less than a week before he will be destroyed. With no choice but to send his third, weaker son, Satan sends Nicky to Earth to capture his brothers and bring them back to Hell and restore the norm. However the simple and naïve Nicky struggles to cut it in the real world.

I will always give Adam Sadler films a go because I often find just about enough moments of inspired lunacy among the puerile and pretty unfunny material. Sadly, this outing sees such a terrible plot combined with awful acting, unfunny writing, tired special effects and crude joking and almost no moments that took me by surprise and made me laugh. Instead the film is just plain stupid with very few laughs in it at all. Of course it may well appeal to some with its silly humour and its silly crude joking but personally it was pretty laugh free and the whole idea of the film was too dumb and silly to really work. The actual plot is never a really strong aspect of any Sadler film but here it is just all over the place. It is not that it makes no sense, it is more that it lacks any sense of fun at all and the dark tone is totally misjudged and the usual moments of inspired craziness is really limited to one or two moments (the best being the Fonz covered in bees!).

The cr*p script is not helped at all by a cast that is either rubbish or wasted. Sadler himself falls into the 'rubbish' camp with a performance that is like his usual mugging but even more unbearable. With his twisted expression and nasty voice, he was actually painful to watch – and this is not based on a hatred of Sadler (I loved him in Punchdrunk a few days ago) it is based on the fact that this is a terrible performance with nothing but a terrible idea and a terrible character to work with. The support cast is made up of plenty of well-known faces but few are used well at all and too many of them are embarrassing. Keitel falls into the latter category and he has a thankless role that is not worthy of his talent. Ifans and Lister are given hard work by mostly doing voice work with poor dialogue (in their heads) and they were not funny at all. Arquette is given nothing to do at all but still manages to be lame and annoying. The various cameos are mixed – Taratino is just dumb; Dangerfield is OK but not given enough time; Weathers, Witherspoon, Witherspoon and others are all given nothing to do other than show their faces but Lovitz and Schneider at least provide some unexpected weirdness in very minor roles.

Overall, Sadler films are normally average at best but I must say that I found this to be devoid of all but the slightest hint of the inspired humour that he can often create. The story is stupid and silly, the acting both bad and embarrassing, the script filled with misfiring jokes that are mostly in bad taste as well as being unfunny (a bad combination). A real waste of time that will only appeal to the most die-hard fans of Sadler and those that only like their comedy to be very basic indeed.

Let me just tell you the plot while I drown my sorrows: The son of Satan (played by Adam Sandler) is sent by his father to New York City in order to retrieve his two trouble-making brothers. While doing so, he makes friends, meets his mother and saves the planet.

Where do I begin? Well, this piece of garbage is utterly HORRIBLE. It has no funny moments, Sandler makes a complete fool of himself and they even take the time to rip off Sandler's masterpiece "Happy Gilmore" in an admittedly clever cameo by Carl Weathers.

But the biggest sin of all is the wasted and I do mean WASTED all-star cast that includes everyone from Ozzy Osbourne to Rodney Dangerfield. How in the world did anyone associated with the making of this bomb think that this would be funny, let alone watchable? Sandler is a good actor although I do consider him an acquired tastes and this is definitely not his finest hour. Another problem is that the film looks incredibly ugly. The set design looks like the love den of a Ridley Scott/Tim Burton enthusiast. You also know your in trouble when every single character is ugly and stupid.

I want you to consider this a PSA in addition to a review: avoid this stinker at all costs. You have been warned.

Little Nicky is a love it or hate it movie... Personally, I love it. It's silly, cheesy and doesn't pretend to be anything else. From the sarcastic dog's snoring to the Chicago record to Quentin Tarantino's blind preacher, it's got plenty of proper laughs. Yes, it's crude, but it's clearly not made to be sophisticated - the special effects are terrible and Adam Sandler is at his cheesiest best. That's what gives this movie its charm - the fact that it doesn't take itself too seriously.

Let's not forget the soundtrack - personally, I think it's probably one of the most awesome out there - with everything from P.O.D to AC/DC, Foo Fighters/Dave Grohl, Scorpions, Van Halen and more.

Go into this movie with high expectations & a view that everything has to have the utmost artistic integrity, special effects and the best acting and you'll be bitterly disappointed. Watch it with an open mind for silly, dark comedy and b-grade charm and you'll probably be pleasantly surprised!

*Sigh*, looking through my VHS collection and biting the bullet to re-watch this piece of sh*t was the easy part. Within the first 3 minutes you already know what your in for, a peeping tom dies and goes to hell to get humped by a actor dressed like a big bird, meanwhile 'I'm your boogie man' is playing in the background. We're introduced to Nicky who 'jams' with some large random weapon, his dad's assistant is basically used as the introduction to the plot, his dad (the devil), played by Harvey Keitel for some odd reason, is making the decision on who should be his successor for then next 10,000 years. It never explains why someones 'in office' for 10,000 years but there's not much need to care anyways. He also remarks on how Nicky was pretty until his brother hit him in the face with a shovel, foreshadowing his brothers as the antagonists. Basically, his dad declares himself ruler for another 10,000 years and Nicky's 2 brothers go to earth freezing the gate to hell, thus causing the devil to die for some reason(?), Keitel's finger falls off and Nicky starts his journey to return his brothers to hell.

