Le Grand Stan

I'm amazed this movie doesn't have more comments. It's not the best comedy flick out there, but I've definitely seen worse. All in all I found this movie pretty damn amusing, with some definite laugh out loud moments (like someone unexpectedly talking with their bellybutton) to be had. I would say if you want a feel good comedy with no great expectations this one is a keeper.

The plot is a bit odd, Rob Schneider plays a corrupt time share salesman who's made millions,gets caught and sent to prison. Naturally his main fear is that he is going to be violently raped over and over during his stay and so enlists a martial arts master (Carradine, who better?) to teach him how to defend himself before he's committed. There is more to the plot of course, but I don't want to give anymore away.

There really are some good parts played by some surprise actors, some unknowns, and a fair share of MMA fighters, and all in all they all play pretty funny roles. This movie isn't a masterpiece, there's some plot holes, and some of it just plain didn't make sense. But that's beside the point. This is a funny movie and more people should see it.

Did I mention Rob Schneider totally knows martial arts and kicks ass? Because he does.

The fraudulent real state agent Stan (Rob Schneider) is married with his beloved Mindy (Jennifer Morrison) and has a seven million dollar fortune. When he is arrested for fraud, he is sentenced to three years in prison and his assets are frozen by the justice. However, his crooked lawyer Lew Popper (M. Emmet Walsh) negotiates a six month freedom, and the weak Stan, who is afraid of being raped in prison, hires the specialist in martial arts The Master (David Carradine) to teach him self-defense. Six months later, Big Stan is sent to the Oaksburgh State Penitentiary totally confident in his expertise in martial arts. He challenges the violent leaders of the gangs and defeats them, being respected by the inmates and bringing peace in the patio. However, the dirty Warden Gasque (Scott Wilson) has the intention of transforming the penitentiary in a luxury resort, and uses Big Stan knowledge to improve his project, promising to release him sooner using the corrupt penal system.

I have been a big fan of Rob Schneider since "Men Behaving Badly" and I am never disappointed with his funny movies. "Big Stan" is no exception, and this tribute to "Prison Break" and "Kung Fu" is another hilarious entertainment of this great comedian. I laughed a lot with his jokes and situations and I really recommend this comedy for those days that the viewer is down or worried with something to relax and relief the tension, or seeking an amusing and light entertainment. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "Big Stan – Arrebentando na Prisão" ("Big Stan – Blowing Away in the Prison")

Considering he's done The Animal and Deuce Bigalow 1 and 2, I wasn't expecting much from Schneider's Big Stan, especially since this is his directorial debut. I did not know much going into the theatre, except what I saw in the trailer.

Much to my surprise this turned out to be an OK waste of time, but nothing more. It's just another prison comedy, with a small twist. The incarcerated main character has 6 months to prepare for "doin' time".

It's nice to see Carradine pop up here and there parodying his other kung fu related works, and this time sending an anti-smoking message while consuming a life time supply of cigarettes. All through the movie I kept trying to remember where do I know the actress that plays Rob's wife from. Then it hit me. None other than Jennifer Morrison of House M.D.. She looked hot in this movie, but I feel she should make better choices in the future.

All in all a decent comedy, a better than expected, but shaky, direction from Schneider. This should be perfect for a weekend afternoon once it comes out on DVD.

Kung fu comedy with Schneider and Carradine - a cool mix of prison films and all in all just goofy in places this is a fun film to kick back to.

Full of the sort of humor that Sneider fans will know and love from his other movies, Gigolo and the Animal, this is fast, furious, and fun.

What is surprising is how good a kung fu pastiche this is - the finding of the Master, the training, the fight sequences are really pretty good kung fu slapstick, we may not be talking Drunken Master here but it certainly isn't pathetic.

All in all an underrated and entertaining film - with lots of dumb prison jokes, some smart ideas, and Schneider doing his usual comedy with flair.

So, after becoming a gigolo, a teenage girl, an animal and making a lot of copies, Schneider becomes unrapeable. And it works for me.

One thing will dictate whether you'll like this movie: 1 - Rob Schneider. I like him, but he's made some real turkeys (Animal comes to mind), so I was unsure of what to expect. If you don't like him, you probably won't like this. Probably, but not surely, because this is one of his best movies.

Here he enlists the help of a good ensemble cast AND David Carradine, who steals every scene he's in, by playing a parody of himself straight-faced. This is essentially a prison comedy movie, and the best one I've seen since "Mean Machine" and "Life".

This time, instead of becoming a Stapler as his previous movies would indicate, he becomes a martial arts expert in order to cope with life in prison. You know, because he doesn't want to get raped. That's pretty much his only agenda, of course until he gets to know the inmates better and the usual clichés unwhirl.

The irony in seeing the diminutive actor kicking more ass than Chuck Norris is what makes this movie so entertaining, and in a way, even inspiring (if completely unbelievable). There are several laugh out loud scenes here, including one in which he "bans" rape from prison.

The only real problem with this film, aside from being deliciously silly and a tad too long, is that is pretty much divided in two extremely different parts, the buildup and the actual prison scenes. But in the end all is well, because laughter is what Schneider wanted, and that's precisely what he got out of me with "Big Stan".

So, good job, Rob, and try to keep it up.