When you take your first look at Rob Schneider it’s kind of hard to take him seriously since he simply looks like a funny guy. Dramatic moments anything other than comedy doesn’t seem to be his thing and in all honesty he can accomplish such scenes, but you’re simply waiting for another joke or snappy one-liner or catchphrase to come blurting out at any second. He’s been a comedian for so long that it seems like second nature at this point and no matter what he’s done people remember him the most for his outlandish roles and the movies in which he’s been genuinely funny. There are those films however where he seems to get drowned out a bit by his fellow comedians and other costars since he does kind of fade into the background just a bit, as though he’s the good friend you want around but don’t always need to hear from.
Here are some of his best movies to date.
5. Necessary Roughness
This is easily a spin of the character the Richmeister from his famous SNL skit but thankfully toned down to a level that can be tolerated in this movie. He does show up more than once but his role is still kind of small compared to the rest of the cast since it’s more about the football and less about him. The movie is funny though since bringing Scott Bakula in as an aging quarterback that’s looking to finish his college career and possibly turn around a losing team is something that lends itself to epic drama or campy comedy, and the latter is usually much easier to attain simply because it takes less effort.
4. Grown Ups
This is one movie where he tends to fade into the background a bit since Sandler, Spade, James, and Rock kind of eclipse him in a way that makes Rob kind of a sidekick and not much else. He does play a hilarious part though since his character is one of the most unlikely people to have three daughters, two of which are likely gorgeous because of their mothers. But despite this the role is still funny since he’s almost the polar opposite of his costars in his mannerisms and is still somehow funny enough to stand out. Plus, the whole scene with him kicking David Spade in the nay-nays is too funny to pass up.
3. The Benchwarmers
Out of all the baseball movies ever made this is one of those that you wouldn’t watch for the inspirational show of courage and dedication, but more for the chance to see the underdogs actually provide some decent comedy. It’s actually kind of hard to feel sorry for Richie or Clark since they’re both kind of, well, odd. Obviously the movie wants you to feel for them, but Gus kind of takes the attention of the audience more than anyone since he’s actually good at baseball and he knows how to fight back. Of course that’s because he used to be a bully, but before that revelation he goes on to help his team actually improve their level of play.
2. 50 First Dates
Ula is just a nut, plain and simple. He’s the dirty, grungy guy that won’t stop talking, won’t stop saying stupid things, and just, well, won’t stop. He might be a good friend but at the same time he’s kind of a sleaze since he never seems to do much of anything. But in this film he’s actually a decent guy because despite being ridiculous and thankfully not indicative of Polynesians he is the kind of guy that will help out his friends when they need it. A lot of us have probably had one or two friends like Ula. We wonder why we keep them around and then they come through for us with something and remind us.
1. Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo
He’s probably the worst gigolo to ever take the title since quite honestly he didn’t sleep with a single woman. What he did do however was build up their levels of self-esteem to the point that they were grateful to him and had a much better time than they might have had they actually done the deed. Deuce was a nice guy that wanted very little but got even less. When he said yes to watching over a gigolo’s apartment while he was away however he got himself into a mess that just about got him killed and yet wound up earning himself a few friends and the love of his life.
Rob has been around long enough to know how the comedy game works and to know that one’s reputation rises and falls on a continual basis depending on how you please the crowd. Lately it doesn’t seem like he’s been doing much but it could be that he’s gearing up for comeback or moving on to something different.
