BLENDED

US, 2014, 117 minutes, Colour.
Adam Sandler, Drew Barrymore, Terry Crews.
Directed by Frank Coraci.

Who would have thought? Adam Sandler in a film that is geared towards a family audience, no coarse language - well, more than a little innuendo, but generally of the PG style. Perhaps he is making reparation for films like That’s My Boy Grown-ups 2.

While this is a take-it-or- leave-it kind of comedy, it is a pleasant enough outing for most of the family, for the undemanding audience. Critics tend to be unkind to Adam Sandler, dismissing his broad and sometimes crass comedy, dismissing his popular entertainments – as if they were meant to be serious dramas as if that was what was intended by these films rather than simply being a pleasing pastime.

At the opening, we see Drew Barrymore as Lauren, a divorcee trying to cope with two sometimes impossible boys at home. She is on a blind date, doing a favour for a friend, with Jim, Adam Sandler, and the date is not going well at all, no chemistry between them. She arranges for a phone call citing an emergency at home so that she can escape – only for him to do the same before she does!

Lauren’s partner is about to be engaged to Jim’s boss but is not looking forward to taking on five children. they have bookings for a holiday, for blended families, in the South African resort in City. Laura and Jim both get the idea of taking up the ticket – and both finally families find themselves in South Africa. On the one hand, there are all the clashes that we might expect but there are also episodes, especially with the children, where Lauren and Jim start to bury the hatchet. He becomes a pacifying funnel the-figure for the two boys. She is a listener for the girls, arranging a makeover for the older girl who was always mistaken for a boy, not wanting to take the place of their dead mother, with the middle girl constantly talking to the presence of her mother, making places in the table…

There are the expected sequences with the animals – and some jokes with them as well.

The film does serve as a promotion for this resort – but, it is very American in its extrovertedly heads extra vertically affluent style, an intrusive singing and dance combo being rather alienating with their frequent performances, and plenty of PG-rated look at raucousness and innuendo. One of the difficulties in looking at the sequences is that the Americans confine themselves to live within the resort and the game Park, no real acknowledgement of the 20th century history in South Africa and apartheid, the injustices of the period and the changes since. Blended is not meant to be a lecture, but it would have been strengthened by acknowledges South African realities instead of touristic fly-in, fly out.

While the outcome might be predictable, it does not take the quite predictable road, things being complicated when the two families return home. But, this is a film from families and so it ends very nicely. Interesting to notice that many critics, with their intense dislike of Adam Sandler, are unable to acknowledge this rather toned-down film for a broad undemanding audience.


1. Audience response to Adam Sandler? To Adam Sandler with Drew Barrymore? This film as pleasant? Family film?

2. The title, the program in the South African resort? The process of blending, split families and their needs?

3. The American setting? Ordinary city, homes, workplaces, restaurants? Sports stores? The life of families? The contrast with the South African setting, the affluent resort, the animals, safaris? The musical score and songs?

4. Adam Sandler and his style, so often raucous, this time more subdued, the humane approach? Drew Barrymore and her style, comic, charming?

5. The opening date, Jim not looking at Lauren? Drinking her beer? The talk, not clicking? The chilli and her making a mess? The phone call, wanting to bail out, Jim beating her to it?

6. Lauren, the job, arranging closets, her friend, Jen? Jim sneering at this? The discussions about Jim and the date? Jen urging love to buy the black dress?

7. Jim, at work, confiding in his friend? The wrong mobiles, the visit to exchange them, the tension?

8. Jen, Lauren confiding in her, Jen’s engagement, not wanting to have five children? The irony of her fiance being Jim’s boss? The planned holiday? The brainwave of each to get the ticket?

9. The South African resort, the hotel, affluence and style, pre-apartheid memories, yet the visitors going outside the resort only to see the game? The limits of this perspective on South Africa?

10. The stand-offs, the rooms, places at tables, activities, the gradual building, sharing, enjoying things? Their telling their stories? Jim’s wife and her death? Lauren’s ex-husband and his unreliability? Not showing up to baseball matches?

11. The raucous boys, the older boy’s sex preoccupation, the babysitter’s face on photos? The magazines, Lauren discovering the magazine, tearing it, going to the shop to buy a replacement, Jim and his going to buy tampons, their exchanging goods at the checkout? Jim and his three girls, the older preparing for sport, needing to eat, always being mistaken for a boy? The middle girl, talking to her mother, places for her mother? The lively little girl?

12. The little boy and his rowdiness, lack of attention? Failing at baseball? The little girl commentator at the matches? The men and their comments, the women turning on them?

13. Africa, the singer and his omnipresence, the songs, routines, his being in-your-face, people enjoying it, the audience enjoying it or not? The guide, interventions, friendliness, his mistakes?

14. The couple at the table, in love, their talk, kissing, sexy aspects, the son and his morose attitude, attracted to Jim’s daughter?

15. The ostrich fight and Lauren being upset? Seeing the animals? Lauren going on the high ride and her crash? The makeover for the older daughter and its effect on everyone? The morose boy and his accompanying her?

16. Sharing and changing?

17. The return home, Lauren kissing Jim? The ex-husband turning up, his lies to Jim, not coming to the baseball matches? Jim and his memories of his wife, not being ready?

18. The importance of the daughter who talked to her mother, telling him that the mother approved?

19. The baseball match, Jim and his having coached the little boy, turning up, the hit and success?

20. The end, a yours, mine, and ours situation?