LITTLE NICKY

If you’ve been praying that Adam Sandler would go to hell, your wish has been granted in devilish fashion. Everyone’s favorite waterboy plays one of the Devil’s spawn — you know, the dopy one with the funny walk, the deformed face, the speech impediment, and the heart of an angel. But — and no, I haven’t sold my soul — cut Sandler some slack. For all the ca-ca jokes and all the times characters yell “You suck!” at each other, Little Nicky is at least the better of the two devil comedies out this fall. Sandler’s Nicky goes up to earth to capture his two power-hungry brothers, who, in their bid for world domination, threaten to destroy his beloved father (Harvey Keitel) and, worse, make the Harlem Globetrotters lose a game. As much as Nicky wants to harness the evil within, he’s much more content to suck down fast food (Popeye’s Chicken, he marvels, “is fucking awesome!”). Will Nicky eventually save the day? Probably. Will some of Sandler’s buddies from Saturday Night Live (not to mention Rodney Dangerfield, Quentin Tarantino, and Reese Witherspoon) take cameos that belie their talents? You could say that. Will adolescent boys dig it? Of course. But, so might sophisticates in need of a good kick in the ’nads.

— Mark Bazer