As co-producer and star of Bedtime Stories, Adam Sandler has made a cold, shrewd, almost actuarial decision about what keeps his box-office dollars up. People like to see him act opposite little kids. Here, he plays Skeeter, the laid-back maintenance man at a huge, soulless hotel - which was once a sweet family motel run by Skeeter's old dad, played by Jonathan Pryce. His sister has gone away, leaving Skeeter to mind the kids; he entertains them with bedtime stories that come true. Russell Brand plays Skeeter's best friend. There's a surface liveliness to the movie, but it has that plasticky Disney quality and lack of real heart.
Explore more on these topics