I've recently set myself a task of watching all of the Adam Sandler movies on Netflix. This may seem easy enough but there really is a LOT of them, most of which are quite entertaining. But is That's My Boy one of them? Hmmm, there's a bit of fence-sitting with this one. The premise is disturbing and the comedy is crude but once you get past asking how on earth they got away with some of the stuff in it, it's really not sooooo bad.
Released in 2012, a lot has changed in nine years. So much so that I don't think you make a movie based on the highly illegal relationship between a young teenage boy and his teacher. That aside, said teacher gets pregnant and having been sentenced to 30 years in prison, Donny Berger, the teenager, is left to raise the child named Han Solo. But when fame and fortune come knocking at young Donny's door, his parental duties don't measure up, and as soon as Han Solo is 18 he leaves and doesn't see his father again.
That is until years later when Donny (Sandler) must pay back taxes of $43,000 or face three years in prison. With no other way of getting the cash, Donny makes a deal with a tv company to hold a reunion with his son and the mother in prison. So off he goes to find his son, now called Todd Peterson (Andy Samberg, Brooklyn Nine-Nine). Todd has a brand new life is on the verge of getting married when Donny turns up out of the blue.
This is an Adam Sandler movie so I'll spare you details of the chaos that ensues. There's a wild bachelor party, lusting after the elderly grandmother, Vanilla Ice turns up, strippers, and the general ruining of all the wedding plans. You get the idea. The reunion goes terribly, and mostly Todd's nicely put-together life gets turned upside down.
But among all that are some very funny moments. And at its heart, this is a film about a father connecting with his son, albeit in the worst way possible. That's My Boy is a movie you will either love or hate. It will completely depend on your sense of humour. Sandler has shied away from this style of character in recent years so if you fancy a trip back to the early Happy Madison days, and you're not easily offended, this could be one to watch.
