He may be the actor people love to hate at times, but Adam Sandler has given us some fine performances over the years, both comically and dramatically. In the early days of his career, he became renowned for his dumb, slapstick humor and amassed a large fan base during his years on Saturday Night Live. He landed his first major role as the titular character in Billy Madison, and while the cringe-comedy did not impress critics, it was a huge box office success. Sandler seemed to establish a pattern in the types of movies he starred in in the following years. It was not until 2002 that we saw a different side to him in Paul Thomas Anderson’s Punch-Drunk Love. His career has had its fair share of highs and lows, but with his latest movie Hustle receiving huge critical acclaim, hopefully, Sandler can continue to bring us great performances we know he is capable of.
Happy Gilmore (1996)
Sandler’s first of many sports comedies saw him as the hot-headed Happy Gilmore, a failed ice hockey player who becomes a skillful golfer. Sandler co-wrote and led the movie with a brilliantly over-the-top performance. Happy is a character who is hard to like, but hysterical to watch, and Sandler shows his great talent for slapstick comedy. Not only does he excel in the physical comedy, but it is impossible not to laugh at a clenched and exasperated Happy on the ground literally begging a golf ball to “go home”. It is a character tailor-made for Sandler, and it is no surprise that many consider this to be the peak of his comedy career.
One of the movie’s highlights is Happy arguing with and eventually fighting none other than Bob Barker. Sandler’s hilarious delivery of the line “The price is wrong, bitch!” is absolute gold.
The Waterboy (1998)
In what remains one of Sandler’s most profitable movies, he plays Bobby Boucher, a well-intentioned but ridiculed waterboy. This was his second collaboration with director Frank Coraci after The Wedding Singer. Now almost twenty-five years later, Bobby Boucher has become one of Sandler’s most iconic characters. He is one of the most recognizable because of his goofy curly hair, hilariously awkward smile, and of course, his high-pitched stuttering voice. He soon shows he is not someone you would want to mess with, as the mockery and mimicry he faces daily becomes too much, and he angrily snaps and unwittingly proves himself to be an ideal football player.
By far the best part of this sports comedy though is Bobby’s dynamic with his mama, played by Kathy Bates. In Sandler and Bates’ first scene together, he walks over to her speaking softly and warns her he has bad news and no sooner does he finish his words before she brandishes a meat cleaver and demands to know who hurt him. The innocent confusion of Sandler also makes this one of his funniest performances. Whether he is proudly telling everyone he sees a lot of guys and girls, or he is completely bewildered by the sight of Vicky Vallencourt’s breasts, The Waterboy remains one of his most memorable roles.
Punch-Drunk Love (2002)
Paul Thomas Anderson was a fan of Sandler’s, and wanted to work with him as his lead. That time came in 2002 with Punch-Drunk Love, an offbeat arthouse comedy-drama. The combination of Anderson and Sandler was bound to be either special or misjudged – fortunately, it turned out to be astonishing with Sandler receiving widespread acclaim from critics who so often slammed him. He is captivating as Barry Egan, an emotionally fragile, lonely man who falls for the sweet and likeable Lena Leonard (Emily Watson) and sees his life transformed.
The way Sandler captures the bottled rage and anxiety in Barry is very moving and rightfully earned him a Golden Globe nomination. There is a darker side to Sandler in this movie too, and he reaches previously unexplored depths in his performance. His first serious role may not have been one of his most profitable movies, but it undoubtedly remains one of his best.
50 First Dates (2004)
Easily the best in the Adam Sandler/Drew Barrymore trilogy, this sweet rom-com has a lot of heart. Sandler and Barrymore play Henry and Lucy, who instantly hit it off in a diner and fall for each other. Their relationship is complicated by Lucy’s short-term memory loss, but a persistent Henry ensures they continue spending time together despite Lucy having no recollection of even meeting him. Sandler and Barrymore’s friendship in real-life likely played a part in their flawless chemistry in their movies. The way they bounce off each other and match each other’s quirks is joyful to watch.
Though Henry starts off as a womanizer, there is an appealing charm to Sandler’s performance which makes him very likeable. The unique love story draws audiences in and does a great job in truly convincing us that Henry and Lucy belong together thanks to the two appealing leads. There are a lot of big laughs along the way too, particularly at Sandler’s extravagant and excessive mistreatment of the dim-witted Ula (Rob Schneider). As well as delivering a great performance, Sandler also contributed a great deal to the script, adding more comedic moments.
Click (2006)
After he returned to his more typical mainstream comedies following Punch-Drunk Love, one which was far better than it had any right to be was Click. Sandler plays Michael, an overworked father who comes in possession of a magical universal remote that can control his life. Inspiration was taken from holiday classics A Christmas Carol, and It’s a Wonderful Life to make a very funny, and surprisingly touching comedy. It features Sandler playing several versions of Michael from his usual everyman role to a severely obese slob. One of Click’s strongest points is Michael's relationship with his father, played by Henry Winkler. Sandler is at his best in a particularly emotional scene with Winkler in which he re-visits the last time he saw him before he died.
