The Waterboy (1998)

Personally, I loved this movie! Adam Sandler, Henry Wrinkler, and Kathy Bates were all fantastic! However, I do have a problem with other reviewers who insulted this film. It is not the film that I have a problem with you insulting, it is the people who watched the film and enjoyed it! I have read at least eight reviews with "critics" derogating the intelligence of an audience of people they do not even know because we enjoyed a movie they did not! Hint: Have you all ever heard of "variety" and "diversity"? If you didn't like the movie, fine. You have that right, I and many others, however; loved it!

I am not stupid or a "nitwit" as one viewer put it. I am simply an indiviual with an individual mind and opinion. I laughed because I thought it was funny...that does not make me stupid.

I (and I am sure many other viewers)don't analyze every single aspect of a movie and rule it the worst movie of all time simply because it didn't fit my criteria of what I am "suppose" to feel and what I am "suppose" to be thinking.

It was a good solid comedy that showed a different side of Henry Wrinkler and Kathy Bates that I was very impressed with. Also, I don't think this comedy was "empty" or "mindless". It offered some insights on life's philosophy's, but it just didn't do it in the traditional "movie" way.

Hats off to the entire cast of Waterboy especially the writers of it!

dllewis

Waterboy is the story of a poor man's Forrest Gump who owes his dim-witted persona to the overprotective nature of his mother. Adam Sandler is at his silly, "stupid comedy" best playing Bobby Boucher, a Cajun recluse who has been a waterboy for one football team or another his entire life. After losing his job, he eventually catches on with another team where his life changes dramatically.

One day while perorming his waterboy duties, something he takes to ridiculously hilarious extremes, Bobby is abused by his new team. His precious water gets spit in, he gets tackled, and everyone of the players makes fun of him. With his old team, he had to endure the pain and ridicule without retaliation, but not with the new team.

A star is born.

Bobby eventually joins the team where he immediately, albeit inexplicably, becomes the starting linebacker. Despite his lack of football knowledge, he ends up becoming one of the greatest forces in college football history. He destroys everyone and everything on the opposing team, with highlight after highlight, using visualizations of all who have wronged him in the past to fuel his aggression.

Waterboy is highly enjoyable, with classic Sandler, and tons of either comedy or action to satisfy all needs. Henry Winkler is great in his role, bringing laughs whenever he's on-screen. Kathy Bates is great as the near-psychotic mother, a Col. Sanders lookalike who brings about easy comedy, and the cameos of Rob Schnieder and Clint Howard are subtle comedic genius.

I must warn all potential viewers. You may find yourself quoting several portions of the movie when finished, and quotes are FOR THE DEVIL!

Buy The Waterboy (1998) Now

Back in 1998, comedian Adam Sandler was coming from a string of solid box office hits such as "Happy Gilmore" and "The Wedding Singer".

Sandler would return with "THE WATERBOY", a film that proved that despite how crude the humor a film may be, people just want to laugh and have a good time. And sure enough, the film would rake in over $160 million dollars in the US and signified Adam Sandler as box office draw.

The film was directed by Frank Coraci (director of "The Wedding Singer", "Around the World in 80 Days" and "Click) and a screenplay by Sandler and Tim Herlihy ("Bedtime Stories", "Mr. Deeds", "Little Nicky", "Big Daddy" and "The Wedding Singer"). Also, featuring music by Alan Pasqua and cinematography by Steven Bernstein ("Corky Romano", "Scary Movie 2' and "Bulletproof").

VIDEO & AUDIO:

"THE WATERBOY" receives its first 1080p High Definition transfer (1:85:1 aspect ratio) and for a film made eleven years ago, the film looks great on Blu-ray. With a large part of the film shot outdoors, you can see the bright colors from the various football teams to natural skin tones for the characters. Day time scenes in particular reveal plenty of the film's fine details across the board. You can also pick up a lot of detail from the grass on the football field, to the griminess of the run down home that Bobby's mother lives in and more. Vivid contrast gives daytime exteriors and low-lit interiors a really good amount of depth. Blanks are are nice and deep.

As for the soundtrack, "THE WATERBOY" sports a lossless English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack (also French 5.1 and Spanish 2.0 Dolby Digital). Although primarily a dialogue-driven film that uses the center channel and is heard clearly, there is occasional music that utilizes the front channel speakers. It's not until you start getting into the football games where the team gets more of an audience and scenes with crowds, where you hear the surrounds being utilized. The film doesn't have an immersive soundtrack compared to other sports-based films on Blu-ray but the audio is nice and clear and overall, satisfactory for this film.

As expected from a Disney release (via Touchstone Home Entertainment) on Blu-ray, the transfer is gorgeous.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

There are no special features included on this Blu-ray release of "The Waterboy".

JUDGMENT CALL:

"THE WATERBOY" is one of those films that people will either love or hate it. Since this is one of the earlier Adam Sandler films, he has a nack of playing parts that are just outrageously funny but at the same time, some people may find it too idiotic for their taste. So, suffice to say, if you are the latter, more than likely this film is not going to appeal to you.

But for those who have enjoyed his films, "THE WATERBOY" is just hilarious and is a Sandler classic!

