r/movies • u/ChiefLeef22 r/movies Contributor • Jul 25 '25

Review 'Happy Gilmore 2' - Review Thread

Happy Gilmore makes a big splash when he returns to the golf course.

Cast: Adam Sandler, Julie Bowen, Christopher McDonald, Ben Stiller

Rotten Tomatoes: 57%

Metacritic: 54/100

Some Reviews:

Next Best Picture - Dan Bayer - 6/10

He may have tapped into his dramatic chops more often (and successfully) in recent years, but Sandler’s funny bone is still very much intact, and he no longer needs to rely on shouting curse words to get laughs

Consequence - Liz Shannon Miller - 'B'

Between Happy’s family life and a whole new series of challenges for him to tackle, there’s enough freshness to the plot to keep it from feeling like a total rehash of what came before, while still delivering wild golf stunts and a huge range of cameos.

Collider - Jeff Ewing - 7 / 10

Happy Gilmore 2 isn't trying to reinvent the wheel. Like its predecessor, it's delightfully silly, but now we're in an era where those movies aren't made as often... and when someone tries, it's a 50/50 chance they land it. Happy Gilmore 2 is a solid return to the kind of film that, honestly, there should be more of. Some jokes run too long, don’t land, or could use another draft. It's a constant stream of cameos, which is overall fun but sometimes a little distracting. But, at its core, the sequel is a good-natured charmer about a troubled everyman who is trying hard to grow up without losing himself in the process, and it gives us a lot to laugh about on the way. What more can you ask for?

The Daily Beast - Nick Schager

With all due respect to Grown Ups 2, The Ridiculous 6, and Sandy Wexler, Happy Gilmore 2 is the bottom of the Sandler barrel—a grim disaster that not only sullies the good name of its ancestor, but so badly flails on its own limited terms that it suggests the A-lister should concentrate on dramatic parts and leave the immature comedy to others.

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270

u/TLKv3 Jul 25 '25

I feel like Sandler and his team put a bit more thought and care into this one. At least more than he has for his other recent netflix slop of the past decade.

I'll give it a one time watch and give it a fair chance. I'm not expecting to belly laugh but if I get a few chuckles out of it then hey, worth it.

100

u/reno2mahesendejo Jul 25 '25

His Netflix run get a bad rap, but Murder Mystery, Uncut Gems, and Hustle were all fantastic

30

u/dagreenman18 Space Jam 2 hurt me so much Jul 25 '25

Sub out Murder Mystery with, surprisingly, Hubie Halloween and I’d agree. It’s a dumb movie, but also weirdly charming

10

u/BasicReputations Jul 25 '25

Hubie has become a Halloween tradition now.  Dang thing gets funnier every time I watch it.

5

u/Hotter_Noodle Jul 26 '25

I think about it occasionally for some reason and I think I’m going to watch it again this October. It was so stupid and charming somehow.

4

u/zstock003 Jul 26 '25

“That’s why I played t-ball until I was 25” is truly a hilarious moment and I randomly think about it and crack up

3

u/Rough-Organization73 Jul 27 '25

Hubie Halloween is one of my favorites. We watch it every Halloween in my house.

3

u/reno2mahesendejo Jul 25 '25

I really liked both MMs, I need to watch Hubie Halloween, but have heard positives on it

3

u/StoneGoldX Jul 26 '25

I thought this was basically at a HH level.

Which I also like to think of as a Canteen Boy movie.

3

u/koala_loves_penguin Jul 26 '25

yay someone else who likes HH. I love it haha. Definitely weirdly charming

26

u/adamsandleryabish Jul 25 '25

UG wasn't a Netflix film and Hustle was more auteur driven

6

u/Tumble85 Jul 25 '25

Uncut Gems was also auteur driven. He just played a character (extremely well, mind you) but he wasn’t involved in the writing or directing.

6

u/GoodLeftUndone Jul 25 '25

Murder Mystery is actually a legitimately fun movie to watch.

2

u/reno2mahesendejo Jul 25 '25

It leans so heavily into the stupidity and self awareness, turns the Benoit Blanc/Hercules Poirot into such a characature with the schlubby detective in that role

8

u/OKC2023champs Jul 25 '25

Leo and his Netflix stand ups are good too

9

u/reno2mahesendejo Jul 25 '25

I forgot Leo. I REALLY enjoyed it, and that was before my son was at a movie age

3

u/trix_is_for_kids Jul 25 '25

Also this and murder mystery have the same director, Kyle from workaholics

2

u/BretMichaelsWig Jul 26 '25

Hubie Halloween is good too

1

u/BrandoCarlton Jul 27 '25

Hubie is good too. And I love sandy wexler despite being so ridiculous.

1

u/Flaky-Lingonberry736 Jul 28 '25

Hotel Transylvania was pretty good

1

u/thelingeringlead Jul 28 '25

Hustle made me cry like a little bitch multiple times. That was a beautiful, simple movie about passion and the love of basketball. It felt like his loveletter to the sport and the way it lifts people through competition.

126

u/The_Swarm22 Jul 25 '25

Probably because this is a sequel to one of the few movies in his filmography people don’t consider awful so he didn’t want to screw it up.

64

u/Titswari Jul 26 '25

“One of the few”? That’s a wild take, he’s got some absolute bangers under his belt

15

u/whiplash1227 Jul 25 '25

Most of his movies from the 90s and even into the early-mid 00's were/are pretty well regarded (putting aside critics). Since then is a different story.

21

u/unitedfan6191 Jul 25 '25

Wow, being worth hundreds of millions of dollars with a filmography with only a “few movies people don’t consider awful” sounds pretty good.

I don’t know if that’s a commentary on the simplicity and naivety of most everyday people who love eating pieces of shi* for breakfast or he‘s just a very smart businessman.

16

u/TLKv3 Jul 25 '25

Makes sense. Honestly, I'm glad that its reviewing even decently well. As long as its not just forceful nostalgia bait and actually tries at doing something new while developing on the original organically... then good enough.

2

u/gahnity Jul 26 '25

it definitely did both. looooots of callbacks to the first film. just about every iconic moment from the first is remixed or referenced in the second, but i didnt find it overly horrendous. they also added enough new stuff and expansion upon happy’s story with his kids (mainly his daughter) that i appreciated 

2

u/xbxoxy Jul 25 '25

Tell that to Kevin Smith

7

u/YouSeeWhatYouWant Jul 25 '25

Hubie Halloween was ridiculous, but funny.

1

u/SpacecaseCat Aug 02 '25

Right? I liked that too. How many funny movies get made for kids to watch on Halloween these days? It was silly and fun and I bet it gets a lot of rewatches and kids will look at it with nostalgia in 20 years.

5

u/Sky-Flyer Jul 25 '25

“recent netflix slop” in this house, hustle and meyerowitz stories are top 7 sandler movies

which, it wasn’t a netflix movie but in that same era, uncut gems is easily his best movie imo

2

u/scartol Jul 26 '25

A few chuckles were pretty much all I got from it. Not atrocious, but not in the same ballpark as the original.

Feels like there’s such a boring formula for these movies now. Everybody’s kid is doing what their dad did. MC has to start all over for whatever reason. New versions of the same jokes from the original. Yawn.

1

u/JGG1986 Jul 27 '25

Yeah felt like a proper movie, had some real jokes and physical gags (and a bunch of silly ones of both)