Billy Madison (1995)

Directed by Tamra Davis. Starring Adam Sandler, Bradley Whitford, Bridgette Wilson, Darren McGavin, Josh Mostel, Larry Hankin, Norm Macdonald, Mark Beltzman, Theresa Merritt, Dina Platias, Steve Buscemi, Chris Farley, Jim Downey. [PG-13]

Sandler’s first starring vehicle since becoming a breakout star on “Saturday Night Live” can be plenty dumb and lazy and is certainly not intended for “highbrow” crowds, but it holds up surprisingly well. Sandler plays his usual multi-hyphenate role (dim-bulb, arrested-development, short-fuse man-child), the only son of his hotel tycoon papa (McGavin), set to inherit a Fortune 500 company despite being a spoiled and infantile weirdo who only made it through school because his teachers were bribed. In order to prove that he deserves to take over one day, he has to do a “crash course” by retaking grades 1-12 over the course of several months; since he struggles to spell the word “couch” and enjoys the taste of paste, this oughta be a disaster. There’s no faulting anyone who trashes this kind of inanity, but there are a lot of shameless laughs (okay, a little shameful) and strange, almost surreal touches that promote a shaggy and illogical freedom that would become painfully strained in most of the star’s comedies to come—random musical moments, surprise snipers, the fate of the O’Doyles, penguin hallucinations, and so on. Worth it just for Downey’s “wrong answer” declamation near the end. Certainly won’t be everyone’s cup of tea, but then again, some people think that Donkey Kong sucks even though they are the ones who in fact suck.

67/100