Big Daddy is a 1999 American comedy film directed by Dennis Dugan and written by Steve Franks, Tim Herlihy and Adam Sandler based on a story by Franks. It stars Sandler, Joey Lauren Adams, Jon Stewart, Rob Schneider, Dylan and Cole Sprouse and Leslie Mann. The plot follows Sonny Koufax, a 32-year-old man who gets dumped by his girlfriend for not accepting responsibility. Sonny then tries to be responsible by adopting a five-year-old boy named Julian who appears on his doorstep.
Big Daddy | |
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Directed by | Dennis Dugan |
Screenplay by | |
Story by | Steve Franks |
Produced by |
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Starring | |
Cinematography | Theo van de Sande |
Edited by | Jeff Gourson |
Music by | Teddy Castellucci |
Production companies |
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Distributed by | Sony Pictures Releasing |
Release date |
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Running time | 93 minutes |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Budget | $34.2 million[1] |
Box office | $234.8 million[1] |
Released on June 25, 1999, the film opened at No. 1 at the box office with a $41.5 million gross in its first weekend. It went on to be the seventh highest-grossing film of 1999, and was Sandler's highest-grosser domestically until Hotel Transylvania 2 (2015).[2] The film was nominated for five Razzies and Sandler won the Worst Actor category.[3]
In New York City, Sonny Koufax is a 32-year-old slacker and law school graduate who hasn't taken the bar exam, works one day a week as a toll booth attendant, and lives off a $200,000 compensation from a minor accident. His girlfriend Vanessa threatens to break up with him unless he takes more responsibility. His roommate Kevin Gerrity proposes to his podiatrist girlfriend Corinne Maloney before he leaves for China to work on a case for his law firm, and she accepts. Corinne vehemently dislikes Sonny, including him constantly teasing her about her former job at Hooters.
The next day, Sonny wakes up to find Julian McGrath, a five-year-old left at their apartment. A note states that his mother is no longer able to care for him and that Kevin is his biological father. Sonny contacts Kevin, who is puzzled by the news. Despite his selfishness and lack of parenting skills, Sonny assures him that he will take care of Julian until Kevin returns from China. To win Vanessa back, Sonny introduces her to Julian. However, he discovers that she is now dating Sid, an elderly man whom, despite being 36 years her senior, she reveres as more motivated and intelligent, with a "five-year plan".
Posing as Kevin, Sonny takes Julian to his social worker Arthur Brooks, telling him that Julian should return to his mother. However, Brooks informs Sonny that Julian's mother died of cancer. Sonny then decides to raise Julian his own way. They develop a strong bond, and Julian helps Sonny find a new girlfriend in Corinne's lawyer sister Layla. Brooks finds a foster home for Julian and leaves messages for Sonny, but is suspicious when he does not respond.
At a meeting at Julian's school, Sonny rethinks his parenting methods after Julian's teacher complains about the habits he has developed due to Sonny's influence. He turns Julian's behavior around, but then Brooks arrives to find out Sonny impersonated Kevin, and threatens to arrest him if he does not hand over Julian. Sonny complies but contacts Layla to help take legal action.
In court, numerous people, including Corinne, testify on Sonny's behalf and tell the judge he is a good father. Julian also testifies and provides information regarding his heritage. Sonny then calls himself to the stand and asks his lawyer father Lenny, visiting from Florida, to question him. Despite Lenny's fervent belief that he is not father material, Sonny convinces him that he will not fail at being a father. Impressed by Sonny's sincerity, Lenny vouches for him. Nonetheless, the unconvinced judge orders Sonny's arrest. Kevin, realizing he truly is Julian's biological father, refuses to press charges against Sonny. Kevin is granted custody of Julian, and Sonny promises him that he will always be there for him. He then passes Julian to Kevin, and they start to bond.
