Search - Bedtime Stories (Two-Disc Special Edition + Digital Copy) on DVD

K. K. (GAMER)
Reviewed on 9/3/2022...

Started entertaining and then fizzled. Adam Sandler fizzled on this one. Avoid!

Once Upon a Time or When Movies Were Simpler.

tvtv3 | Sorento, IL United States | 04/03/2009

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Let's just clarify at the beginning. If you are looking to just own the movie, buy the less expensive regular BEDTIME STORIES DVD. However, if you or your family enjoys the special features that usually are included with movies, you'll want to purchase this, the DELUXE DVD EDITION of BEDTIME STORIES.

In 2008 Sandler starred in two movies. One (YOU DON'T MESS WITH THE ZOHAN) was a complete bust on all accounts. The other was BEDTIME STORIES, a film the critic meeting with mediocrity, but that was made major box office during the Christmas season. The film has a pretty decent story line with enough laughs for kids and adults and is actually quite family friendly (the movie was the first Happy Gilmore Production to receive a PG rating).

Sandler portrays Skeeter Bronson the son of a father (Jonathan Pryce) who attempted to fulfill his life dream of owning and operating a small hotel. However, Skeeter's dad just isn't a very good businessmen and ends up having to sell his hotel to Barry Nottingham (Richard Griffiths), but only on the condition that when Skeeter is grown that he will be made manager. The deal is struck and Nottingham tears down the quaint hotel and builds a luxurious, mega-hotel. He keeps Skeeter around as the head janitor, but soon forgets the promise he made. When Skeeter learns that Nottingham is going to be building a new hotel, he believes this is his big break, but then Nottingham announces his future son-in-law, Kendall (Guy Pierce) will be the manager of the new hotel. Skeeter is heartbroken. However, he does have other matters to occupy part of his time because his sister, Wendy (Courtney Cox) has to leave town for a job interview and asks Skeeter to watch over her kids, Patrick (Jonathan Morgan Heti) and Bobbi (Laura Ann Kesling), in the evenings and overnight. Wendy has already arranged for a friend of hers, Jill (Keri Russell) to watch the kids during the day but in the evenings she has classes to attend. Initially Skeeter is a bit hesitant with the kids and he absolutely abhors Jill. However, after an evening of bedtime stories the kids are hooked and bond is made between them. The next morning events from the bedtime story he told that night before begin to come true. Skeeter is amazed and then attempts to manipulate his nephew and niece ideas to allow his own dreams come true, but true to life, things don't exactly turn out the way he imagines.

I really enjoyed BEDTIME STORIES. The idea of the film is not exactly a new one, but it was done in a fresh and interesting way. The film has a great amount of family humor, with nothing too gross and very little crudity. The movie also has some very positive messages about family and living in a community. Bedtime stories can have a major impact upon children and I really enjoyed how the filmmakers used this concept as a way of strengthening the bonds between emotionally-distanced family members. Unlike some other recent Sandler projects, BEDTIME STORIES has no pretensions about being some kind of movie it isn't. It's just an enjoyable and quality family movie which also happens to be the best movie Adam Sandler has made in years.

The Deluxe DVD Edition of BEDTIME STORIES has the same movie and trailers as the regular DVD. However, as mentioned at the beginning, the Deluxe DVD Edition is the DVD you want to purchase if you like special features. The special features on this 2-disc set include the featurette "Until Gravity Do Us Part", which is a look at the special effects of the movie; "It's Bugsy"--a special look at the big-eyed and hearted guinea pig of the film; "To All the Little People"; a special look at Blu-ray entitled "Dylan & Cole Sprouse: Blu-ray is Suite"; bloopers, deleted scenes, and a few other surprises."

Life is just one big Bedtime story

Renfield | Edmonton, Canada | 05/17/2009

(4 out of 5 stars)

"BLU-RAY REVIEW: BEDTIME STORIES
MOVIE: 5/5
VIDEO QUALITY: 4.5/5
AUDIO: 5/5
EXTRAS: 3/5
OVERALL: 4/5

MOVIE:
Adam Sandler is a funny guy, but I was a tad afraid to watch this after seeing that train wreck You Don't Mess With The Zohan in the theater. Seeing that movie, I lost a lot of respect for him. I kept wanting to leave the theater, but I convinced myself to stay, only to realize I shouldn't have.

Anyways, I swallowed my pride and rented this movie tonight in Blu-Ray. I'm really glad I did actually. It looks like all is forgiven with Mister Sandler.

