Happy Gilmore 2 is here. But has Adam Sandler shanked it or scored a hole in one?
Hollywood is deep in its requel era – the remake masquerading as a sequel. Top Gun: Maverick, The Matrix Resurrections, and Ghostbusters: Afterlife all twist the homage dial up. But doing the same with Happy Gilmore, Adam Sandler's scrappy 1996 cult comedy about an ill-tempered ice hockey hopeful crashing the professional golf tour, is an odd choice. Anarchic defiance of the status quo is hard to replicate on the cusp of turning 60 years old.
But in his comedies, which have moved from multiplexes to Netflix, Sandler has always been, well, happy to make do. In a film that celebrates family unity, Happy Gilmore 2 honours its forebear with a swathe of self-referential tributes and some amusing callbacks. It's a little too dutiful, and could have done with more chaos and absurdism before it revs up for a ludicrous but mostly pleasing finale.
Written, as the original was, by Sandler and Robert Herlihy, the plot delivers a rapid-fire update of Happy's life after becoming an unlikely winner of the US Open. Romantic interest Virginia Venit (Julie Bowen) became his wife, further success and a posse of kids followed, before tragedy leaves Happy broke, boozing, and hating golf. It's bad, but not too bad – he can still let real-life golf maverick John Daly live in his garage.
In a reflection of the clash between the golf establishment and the Saudi-backed LIV tour, Happy's return coincides with the launch of Maxi, the brainchild of energy drunk magnate Frank Manatee (Benny Safdie). The oily disruptor sees Maxi as a continuation of Happy's disruption. After all, he screamed at the ball and literally traded blows with his pro-am partner. But this Happy is, uncomfortably, a traditionalist.
The film's solution to philosophical quandaries is to pile on the cameos. Famous veteran golfers such as Jack Nicklaus give way to numerous current stars, including Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy. Characters from the first film are remembered here with offspring. Ben Stiller returns. Margaret Qualley plays a round. Some try too hard (Travis Kelce), some get it right (Eminem), some do not try (Post Malone). The producer who made the schedules match deserves a medal.
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It's jocular as opposed to hysterical; nothing ruptures the mood. Director Kyle Newacheck (Workaholics, What We Do in the Shadows) is in third gear until the final act, where the two rival tours face-off on a Maxi-fied course. The fantastical fit-out has the madcap gravity of Stephen Chow circa Shaolin Soccer. It gives Happy Gilmore 2 a welcome burst of energy, but you could still chalk it up as Adam Sandler's mulligan.
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