Back in the 1990s, Adam Sandler made classic movies such as Happy Gilmore and Billy Madison,and performed the now-famous “The Chanukah Song” as a cast member on Saturday Night Live. But as time has gone on, Sandler’s work has gotten progressively more immature, inappropriate and dull. His new film, The Ridiculous 6, which was released on Netflix on Friday, is simply the latest in a string of disappointments.
Surprisingly, the premise isn’t entirely awful: A man (Sandler) learns he has five half-brothers (Rob Schneider, Taylor Lautner, Jorge Garcia, Luke Wilson and Terry Cre
ws), and the group sets out to find the father who abandoned them.
Unfortunately, any wit or cogency the plot lends itself is squandered in Sandler’s hands. Instead, viewers are treated to nearly two straight hours of graphic gags and sexual innuendos, as well as myriad poop jokes. Much like most of Sandler’s recent movies, The Ridiculous 6 seems aimed at an audience comprised solely of prepubescent boys.
Worse, the film is set in the Wild West and includes a parade of offensive stereotypes. Native Americans, who in the film raise Sandler’s character, White Knife, are portrayed in the same hackneyed and ignorant light that they were in the original Westerns. In April, several news outlets even reported that approximately a dozen Native American extras walked off set because they were so offended by the script.
It’s true: Watching Sandler wear traditional Native American tribal clothes and speak with affected diction is uncomfortable. Thankfully it lasts for only the first 20 minutes of the movie.
Native Americans are not the only targets, though. Schneider’s (Grown Ups) Ramon is the embodiment of Mexican cliches; he wears a poncho and sombrero, speaks with a less-than-authentic accent, and even rides a donkey while his brothers ride horses. Lautner’s (Twilight) Lil’ Pete seems like a gross, mocking portrayal of someone with a developmental disorder.
But anyone surprised by these offensive stereotypes should remember Sandler’s 2008 film You Don’t Mess with the Zohan, in which he and John Turturro play warring Israeli and Palestinian men, respectively.
Here and there we get a glimpse of The Ridiculous 6‘s potential. The band of half-brothers sings a clever song about what it would be like to know their father, proclaiming, “It’s fun to have brothers all from different mothers.” Terry Crews’ Chico makes a big show of confessing to them that he’s half black — the only time the film handles race well at all. Yet these moments are obscured quickly by the onslaught of obnoxious and offensive antics.
The cast itself is awesome, featuring cameos from Steve Buscemi, David Spade, Vanilla Ice and others. But on the whole, The Ridiculous 6 is far from stellar.