Adam Sandler's "Bobby Boucher" is a stuttering mama's boy that is definitely going to make you laugh. Granted, he has a speech impediment but its not his way of talking but the way he was raised, the way he thinks and although innocent, it just comes off as idiotic.

The whole film just made me laugh and although people in Southern Louisiana may not like how they were characterized in this film (living in the swamp and eating dead animals, a hillbilly which no one knows what the heck he's saying as the assistant head coach and cheerleaders inebriated, a man who looks like Colonel Sanders as a professor, etc.), I guess if you can take this comedy and not be so serious about it, you can easily be amused. Especially if you are a sports fan.

The Blu-ray release of "THE WATERBOY" definitely has its positive marks for its HD transfer. The picture quality and lossless audio are awesome but I was surprised there are no special features. I would have loved to hear Coraci, Tim Herlihy or Adam Sandler come back and do an audio commentary or some sort of behind-the-scenes featurette.

So, for those who own the previous DVD and are wondering if its worth the double dip, it all comes down to whether or not you want to watch the film in High Definition.

Back then and even today, Adam Sandler films will be love or hate for many viewers but the sheer amount of outrageous comedy from this film is what made it so hilarious. And for a film that came out in 1998, it manages to retain its humor and craziness eleven years later.

"THE WATERBOY" is just hilarious and crazy but overall, an enjoyable film on Blu-ray!

Read Best Reviews of The Waterboy (1998) Here

I wasn't sure if I was going to like this movie because I thought it was going to be another tacky and tasteless movie by another "Saturday Night Live" alum. In "The WaterBoy", Adam Sandler is the "SNL" alum. However, I liked this movie and actually thought it was pretty funny. Adam Sandler plays Bobby Boucher, a dimwitted waterboy for the University of Louisiana's football team. Bobby Boucher lacks social skills and is always ridiculed and picked on by the football players. After having had enough of Bobby's stupidity, Coach Red fires him. Bobby Boucher immediately seeks another waterboy position and gets hired by Coach Klein (who heads South Central Louisiana State University's football team). Soon, this crazy coach puts Bobby on the team when he sees how powerful Bobby becomes when he gets angry ("tackling fuel" as Coach Klein puts it). Now that Bobby is on the team, he helps them move from last place to first place. He also gets the chance to go to college and improve his social skills with his new-found friends. This movie was good because Bobby Boucher was an inspiration to his fans, his teammates, and most importantly, to Coach Klein. Bobby inspires Coach Klein to stand up against his long-time arch-rival (Coach Red) who stole his treasured book of game plans in order to get the head football coach position at the University of Louisiana. Coach Klein finally stands up against Coach Red and regains his manhood. This movie was also good because it contained lots of funny supporting characters like Bobby's crazy, in-and-out of jail girlfriend Vicki Vallencourt, a coach that talked gibberish, Coach Klein (played by Harry Winkler), and Mama Boucher (played by Kathy Bates). Kathy Bates gave a terrific, comic performance as Bobby Boucher's overprotective, if psychotic, mother. Harry Winkler also gets honorable mention for giving a funny performance as the crazy and hallucinatory Coach Klein. Of course, kudos go to Adam Sandler for playing a character that was funny, lovable, and sympathetic. "The WaterBoy" was short and to the point and it managed to be funny without falling into the retarded or the grotesque.

Want The Waterboy (1998) Discount?

I am not a big Adam Sandler fan. I find most of his movies to be a little bit on the boring side but for some bizarre reason, I absolutely love this movie. Maybe because it's just bizarre.

Adam Sandler plays Bobby Boucher (pronounced Bo-shay). He's not exactly the sharpest knife in the drawer, he's in his thirties, he's a momma's boy, and he makes his career as being a professional water boy. Water is his life. Sandler created a very interesting character in Bobby Boucher.

He goes to work for the Louisiana Mud Dogs where the Coach, played by Henry Winkler discovers a "hidden talent" in Bobby. When Bobby gets angry, he has the strength of twenty men so the coach makes Bobby a defensive tackler with the Bobby's condition that nobody tell his momma.

In college Bobby learns that alligators are aggressive not because they "have all these teeth and no toothbrush" but because of the way their medulla oblongata is geared. He learns to have friends' outside of his momma. In other words, Bobby is growing up which is his momma's biggest fear because she is afraid that once he grows up, he won't need her, any more.

It's actually a very sweet movie. What I really liked about this movie were the visualization scenes. The Coach has Bobby visualize his opposition as people who have made him angry in the past. There is this one scene where he sees the whole offensive line with Henry Winklers head on their shoulders singing, "Water sucks...it really, really sucks..."

You have to see it...it's hysterical.

For the most part I review spiritual/metaphysical/philosophical books and movies, but I love films like this even though they may appear to have no "redeemable" aspects. Which is not true. I can find meaning and depth in everything. I'm not saying that The waterboy is a major philosophical triumph, but it does have meaning and depth even though it's primarily silly and highly bizarre...which is also good!

I love this movie and even though I do not own this DVD, I do watch it every time it's on television. It does generate some hardy laughs and I appreciate it just for that!

Peace & Blessings.

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