“OK guys, hear me out. How ‘bout we make a film in which there’s a video game tournament, and we put footage of it in a time capsule. But then aliens find the footage, think we want to one outs them at the back of Maccas, and attack Earth in the guise of video game characters. And then I, Adam Sandler, will singlehandedly defeat these video game characters alongside President Kevin James. It’ll be a surefire hit.”
Pixels is, by far, the all-time greatest Adam Sandler film. When it first came out, I went to the cinema three times to rewatch its 106 minutes of glory. The whole film is a bloody roller coaster of emotions and confusion. Like, who though this movie was a good idea? But the best part of Pixels isn’t its premise, but the “Sandlerisms” that give the film its charm – Sandler’s ragtag team of actors and characters.
To begin, Sandler chose Kevin James to play the President of the USA. Next, Peter Dinklage’s acting abilities are completely wasted by his cameo as a comedic prop who serves no real narrative purpose. Josh Gad, plays a stereotypical nerd. Sandler never dogs the boys when it comes to casting the right actors for his characters.
I think what I love about this film is how much self-reflection it made me do. I got so angry knowing that Sandler followed the cliché storyline of being a humble man that happens to save Earth and find love. Even though I know he repeats the same movie plot and regurgitates it in different ways, I still fall for his charm and acting.
I love this film for how much I hate it. I hate this film for how much I love it. There is no real reason why this film was made. The whole thing makes no sense; there are so many plot holes and questions and totally unnecessary parts to it. The Sandman has truly outdone himself with this one. He goes beyond in his quirkiness and creates a confusing yet enthralling cinematic masterpiece. It makes me so mad that he can get away with this insane bullshit and still produce something that I will pay money to go see and enjoy. Fuck you Adam Sandler. Fuck you and your brilliant marketing.