25 years ago, Adam Sandler put out a film that launched the career of the twins that would go on to Suite Life their way to one of them living in Riverdale, and this year starring in Lisa Frankenstein. And to think it all started because Dylan and Cole Sprouse could wipe their own ass. I would say I’m a Sandler fan. Some of his films are desert island comedies for me (Billy Madison, happy Gilmore, Big daddy, The Wedding Singer, and maybe even 50 First Dates), I saw him do solid acting in films other people ignore (Reign Over Me, The Meyorwitz Stories), and I hate a few of his films (Little Nicky, Hewbie Halloween). I also love his animated work from Eight Crazy Nights to leo. He is very much a mixed bag, but he’s my mixed bag. I remember him on Saturday Night live, doing sketches like the Gap girls, and singing the Hanukah Song. so, my bias shows.

Plus, big Daddy is a rare film with Jon Stewart, which is a plus, and Joey Lauren Adams, which should happen more. it is based on such an easy overused premise. Find someone that you wouldn’t normally allow around kids… and give them a kid. This is less of a review of big Daddy, and more of an appreciation of it. I am generally honest about things where I can tell my nostalgia is mixing with the signals to appropriately grade this. There are films in his resume I have watched, reviewed, and graded, across the spectrum, but something about this works for me… still.

From a ssocially conscious perspective, Rob schneider’s casting here is not one of his offensive ones. There’s LGBTQ representation here as two of Sandler’s regulars play a gay couple, but they handle that pretty well for a 90’s Sandler movie. He defends those characters against Jon Stewart’s character who is squeamish about it. I’m sure people don’t view this as a perfect film, but I like it, and I’ve seen it a lot.

But…

What I Look For In The Audio Description: first, it is important for there to be audio description. considering how much Netflix relies on Adam Sandler, I have no problem calling them out for hosting his older films without audio description. You broke it, you bought it. He was funnier before his Netflix deal, so you’re the one who has to subsidize his humor with his old stuff. Aside from that, it is a very visual comedy. There’s one scene where Julian has this giant thing of spit that he can get to hang out of his mouth, and you wouldn’t know what that scene was without having seen the film before, or audio description. Also, Sandler puts newspaper down for Julian when he wets the bed, but that’s a visual cue, and it’s something he repeats. Lots of sight gags.

What It Does: nothing. In case you missed it, there’s no audio description here. I’m just a firm believer that Netflix is the new home for Adam Sandler. I haven’t seen him doing anything for anyone else, so Netflix should be tracking down, or making audio description for the rest of his catalog. Netflix: Home Of Sandler. It’s marketing, but it means something.

Final Thoughts: My grade for this would be A+ based on my nostalgic look, and this being comfort food/nostalgic. It still works for me now, even without audio description, because of how much I’ve seen the film. It jogs my memory of the previous times when i could see, and did watch the film. But, not everyone has that experience, and big Daddy made enough money, with a star still famous, and a co-star who became famous, that it just should have it. but it doesn’t.

Final Grade: Unwatchable