One year later, Sonny has completely turned his life around: he is a successful lawyer, is married to Layla, and they have a child of their own. Sonny is given a surprise birthday party at a Hooters, attended by his friends, including Julian, who is happy in his new family with Kevin and Corinne (and often meets up with Sonny for activities, such as basketball). Sonny then encounters Vanessa working there as a waitress with Sid working as a cook, revealing that his "five-year plan" did not go as she had hoped. Everyone but a frustrated Vanessa celebrates Sonny's birthday.
Principal Photography took place in New York from September 24 to December 21, 1998.
On Rotten Tomatoes, Big Daddy has an approval rating of 39% based on 93 reviews, and an average rating of 4.9/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "Adam Sandler acquits himself admirably, but his charm isn't enough to make up for Big Daddy's jarring shifts between crude humor and mawkish sentimentality."[4] On Metacritic the film has a weighted average score of 41 out of 100, based on reviews from 26 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[5] Audiences surveyed by CinemaScore gave the film a grade B+.[6]
Nathan Rabin of The A.V. Club called it "Sandler's best movie", noting that "Sandler possesses an innocence that makes the mean-spiritedness inherent in much of his work surprisingly palatable."[7] Robert Koehler of Variety called it "a step forward for Adam Sandler, as well as a strategy to expand his audience. While the loyal male-teen aud[ience] core will not be disappointed with the spate of gags just for them, story contains solid date-movie material."[8]
Kenneth Turan of the Los Angeles Times said: "There's no doubt Sandler is talented, but if he persists in believing that, like Elvis, his presence alone covers a multitude of omissions and inconsistencies, he will squander his gift and make a series of forgettable films in the process."[9] Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times gave the film one-and-a-half out of four stars, describing the main character as "seriously disturbed" and the story as "predictable", although he did praise Joey Lauren Adams's character as "entertaining".[10]
Director Paul Thomas Anderson is a noted fan of the film, considering it one of his favorites.[11]
Year | Award | Category | Result |
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2000 | Blockbuster Entertainment Awards | Favorite Actor - Comedy: Adam Sandler | Won |
2000 | Favorite Supporting Actor - Comedy: Dylan and Cole Sprouse | Nominated | |
2000 | Favorite Supporting Actress - Comedy: Joey Lauren Adams | Nominated | |
2000 | BMI Film & TV Awards | Teddy Castellucci | Won |
2000 | GLAAD Media Awards | Outstanding Film | Nominated |
2000 | Golden Raspberry Awards[3] | Worst Picture | Nominated |
2000 | Worst Director: Dennis Dugan | Nominated | |
2000 | Worst Actor: Adam Sandler | Won | |
2000 | Worst Supporting Actor: Rob Schneider | Nominated | |
2000 | Worst Screenplay: Steve Franks, Tim Herlihy & Adam Sandler | Nominated | |
2000 | Kids' Choice Awards | Favorite Movie | Won |
2000 | Favourite Movie Actor - Adam Sandler | Won | |
2000 | MTV Movie & TV Awards | Best Comedic Performance - Adam Sandler | Won |
2000 | Best Male Performance - Adam Sandler | Nominated | |
2000 | Best On-Screen Duo - Adam Sandler, Dylan and Cole Sprouse | Nominated | |
2000 | People's Choice Awards | Favorite Comedy Motion Picture | Won |
2000 | Stinkers Bad Movie Awards | Most Painfully Unfunny Comedy | Nominated |
2000 | Worst Screenplay for a Film Grossing Over $100M | Nominated | |
2000 | Worst Performance by a Child in a Feature Role: Dylan and Cole Sprouse | Nominated | |
1999 | Teen Choice Awards | Film - Movie of the Summer | Won |
2000 | Young Artist Awards | Best Performance in a Feature Film - Young Actor Age Ten or Under:Dylan and Cole Sprouse | Nominated |
1999 | YoungStar Awards | Best Performance by a Young Actor in a Comedy Film: Dylan and Cole Sprouse | Nominated |
Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [12] |
dowse | positive[13] |
EW | B-[14] |
The film won a BMI Film Music Award.[15] The soundtrack included the following:
Films directed by Dennis Dugan | |
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