Review: Tommy Boy

     I believe that comedy, like many things, has different eras that rise and fall with popularity. I'm not sure if this is a function of our changing view of the world as we age, or if it is in fact the case that there is a certain time for certain types of comedy. In the 1990s, gross out, slap-stick comedies reigned supreme. Actors like Chris Farley, Adam Sandler, and Jim Carrey made movies that centered around an idiot protagonist had a heavy focus on physical comedy. My childhood is filled with fond memories of films like Billy Madison, Happy Gilmore, and Ace Ventura: Pet Detective. Today those films simply don't hold up. The gags for the most part now seem hacky and sophomoric. This might be because as I've aged my taste in comedy has matured, but on the other hand it could also be that comedy itself has evolved, now favoring styles of comedy that were once considered “alternative.” Now when Adam Sandler (or anyone involved in a Happy Madison production, it seems) releases a “comedy” that replicates this style of comedy that was popular in the 90s, the film is immediately written off (usually rightly so) as a waste of time. Evidence of this trend can be seen in Sandler's recent sweep of the Razzie Awards for his film Jack and Jill. While Tommy Boy is objectively a better movie than Jack and Jill, it does have many of the same pitfalls that garnered Mr. Sandler so many of his “awards.”