Yes! Another great example of 2 movie wrongs turning into a movie right! I wasn’t exactly super stoked for Adam Sandler’s kid’s take on the cancer movie. But in the steady hands of Julia Hart, this supposed nepo baby manipulative tearjerker movie rises above the eyerolls and anticipated angry blog posting. Its open heart opens hearts, while singing along to the musical Waitress, a shockingly adult play for high school, but I digress.
Sophie Birenbaum (Sunny Sandler) is the classic happy go lucky musical theater kid with a loving dad Ted (Max Greenfield) and mom Elizabeth (Melanie Lynskey). She and her best friend Carolyn (Scarlett Estevez) have been trying out for productions forever. This year Mrs. Parker (Stephanie Beatriz) is putting on Waitress the musical. Despite going out for the funny bff, Sophie is shocked to learn that she’s gotten the part of Jenna, the lead. Which, so happens, is when she finds out her mom’s cancer has returned.
Julia Hart’s screenplay wins the day for Don’t Say Good Luck. The fusion of a high school movie and a cancer movie together keeps each of those films away from their worst self-serving impulses. Instead the movie traverses a new road that’s a mix of both, jumping in and out of both genres. When the cancer scenes get truly heartbreaking, it’s set to a Waitress song, cutting between Sophie’s rehearsals vs. Elizabeth’s quiet struggles so her daughter can do the thing she loves. On the flip side, when Sophie goes down “woe is me” high school melodrama, a setback from mom shifts her perspective back to what really matters. Hart navigates us through the cliche minefield to something more honest and earnest, equally joyful and melancholy, as we approach Waitress’s opening night, hoping mom gets a shot to see her daughter on stage and have that last vacation at a summer beach house.
This is a tough role for 17 year old Sunny Sandler. She’s got to navigate the comedy, drama, and musical elements equally well for Don’t Say Good Luck to land the way everyone hopes it would. Fortunately, Adam Sandler’s daughter has the stuff to pull it off. Obviously from dad we see the natural comedy. Dramatically, she might be even better, completely selling verbally and non verbally the emotional turmoil the poor teenager is under. And musically she’s a revelation, essentially layering the performance to be both good and bad as the scene needs. The big final number is a literal and figurative high note, that should not leave a dry eye on the couch. Sandler’s excellent with other actors too, especially Melanie Lynskey. Lynskey never gets enough credit for how great an actor she is. At the beginning she’s full of the kind of maternal love every kid wishes they had. There’s a scene in a mall that makes you go “aww” and chuckle at what hijinks her and Sandler get into. As the movie progresses, Melanie has to portray Elizabeth’s physical devolution but as the side character, slowly getting worse and worse as the movie goes along without the Oscar bait. Using that expressive face and very subtle changes in vocal and physical stature, that heartbreaking arc is felt every minute she’s onscreen because of how good Lynskey is. This movie’s goodwill even extends to Adam Sandler’s friends, as we smile when even Jon Lovitz and Steve Buscemi pop up for a few minutes.
So if you’re looking for a great family movie night with some older teenagers, you can’t do much better than Don’t Say Good Luck. High school girls and moms are going to weep in each other’s arms. And high school boys will probably say “this is stupid” while wiping away a tear they don’t want anyone to see. I want to see you be brave boys, as Waitress star Sara Bareilles says.