Happy Gilmore (1996) is one of the most beloved comedies of all time and, without question, the best film never to win an Oscar.
And if you disagree with me on that, like Happy Gilmore famously claimed to have done, I’ll take off my ice hockey skate and try to stab you with it! (For readers without senses of humour, and for Starmer’s thought police, that’s a joke, yeh, remember jokes? “Joke” – no? Google it.)
Directed by Dennis Dugan and powered by Adam Sandler’s career-defining performance, the film reimagined golf as a chaotic, laugh-out-loud spectacle.
The perfect anti-hero
Sandler’s Happy was the perfect anti-hero: a hockey enforcer with a slapshot swing and zero patience for the polite traditions of the sport. The film gave us iconic scenes including the epic brawl with Bob Barker, Chubbs’ wooden hand mishaps, Shooter McGavin’s villainous sneers – each one an artistic gift that has improved humanity.
Critics may have dismissed it as lowbrow, but the movie’s longevity proves its genius. It tapped into the underdog spirit and paired it with absurdist humour, turning golf into something electric. It made golf interesting because, let’s face it, golf sucks (don’t cancel me – disagree with me). The Oscars never took it seriously, but audiences did, and that’s why Happy Gilmore endures.
29 years later …
Fast-forward nearly three decades and Happy Gilmore 2 steps up to the tee as a heartfelt tribute, released on Netflix on July 25.
Sandler reprises his role with warmth, and the sequel is peppered with callbacks to moments fans adore. There are cameos, emotional nods to fallen characters like Chubbs, and a storyline that hits the same beats as the original. It’s nostalgic, entertaining and a loving reminder of why we cared about Happy in the first place.
Yet, for all its heart and effort, like many sequels, Happy Gilmore 2 doesn’t quite hit the impossible highs of the first film.
Instead the sequel, despite a clearly much larger budget, feels safer and more formulaic. Sandler’s older Happy is less combustible, albeit having developed an unhealthy reliance on the demon booze, and while the jokes land, they rarely shock or surprise. It’s a crowd-pleaser, no doubt, but it doesn’t rewrite the rulebook the way the original did. The original is just too good. Nothing compares.
Best film never to win an Oscar
All that being said, Happy Gilmore 2 is a fitting homage to the 1996 classic, Happy Gilmore, which remains untouchable and is, quite simply, the best film never to win an Oscar.
