Review: 'Grown Ups' is dumbly funny, nothing special

Grown Ups (A)
Cast: Adam Sandler, Kevin James, Chris Rock, David Spade, Rob Schneider, Salma Hayek, Maria Bello, Maya Rudolph and others
Director: Dennis Dugan
Rating: **1/2

Grown Ups is that not-so-smart comedy flick which gives you cheap, easy laughs for the 100-odd minutes you are in the cinema hall.
 
It  is one of those leave-your-brains-at-home kind of comedy that survives on the juvenile jokes that you probably cut at a school/college reunion. It dwells on low-brow, easily forgettable humour but entertains nonetheless.

The film is about the reunion of a bunch of guys who have met after 30 years at the funeral of Coach Buzzer, who led the boys to victory at the basketball championship in 1978. This was the coach's only victory in his long career, at the celebration of which he imparts the lesson: When the final buzzer of life goes, there should be no regrets.
 
So here are five boys, who kept the flame of friendship alive and have now met after 30 years to spread the ashes of their coach and mentor. They decide to spend America's Fourth of July holiday at the lakehouse where they celebrated their 1978 victory.

Among our many heroes, the high-flying one is top-shop Hollywood agent Lenny Feder (Sandler), his pretty and snobbish fashion designer wife Roxanne (Hayek), two spoilt brats for sons and an innocently cute daughter who believes everything she sees. Lenny is concerned that his sons are becoming slaves of technology: they text their nanny in the kitchen to get them food, don't know TVs that are not flat screens and "only pack for Milan".

Then we have the not-so-successful and not at all healthy Eric (James) whose "48-month-old" son still breastfeeds and whose daughter won't take no for an answer.
 
Kurt McKenzie (Rock) is the non-athletic, house husband taken for granted by his pregnant wife Deanne (Rudolph) and mother-in-law. Kurt's complaints of lack of opportunities (he believes it is because he's black) make you chuckle but not sympathise with the disgruntled stay-at-home dad. He looks funny and acts funnier.

Rob Hillard (Schneider) is the patient and spiritual convert married to a woman 30 years his senior. They seem to be deeply in love with each other and do not shy away from indecent public displays of affection that make the audience cringe with displeasure. Rob's Elvis Presley-like puffed hair extension, spiritual waffle, and pacifist nature make him the butt of jokes.
 
The only single of the lot is Marcus "Higgy" Higgins (Spade), a womaniser who loves getting "wasted" and is in a constant battle with Rob for allegedly eyeing his hot-shorts- and bikini-donning daughters Jasmine and Amber. Marcus is by far the funniest of the group.

The film is not a comic masterpiece (not even remotely) but it does manage to tickle you if you are the kind who takes delight in mindless comedies. There are far too many characters and you tend to get lost trying to remember who's who. But each has a typical quality that makes it easier for you to get used to them.

The humour is average and clean, so the first half makes for maximum entertainment. After the interval, however, it sags a bit. Now there is more emphasis on coaxing the little children to grow up like normal kids, enjoy nature and have fun outdoors. These are the subtle messages the film tries to drive home.

Grown Ups has particularly hilarious moments like the Arrow Roulette game, the final basketball match, and the one where four of the grown-ups agree to ogle at Rob's daughter "in shifts" while the smallies check her out from across a fence. Each of the five friends has a secret they would like to bury. But a confession session adds the missing 'aww' moment to the film.

Nothing much can be said about the acting as it looks like writers Sandler and Fred Wolf had a bunch of old friends deliver the not-so-witty yet funny lines they wrote. Not much effort seems to have been put into portraying any of the characters (not that the characters needed any effort in the portrayal). The script does not demand much. There is almost no story as all the events and experiences look like those everyone has on a weekend out, nothing special.

You can go watch this if you need to unwind. But you might end up disappointed if you expect intelligent humour.