Skeeter Bronson is a failing Utility man at a luxury hotel. His (overly eco-friendly) sister is leaving town for a week, so he watches over them for a week. He is to watch them at night when in the day, a friend of hers watches in the day. It seems as it they have not so good first impressions. However, they settle bad first impressions with Bedtime stories he tells. The stories are cute, fun, fantastical, and imaginative. And the funny thing is that they relate to his life- the hotel arses, him trying to win the management, the OCD boss, and much more.

I liked the movie a lot actually. It was funny, it was cute. It even had that classic Journey song Don't Stop Believin'. The special effects were great too! They looked very realistic and were very well done. And Sandler was hilarious too. So if you like the Sandler-type humor, be sure to see it.

BLU-RAY:

-VIDEO QUALITY: 4.5/5
The movie has a spectacular presentation. The video quality looks great especially in the story scenes. The best one weeing with Skeeto (I do mean the Sci-Fi one). The reason it gets half a point docked off is because of a slight grain in the few of a conversation scenes. But after a while it's unnoticeable.

-SOUND QUALITY: 5/5
The sound quality is excellent. The sound will blow you away, especially the ancient Rome scene. The music is quite mind blowing too. The 5.1 is great too. Good use of the back speakers too, during the story sequences you really feel like the crowd is surrounding you. It's a good release for sure.

-EXTRAS: 3/5:
A shame, really, about the extras. With the exception of the deleted scenes, they're very short. For one, we don't get a commentary track here. There's one about the space scene which is interesting but not really much. The one about Bugsy is wasted potential too. The one about the kids is OK, but WHERE'S A DOCUMENTARY ABOUT THE MOVIE? On the bright side, we have some cool deleted scenes, as well as some hilarious outtakes.

OVERALL: This is a good movie that's worth it for sure if you love Adam Sandler you'll like this movie. As for the Blu-Ray, it's worth it for the quality alone."

Family Friendly Doesn't Always Mean "Bad"...

B. Merritt | WWW.FILMREVIEWSTEW.COM, Pacific Grove, California | 02/12/2010

(3 out of 5 stars)

"Okay, so this film isn't original, challenging or anything that would be considered "high cinema". But it is entertaining and pretty darned funny, which is why I gave it a lukewarm positive review rating.

I give it a positive rating with a serious note of caution for Mr. Sandler. Now I'm not an Adam Sandler fan and, in fact, have often avoided his childish and mindless comedies (I point you to the insipidness that is Little Nicky, Mr. Deeds, and, well ...you can look up the rest). However he has surprised me on occasion with a flash of talent in such things as Spanglish and Reign Over Me. But, in truth, looking at the trailers and reviews of BEDTIME STORIES, I was more than just a little hesitant to check it out. My big note of caution comes in the form of another early actor who lately has been putting out some of the worst films on celluloid. I'm talking about Eddie Murphy. Murphy's early career reads like the who's-who of great comedies: 48 HOURS, Trading Places, and the king of them all, Beverly Hills Cop. These are films that are ingrained in the cinematic community. But look at what he's done lately and you can't help but become a tad nauseous. Norbit, The Haunted Mansion, Daddy Day Care and the abominable The Adventures of Pluto Nash. And that terrible list seems to be growing. Where Murphy apparently has fallen down is in that he's trying hard (and it's obvious he's trying too hard) to be family friendly. Everything he's done lately has been PG or friendlier. I'm not saying that PG films can't be good, it's just that they can stifle the creative process as production companies attempt to appeal to a broader audience. Which brings us back to Bedtime Stories...

It's PG. It's good. It's not great. And it nearly slips into the shoddy category, but doesn't for a few reasons that aren't necessarily related to Sandler. The main attraction (for me, at least) was watching the two young kids, Jonathan Morgan Heit and Laura Ann Kesling. It is their infectious and animated actions that made the movie oh-so-watchable. One scene in particular that has stuck with me is when Bobbi (Laura Ann Kesling) is in the bathroom and has shaving cream all over her head and says, "I"m Princess Leia!"

Whenever Sandler is onscreen with the kids, the interest and impact of the story grows tenfold. And it's not just because that's when the bedtime stories are taking place, but because of the kids' interactions with Sandler and his responsiveness to them. This made it, dare I say, very family friendly and will probably bring a smile to the hardest of hearts.

So, yeah, this is a fun film. It won't expand your consciousness or challenge your kids to learn anything new. But it will entertain them and maybe, just maybe, you might like it too."