Blended

The comedies of Adam Sandler have this strange tinge of originality. On the one hand, they can provide some excellent entertainment, but at times, they contain so many references to pop-culture that without knowing anything about it, you will be completely lost. If you are not well-read in American pop culture, many of the jokes will be lost on you. And the problem with Blended is that the humor is all based on pop-cultural references and if my girlfriend hadn’t told me that one scene is a reference to Kardashian, I would have simply thought it was a very embarrassing moment. And I actually experienced quite a lot of those in the film. I mean it took me forever to understand that the entire African band headed by Crews is actually a brutal reference to an Old Spice commercial. It really hasn’t happened to me in a really long time that I wouldn’t know what review to give to a movie, let alone a comedy. Blended contains the laid-back atmosphere of Adam Sandler’s movies, but on the other hand the movie contains so many unfunny moments and lines that I spent more time shaking my head in disbelief than I did laughing. And that’s actually saying something because I laughed pretty hard a couple of times. For instance, that idea with Africa is really nice. It’s actually the reason why the movie is so pleasant to watch. But the depiction of Africa is so wacky that it makes Americans look like superhumans who are willing to spend loads of money on absolute absurdities. The best moment was for instance when the people riding jeeps on safari drove directly next to the lions to take a close look at them. And not only lions. (07/28/2015)

For me a very pleasant surprise. I was hoping that Blended would at least be a guilty pleasure for me, but I was very surprised by how much I enjoyed it. I like Drew Barrymore and I don't really understand the general comparison of Sandler's films or Adam Sandler himself to Troško or Magnusko. Certainly, not all of his movies are good or funny, but most of the ones I've seen entertained me, and even though there are plenty of pseudo-funny and exaggerated situations in Blended (like someone says something and then immediately looks at mating rhinoceroses), the positive atmosphere prevails, and I simply enjoyed watching it... and what's more, I even smiled occasionally and by the end, I was happy that I had watched a great feel-good film. Satisfied. PS: Great twist to their older shared movie :) PPS: Absolutely unbeatable Terry Crews entertained every time he appeared.. or rather his body :) ... 70% (01/15/2015)

I can't seem to get into comedies starring Adam Sandler. In the first half of this farce, I was almost sinking in embarrassment at the awkwardness of some situations. Then I got used to it and sometimes I even laughed heartily. What I did like was primarily the African passage, where I could admire at least the beautiful nature, when the humor was scarce. (55%) (03/27/2021)

My negative balance with Adam Sandler unfortunately continues. I am extremely sorry for it and I myself do not understand it. Was I laughing at different things fifteen years ago than I am laughing at today? Or has it really gone downhill with Adam from a certain point? I still have a few more of his pieces on my list, but the fear of another flop is growing stronger and stronger in me. This feat was an American mess from beginning to end, to the point where I wanted to throw up in places. Perhaps I myself am a bit allergic to typical and predictable American templates - a group of singing minorities (any kind - here intensified by the guy from the Old Spice advertisement) and constantly appearing annoying teenagers in the plot, applause, talks about being oneself, a crazy best friend, a stupid silicone blonde pierced with love and so on and so forth. (01/31/2021)

A decent movie enriched by the African setting. Quite a few jokes from Adam Sandler, the only funny one here is Terry Crews with his dance group. It's entertaining, there are likeable actors, but unless I laugh at least every 10 minutes at a comedy, I can't go for 4*. 65%. (02/09/2016)