Not a bad way to waste a couple hours...

Rating: 6/10 (21 May 2006)

I confess I've never seen the original '74 flick, but I found this version from Adam Sandler's Happy Madison Productions to be a pretty good time. Sandler as the disgraced ex-football hero, plays it straight and understated keeping the character grounded, likable yet not without his personal demons. The inmates, the guards and the ever corrupt prison warden are all well cast, with Chris Rock, James Cromwell, and Reynolds (star of the original '74 flick) all turning in appropriately complimentary performances. Some of the most entertaining and memorable moments, however, belong to lesser known actors, without whom this film would've lost much of it's charm. We love the 'ol "underdog story" here in the states and we get just that with this film, ultimately a typical feel-good American movie with some decent laughs. Not a bad way to spend a couple hours, but nothing beyond.