I saw this on DVD last night and I thought it was a great film. I am a big fan of James L. Brooks and I happen to think Adam Sandler has SOME skill when doing better stuff (like Punch Drunk Love).
But all they marketed this film with was a few seconds of him making and eating an egg sandwich!?
This was a nice little movie about a disfunctional family and their interaction with the family of a smoking hot Mexican Housekeeper.
I realize that isn’t high concept, but I think we could have done better than an egg sandwich.
Another problem for Sandler films that try a little harder is that he is the only person in America more polarizing than George W. Bush. Either you love him or you hate him. People who hate him aren’t inclined to see his films regardless of who is directing it. People who love him don’t want to see a film where he doesn’t get kicked in the nuts.
Even though he got kicked in the emotional nuts in this film, it is relatively free of any Sandler mugging. A few times they were about to go there, and pulled back.
I enjoyed every character in the flick. Even the bit part players. Cloris Leachman was worthy of the Oscar buzz that surrounded her for a while as Sandler’s alcoholic mother in law who lives with the family.
I enjoyed it very much; the dialogue was kind of crappy, but I thought it was quite a good, thoughtful movie about family and infidelity and such. I didn’t think I was going to like it as much as I did.
Also, it was marketed as a feel good romantic film, when it fact it was not. I started watching it expecting one thing, when it fact, it turned into a whole 'nother thing.
I didn’t like it, either. Sandler’s wife was a neurotic bitch. And he never stood up to her, for himself or his daughter. That’s why I’m actually glad it ended the way it did.
I just watched it recently and I liked it. I think that’s because it was out so long that I forgot exactly how it was marketed, had no expectations so no disappointment.
I liked the ending. That’s what I liked about Slice of Life type films. The ending is not really an ending. It’s just the next day.
Hmmm. I didn’t put spoiler in the title. Let me ask the mods for an edit, but in the mean time.
I feel Sandler ultimately stays with his neurotic wife on the hope they can pull it together and save their family. I imagine this is a pretty common tale.
You have to give Brooks credit. I’m sure the test audiences wanted Sandler and Florr to run off together. I admire Spanglish for taking the harder, more realistic road.
I didn’t dislike the ending because Sandler and Flor didn’t end up together, I hated it because how could she do that to her daughter? The hard thing about being an immigrant is that you have to face the fact that by giving your kids better opportunities they will become different from you. It’s sad but it’s why you came here! I fully believe all that Princeton stuff is there to make you feel okay about it that she did okay in the end. It really pissed me off.
We have SPOILER in the title now, so I am going without a box.
I agree with Zsofia’s annoyance at Florr’s actions. I was thinking “Why come to America and then not let your daughter take advantages of the situation?”
But I’ll bet that type of thing happens every day (to all types of parents, not just immigrants). Parents, in theory, want their kids to do better than them, but when they do, parents start feeling bad about themselves. They can’t identify with their kids. And Florr LIVED for her relationship with her daughter.
I thought the poor choice Florr made was pretty realistic. Now that you mention it, the Princeton thing was kind of an annoying way to make it a happy ending where the “real ending” alone would have been better.