Fans of crude, satirical humor and painfully awkward stunt work will enjoy the Netflix original “The Ridiculous 6,” released last December. Starring Adam Sandler as Tommy Stockburn, aka White Knife, the film follows a man raised by Native Americans as he sets out to save his bank robber father, played by Nick Nolte, from a nasty group of money-hungry bandits.
Sandler and Tim Herlihy, known for “Pixels,” “The Wedding Singer,” “Grown Ups,” “Grown Ups 2” and “Happy Gilmore,” wrote the film, and Frank Coraci, known for “The Wedding Singer,” “The Waterboy” and “Click,” directed it.
Filmed in New Mexico, which gives the film an authentic Western look, “The Ridiculous 6” tells the story of a band of half-brothers who must come together to rustle up $50,000 to save their womanizing father, who happens to be a notorious bank robber. Along the brothers’ journey, they must learn to use their respective talents to become skilled robbers; the only caveat is that “The Ridiculous 6” only steal from those who have no honor.
Sandler’s usual cast of Rob Schneider, Terry Crews, and David Spade expanded to include Taylor Lautner, known best for his role as Jacob Black in “Twilight,” Lautner’s former co-star Julia Jones, country star Blake Shelton, rapper and actor Vanilla Ice, comedian and actor Jorge Garcia, and many more. The cast seems haphazardly thrown together, but the absurdity of the cast adds to the comedic value of the film, and, besides, what else can you expect from one of Sandler’s movies?
As their name implies, “The Ridiculous 6” are a ridiculous and random set of brothers; Schneider plays Ramon, a Mexican burro rider, Crews plays Chico, a pianist, Garcia plays Herm, a wild mountain man, and Wilson plays Danny, a former president’s bodyguard ridden with guilt.
Lautner, the sixth brother, plays White Knife’s hillbilly half-brother, a drastically different role for the actor, who typically portrays more serious characters, as in the “Twilight” franchise and in movies like “Abduction,” an action-thriller film, and “Tracers,” a crime drama. Lautner surprisingly brings a lot of humor to the Western comedy with his naïve, dim-witted and stupid-funny character; Lil’ Pete says the funniest lines in the movie.
Trejo stars as one of the film’s antagonists, Cicero, a rough and tough outlaw — typical for the actor — Vanilla Ice gives his character, Mark Twain, a comical twist, and Spade brings General George Armstrong Custer to life, a spitting image of the Union officer and commander. Shelton plays Wyatt Earp, who is not only a historical figure but also a legendary character from several well-known Western films.
The two-hour movie slows down from time-to-time, and some random scenes are interspersed throughout the film, slackening the pace of the movie so much that it becomes boring at parts. The plot thickens closer to the end of the movie, but in terms of storyline, “The Ridiculous 6” is predictable, and it parodies other, more serious Westerns; however, it does manage to combine comedy with the theme of brotherhood, offering a funny lesson on the importance of family, loyalty and honor.
What “The Ridiculous 6” lacks in plot, it makes up for in terms of comedic worth; White Knife’s stereotypical Native American wisdom, coupled with Lil’ Pete’s inanity and Herm’s incomprehensibility, along with a generally ridiculous atmosphere, come together to produce a sidesplitting comedy set in the violent world of the Western.
According to Business Insider, Netflix announced that “The Ridiculous 6” had the most views within the first 30 days of its release. Still, “The Ridiculous 6” is a quirky film hated by critics; on Rotten Tomatoes, a film review website, the movie has a zero percent rating. Surely, the bizarre and offensive nature of the film has something to do with this; however, this movie needs and manages to meet a single criterion: that it’s hilarious.
“The Ridiculous 6” is one of those movies that make you think, “Oh boy, I’ve stumbled into the weird part of Netflix again,” and you’re right. It’s is one of those Netflix gems you studiously avoid because it just looks weird. But it’s a movie you didn’t know you needed until you watch it. Best watched with some friends, have the remote ready to rewind and re-watch the film’s most ridiculous scenes.