Sandler taps into some of the seriousness we saw from him in Punch-Drunk Love, and it pays off very well. His joy in the movie’s feel-good ending is infectious, and there is enough heart in the film to make it stand out in Sandler’s post-2000 comedies.
Reign Over Me (2007)
Sandler led an all-star cast in this underrated drama about a grief-stricken man who lost his wife and daughter on 9/11. Alongside Don Cheadle, Sandler is tender and sympathetic, and he excels in the more emotional moments, of which there are many. The courtroom scenes can get quite tough to watch, and seeing Sandler emotionally breakdown as he desperately sings The Who’s “Love Reign o’er Me” is inexplicably powerful. He truly shines in this role, and tackles it with maturity and passion. The friendship which develops between him and Cheadle is heart-warming too.
Sandler won over a lot of critics with this role, receiving similar praise to that of Punch-Drunk Love. After a string of mediocre comedies, his return to dramatic acting was nothing short of sensational.
Funny People (2009)
Ideally cast as a stand-up comedian, Sandler starred alongside Seth Rogen and Leslie Mann in Judd Apatow’s comedy-drama Funny People. He gets to enjoy himself on the stand-up stage, but there is a serious side to his character that the rest of the world is blind to. As he is aging, he is becoming bitter and depressed, then he is diagnosed with a terminal illness. It is a very personal performance from Sandler, and even features some old footage of him from before he was famous.
Once again, critics praised him for his performance. These kinds of poignant roles are often where we see the best of him. Funny People spends a lot of time with its characters, and it is thanks to Sandler and Rogen’s chemistry that it is always enjoyable.
The Meyerowitz Stories (New and Selected) (2017)
After a lot of years of critically-panned comedies, Sandler starred in Noah Baumbach’s Palme d’Or nominated family drama. Sandler plays Danny Meyerowitz, a troubled man down on his luck and forced to move back in with his father (Dustin Hoffman). He embodies the character brilliantly and manages to maintain his more typical quirks while still being sincere and empathetic. He has great chemistry with his onscreen brother Ben Stiller, and their love/hate relationship is one of the film’s best aspects. When a fight breaks out between them, it is equally funny and heartbreaking. Baumbach knew exactly how to get the best out of Sandler, and his dialogue-heavy script provides plenty of opportunities to develop Danny as a character.
Sandler outshined the likes of Hoffman, Stiller, and Emma Thompson in this superb return to form. This role also gave him a chance to show his well-known musical talents.
Murder Mystery (2019)
Sandler reunited with Jennifer Aniston for this parody on murder mysteries. They both look like they have a blast in these roles, and their rapport and enthusiasm are almost as engaging as the mystery the movie conjures up. They are consistently entertaining to watch, charming and quirky in every way, and their squabbling is amusing and natural. Although a lot of Sandler’s character tropes are present here, it fits the goofiness and self-aware tone the movie adopts. It was certainly refreshing to see Sandler in a decent comedic role, something he arguably had not done since his previous partnership with Aniston eight years prior.
It is no wonder this movie became one of the most-watched Netflix Original movies, and one of Sandler’s most popular on the streaming service. Hopefully, he can repeat this in the sequel which is currently being filmed.
Uncut Gems (2019)
Many might have assumed that they had already seen Sandler at his best by the thirty-second year of his career, but then Uncut Gems came along. In what audiences and critics alike consider to be his finest hour, this fast-paced, anxiety-inducing thriller features Sandler as Howard Ratner, an eccentric and manic jeweler with a gambling addiction. It is unapologetically stressful, yet utterly compelling from start to finish and Sandler exhausts himself and disappears into the role. He is full of energy at the center of the Safdie brothers’ mesmerizing non-stop thrill ride. With danger around every corner, it is an immersive experience that leaves its audience breathless. Strangely compelling and scarily realistic, this is Sandler at the top of his game.
Hustle (2022)
In his return to the sports comedy genre, Sandler is terrific as an NBA scout who discovers a talented basketball player on the streets of Spain. While it did not break any new ground in the genre, it allowed Sandler to show his range as an actor. Toning down the goofiness in favor of a more chilled-out charm, Sandler is sweet and likeable, and real-life professional basketball player Juancho Hernangomez is an unexpectedly terrific match-up for him.
It is a tranquil and humorous movie, and Sandler is effortless in the role. Complete with a triumphant, feel-good conclusion, Hustle is solid evidence that Sandler’s talent is not lessening even after such an extensive career.