Little Nicky (2000)
Director(s): Steven Brill
Writer(s): Tim Herlihy, Adam Sandler, Steven Brill
Starring: Adam Sandler, Patricia Arquette, Harvey Keitel
How cool is this that I finally get to talk about my boy, the great ADAM SANDLER on the FearTastic Vault? I mean, the man is our generation’s Jerry Lewis, I don’t even care if you’re a fan or not, it’s not even up for discussion on the impact Sandler has had in the comedy world for better or for worse. You can comment on the quality of his movies and point out which ones are good, bad, terrible, corny, etc. but the man has already cemented his legacy so move on haters because I truly admire this man and how much he’s impacted the comedic landscape. Although the man proved he also has also has some SERIOUS acting chops under his belt as well, I’m going to focus more of his goofball entries that made him famous since it’s a nice segue to the flick I’m highlighting in this entry.
The year was 2000, I was still rockin’ puka shells and Hurley shirts (as most kids listening to Blink-182 did back in those days) and Adam Sandler was riding at high with a string of hits starting in 1996 with Billy Madison, Happy Gilmore, Wedding Singer, etc. The man was starting to get into a rhythm with his style of slapstick, immature (I mean that in the best kind of way) and VERY quotable sort of comedic style that captured the hearts of teenagers everywhere but what was interesting was that he dabbled in different genres with the same sort of comedy! Sometimes he was a romantic, other times a sports star but in 2000, a trailer dropped where he took his brand of comedy in a completely new direction, RIGHT TO HELL.
That’s right, the premise of this new flick was that Sandler was playing the Devil’s SON sent to Earth on a mission that would save the world. This was great for many reasons but the top being that this was the first flick that dabbled in the fantasy realm for Sandler, meaning, up to this point, all his movies were more grounded in the sense that his characters, although silly, were more rooted in real life scenarios but now we’re dealing with demons, magic, talking dogs, etc. so needless to say, it’s also the first time that Sandler got to play with some heavy duty CGI as well (as heavy duty as the year 2000 could provide anyway). Esthetically, the movie already looked very different from his other flicks in the sense that they were leaning into the macabre element of the movie which was great because if you’re going to make a movie about the Devil’s son, you might as well get the fire and brimstone on point, right? Lots of demons, monsters, fire, etc. and then you throw in the ridiculous accent/lisp that Sandler gives his Nicky character and by the time the trailer ended you already know this thing was going to be ridiculously fun.
The plot has Little Nicky being the youngest of three brothers to the Devil played by Harvey Keitel who is about to name his heir to the throne. When it’s announced that he changed his mind about retiring, his two older sons decide it’s time to betray their father and take over Earth and in doing so, they put their father in danger of disappearing so it’s up to Nicky to step up and save his dad and the Earth! While on Earth he befriends some Devil worshipers, a flamboyant roommate and even finds love in an artsy kind-hearted gal that sees him as a “good boy.” From a plot standpoint, it’s obvious that the stakes in this movie are much bigger than the usual Sandler plots of graduating High school or winning over the girl so the theme of having everything over the top in a fantastical way is consistent throughout the movie.
The movie is chalk full of gags that you would expect, with plenty of quotable moments but all with the theme of the macabre with plenty of jokes involving monsters, demons, angels, the use of magic, etc. There are way too many to mention that wouldn’t even be in spoiler territory, but I’ll mention a couple just to get the comedic juices flowing for this review. First, Nicky’s sidekick throughout the flick, Mr. Beefy, voiced by Legendary writer/voice actor Robert Smigel has all the best and most offensive lines throughout the movie as the raunchy, talking bulldog from hell that guides Nicky through the customs of Earth. The fate of Adolf Hitler in Hell and his daily routine/punishment with the Devil is hilarious and VERY fitting/satisfying. Another great thing about this flick is that I believe this is the first time, or at least the first real notable time that there were several throwback from other characters from previous Sandler flicks that made cameos or were mentioned in the movie, meaning, this was the first movie which made me feel that there truly was a SANDLER-verse that was forming, which was WAY ahead of its time (take that MARVEL)!
What’s always impressive about Sandler is his ability to get his friends in his movies in roles no matter how big or small. In this flick alone, you have SNL alum or his usual cohorts like Dana Carvey, Kevin Nealon, Carl Weathers, Jon Lovitz, Henry Winkler, Rob Schneider, etc but then he somehow also convinced actors you had no idea he even had relationships with such as Rhys Ifans, Tom Lister Jr., Rodney Dangerfield, Quentin Tarantino, Reese Witherspoon, Michael McKean, along with others that I don’t want to say for the sake of SPOILERS. That just a testament to what a likable dude (and I say that with pride) Sandler is in the industry since the 90s and continues to be quite the DUDE to this day. I’m glad he dabbled in the macabre to make a solid comedy in the horror world and he’s free to dabble again in that world, anytime!
Life is FAR more interesting when we take interest in things that scare us.