Probably about 10 minutes in now, the first thing that sticks out, is Sander. Sandler, while acceptable in just about all his other movies to this date (excluding that one where he's on a boat.), he's f*cking terrible in this. No words can explain how bad his performance is, its shallow, its half-a*sed, its not funny, its just ridiculously awful. To quote another disappointing movie, the ringer, 'I've seen better acting in porno'. As a whole, the supporting cast is also terrible. Nicky's sidekick i guess you'd say is a talking pit-bull glances at a doorstep that says 'i love acting' on it, he pis*es on it and says 'you love acting, well i love pis*ing', and to make matters even more mind numbingly awful the pis* is cgi'd obviously. Oh thats the next thing, the effects and production. This paragraphs dedicated to acting so let me get back on track. Usual members from the happy Madison gang are here, i've spotted like 4 people that are also in grandmas boy, and other crap flicks like the animal and Mr deeds and crap. Performances are half a*sed too, at most times secondary actor just read a line or two devoid of emotion or any form of acting. One standout role though is Quinton Tarantinos cameo as a blind preacher who appears about 3 times, other then that, nothing.

The production is awful. Hell looks, for lack of a better and less offensive term, retarded. There is around 3 sets I've noticed. Nickys room, the entrance to hell, and the (INSANELY BOTCHED) throne. Nicky's room is literally covered in stickers of heavy metal bands, problem is, i counted like over 9000 Ozzy stickers and one big metallica one, obviously the set designers know nothing about metal, nor the crew/cast. The throne is just like a mass hall, except the size of a small house basement, there's nothing that resembles artistic detail at all, it'd pass for a normal room to me. the gates also stupid, there's some rock like walls and a cheap frozen fire effect for the gate it self, no effort seemed to be used. the sad thing is, the gate is easily the most used. The rest of the sets on earth are one apartment room, a basketball stadium thing(I'm not a sports fan.), a park shoot, and the rest is all sidewalks. Oh yeah hell breaks loose by the end, and the sets turn into cgi awfulness, its so awful that by that point i went on my laptop and started chatting. The CGI is as awful as you'd expect from 1999/2000, but...its used throughout the whole movie. in fact all the special effects in the movie were cgi i noticed, of abysmal quality.

Last thing i'm going to rant about is the script, 'What we're they thinking!?' - avgn. Its a comedy, to be a 'good' comedy, it has to be funny. Unfortantly it isn't, its like a stream of half baked jokes like Nicky spinning his head around to entertain his friends (Oh he's doing the exorcist thing, thats pure comedy.), and Satan sticking a pineapple up Hitler's a*s. At a glance, you'r still likely to ask to your self, 'whats the point.'. The plot it self is rubbish. If two brothers out of hell for some reason make the devil have 'a week' to live, wouldn't another one shorten his life span even more thus making his coming to earth a bad idea. The brothers deceiving the humans is also like 'wut?'. They possess a minister and tell everyone 'let the Sin, be-Gin', to which a completely packed church gets out of their seat and everyone starts cheering. Yeah, thats very likely to happen. These parts are somewhat spaced out, because until like the last 20 minutes, Nicky does nothing but walk around, and do nothing. None of the jokes are funny, the plot is literally insane, its lost in its own continuity also.

i'm not going to spell check this review cause i feel that the movie sucked so bad that it's not worth the time of what i've already written. It sucks, it sucks even on a Adam Sander level. Its not funny, its not entertaining, its just downright lame. Bad script, bad acting, bad story, bad production, bad just about everything. To the mind of a child, its acceptable, but for a audience over 12 (The movies rated pg13 by the way.), its damn near worth destroying. I wouldn't watch this movie again if i were paid too, even for a million, i'd rather have my dignity.

This was a great film and one of the best films of the year, contrary to what so many others say. This is the second most underrated & unappreciated movie of 2000, following Book of Shadows: The Blair Witch 2. There is nothing to not like about this movie, it is virtually non-stop laughs from beginning to end.

Reading some other user's reviews I'm stunned at their disdain and hatred for this great film. People always say that this is no Citizen Kane...well duh...to quote Highlander "There can be only one!". Now I'm not saying that this movie is in the same league as Citizen Kane, but that doesn't mean it's bad. This is an epic Sandler piece, and his funniest to date, and is quite possibly the definitive Sandler film.

Unlike most people, I loathed Big Daddy, writing it off as cheesy and overly sentimental; a one-joke gag stretched beyond its limits. Luckily that does not apply to this film, every aspect of this film is great, from the surprise cameo by "CHUBS" (Carl Weathers) to Harvey Keitel's hilarious turn as Papa Satan. You've gotta love a movie that lets Quentin Tarantino use his "unique" acting "ability" to his advantage in a brilliant performance as the religious zealot. My favorite cameo belongs to B-Movie God Clint Howard...after this movie, I don't think I'll ever look at him the same way again! The Cameos are worth the ticket price alone!

The story was top-notch and was brilliantly executed. This film definitely shows maturity in Adam Sandler and Tim Herlihy's writing abilities, as they created a complex and involving storyline, and great and hilarious characters.

I recommend this film to any film fans. Give this one a shot, regardless of your personal view of Sandler and his talent. Sandler is one of the most underrated and ridiculed acts out there today, which is sad considering his remarkable talent. How many other performers out there today write, produce, and star in their own films?

I give this one * * * * * * out of * * * * *

I have seen every Adam Sandler film ever made. And I love ALL of them! I know that might be controversial. But honestly his movies make me laugh. And one thing his movies all have in common, that I think people fail to see. Is the fact that they all have a sweet feel good ending. And I LOVE that! I'm the biggest Sandler fan ever, and this movie is super funny but probably only for his fans. It's a little silly at times but has tons of funny gags and jokes in it. Also tons of cameos! I highly recommend this to any Sandler fans!

For me it was watching this wreck. If this was supposed to be a comedy, it didn't make me laugh once. The overplayed "stupid boy" Sandler role brought nothing new. I'm glad I didn't waste time on this movie before but sad I did now. This was definitely a low in Sandler's career.