Grown Ups

Hollywood has lost the art of being funny. Mainly because everything has been done beyond the subtle. Short attention spans, filth masquerading as entertainment and too much freedom without consequences has reduced what's seen as funny to banal dick jokes.

You know what's worse? Reading the sanctimonious crap written here in this forum. I hate that some contributors want to coerce our agreement to their opinions by suggesting we have no taste if we disagree.

Well, there's plenty of rubbish being peddled as comedy but like I said, I've seen worse.

The overriding feeling I got was that the cast was having fun. Seemed natural with lots of ad lib. So what? I had fun too. So what!

Very mixed reviews on here, but just got around to watching this movie for first time. It's light hearted and quite enjoyable. The mix of characters keeps you engaged until the end.

I had very low expectations for Grown Ups, so I was surprised that I actually liked this movie. The jokes are predictable, and the plot is almost non-existent, but I laughed more than I thought I would. I also enjoyed seeing a group of friends just hang out on the screen. Adam Sandler is a genius. He took a vacation with his buddies and got paid to do it.

The stage curtains open ...

I know others didn't care for this movie, but I really enjoyed it. It just goes to show, not everyone likes the same things, and that's okay. I laughed throughout - almost like I was there with them.

When the beloved coach of their childhood champion basketball team passes away, 5 friends since youth come together with their families for the funeral. Each of them having taken very different roads to end up in different jobs and financial statuses. But, all of them still share the same background, same basic sense of humor and similar family problems. They're friends, and even after all these years, they don't miss a beat.

This isn't one of Adam Sandler's best movies, but it is one of his most down-to-earth and casual films. It really is like old friends hanging out together, joking around and having fun. It is this kind of humor, the kind you have when you're with your best friends and just enjoying the time together. On the strength of this comedy type is where this movie excels. It handles most of the subject matter realistically, with some over-the-top moments - ie: the breast pump scenes, and the hanging by your feet from a zip line at the water park (which, of course, they would never let you do), but that just adds to the overall feel. The various family dynamics are entertaining - for example, between Kurt McKenzie (Chris Rock) and his mother-in-law. And each actor brings his own brand of humor effectively to the screen.

I had a fun time with this movie - I've already seen it more than once and am sure to watch it again. This is a recommend for me.

Pros: 1. The film contains a heart-warming message to value family and family-time, in addition to not taking your loved ones for granted. Which is what you want from this type of comedy.

2. Adam Sandler (Lenny Feder), Kevin James (Eric Lamonsoff), Chris Rock (Kurt McKenzie), David Spade (Marcus Higgins) and Rob Schneider (Rob Hilliard) all have amazing chemistry together, it's obvious they're good friends off screen.

3. The comedy entails the friends ripping on each other. Not only does it produce hilarious moments, but it feels firmly grounded in reality as that's how male friends are.

Cons: 1. The stock score enlisted to ram home emotions the film wants you to feel is annoying and insulting as the film clearly feels the audience incapable of understanding context.

2. All of the main characters get together because of their high school coach's death, but after the first 15 minutes, it's quickly forgotten about. It's obviously used as a cheap plot device to get the movie going as it has no lasting impact on the movie.

3. Most of the soundtrack is stale and seems as if it was used solely to fill up the silence.

4. Steve Buscemi (Wiley) is criminally underused as he's just brought in as a minor side character towards the end.

5. The messaging, though commendable, is rather forced via its execution.