 LITTLE
NICKY
It's official, Hitler is in Hell.
Rodney Dangerfield is the Devil's father,
and Quentin Tarantino is a street preacher!
REVIEW BY DAVID BRUCE |
(2000)
This page was created on October 23, , 2000
This page was last updated on
May 29, 2005
|
|
Directed
by Steven Brill
Written by Tim Herlihy, Adam Sandler & Steven Brill
Ozzy
Osbourne .... Himself
Adam Sandler .... Nicky
Harvey Keitel .... Satan
Leah Lail .... Christa
Lewis Arquette
Patricia Arquette
Christopher Carroll .... Hitler (in hell)
Salvatore Cavaliere .... Sal the Demon
Ellen Cleghorne .... Mother at game
Rodney Dangerfield .... Satan's Dad
Rhys Ifans .... Adrian
Robert Smigel .... Bulldog
Quentin Tarantino .... Blind preacher
Reese Witherspoon
Produced
by Allen Covert (associate), Robert Engelman (executive), Jack Giarraputo,
Michelle Holdsworth (associate), Adam Sandler (executive), Robert
Simonds, Rita Smith (associate)
Original music by Teddy Castellucci
Cinematography by Theo van de Sande
Film Editing by Jeff Gourson
Rated
PG-13
|
|
TRAILERS
Quicktime
High Res
Quicktime
Med Res
Quicktime
Low Res
TEASERS
Quicktime
High
Res
Quicktime
Med Res
Quicktime
Low Res
|
1.
School Of Hard Knocks - P.O.D.
2. Pardon Me - Incubus
3. Change (In The House Of Flies) - Deftones
4. (Rock) Superstar - Cypress Hill
5. Natural High - Insolence
6. Points Of Authority - Linkin Park
7. Stupify (Fu's Forbidden Little Nicky Remix) - Disturbed
8. Nothing - Unloco
9. When Worlds Collide - Powerman 5000
10. Cave - Muse
11. Take A Picture - Filter
12. Be Quiet And Drive (Far Away) (Acoustic) - Deftones
|
|
If
your father was the Devil
and your mother was an Angel
You'd be messed up too.
|
|
You
know his number.
You know his name.
And now, you will meet...his son.
 STUDIO
SYNOPSIS:
Adam Sandler is Little Nicky, a shy and awkward guy with a penchant
for heavy metal music and two bullies for older brothers. And another
thing .... Little Nicky is the son of the Devil and lives in Hell.
When Dad decides not to make his brothers the heir to his evil throne,
they go to New York, hell-bent on creating their own Hell on Earth.
 In
the process, they disrupt the natural order of things causing Nicky's
Dad, The Devil, to lose his power and slowly die. With no other
options, the weakening Devil orders his beloved, but feeble son
Nicky to leave his sheltered life in Hell for the mean streets of
New York. With the fate of the planet resting on his shoulders,
a nervous Nicky and his guide (a foul-mouthed, talking dog) must
find Nicky's brothers, overcome their formidable powers, and restore
the balance between Good and Evil.
|
|
THIS
IS NOT A SPOILER REVIEW
|
|
LITTLE
NICKY
It's official,
Hitler is in Hell.
Rodney Dangerfield is the Devil's father,
and Quentin Tarantino is a street preacher!
REVIEW BY DAVID BRUCE
|
|
 MEET
THE BROTHERS FROM HELL.
They are sons of Satan. They are the evil villains. In this
film, Satan is not the truly Evil One. Rather it is his children.
Now there is some real spiritual truth here. There has been a real
tendency to either deny the existence of a Devil, or conversely,
to give Satan to much power, -the same powers as God- making him
all present, all-powerful and all knowing. Biblically, both views
are wrong.
In this film, Satan is removed from the position of being directly
responsible for all evil on earth. Rather, the credit goes to his
children (agents). In the Bible, even though a third of all the
angels become the agents of Satan, it is the human race, as typified
in the Adam and Eve story, which is directly responsible for Evil.
In other words, we are the agents of Evil. We are responsible. We
are the children of Satan, "born to be wild" and "bad
to the bone" as two rock classics aptly put it.
|
|
 THE
SONS OF SATAN ARE CLOSING DOWN HELL.
Dear old dad is not giving them Hell (as an inheritance) and so
they are going to give the devil Hell!
Their plan is to (1) shut down Hell so no more evil people can
enter, and (2) take over Earth. Creating Hell on Earth! They want
to create a Hell in which they are the rulers. This is sort of the
Book of Revelation in reverse. Instead of a "New Heaven and
a New Earth" we have a "New Hell and a New Earth."
Instead of a second coming of the Son of God, we have a coming of
the sons of Satan. It's like playing a Rock n' Roll record backwards
with so-called satanic backmasking (a theme in the film, by the
way).
|
|
 THE
COMING OF THE SONS OF SATAN TO THE NEW YORK SUBWAY.
The connection between Hell and Earth is New York and the door,
of course, is the NY Subway, naturally.
Since
the fall of the communistic USSR the location of the Apocalyptic
City of Babylon in popular myth has shifted to New York.
It
is hard to understate the significance of this. The United
States is the first nation in all of history to see itself as the
end time Seat of Satan. Before the fall of the USSR, Reagan's "Evil
Empire," American mythology portrayed the USA as God's domain ("My
Country tis of Thee, Sweet land of liberty..."). It was sort of
a Good Vs Evil idea, the USA being, of course, the agents of Good.
During the 1990s, the myth changed and, incredibly, America now
sees itself as the end time location of the Apocalypse.
Since
New York is a huge metropolis within the most powerful nation, and
since NY is the center of the United Nations and the center of world
commerce (Wall Street), it becomes the modern apocalyptic equivalent
of the Great and Evil Babylon. Interestingly, Washington DC, under
the Clinton administration, diminished in popular myth -- two 90s
films even depicted the White House as blowing up (INDEPENDENCE
DAY and MARS ATTACKS).
There
are so many books and films that reflect this significant historical
shift in Apocalyptic understanding. The United States of America/New
York is now the apocalyptic center of Evil in modern myth, consider
the following:
|
In END
OF DAYS
The
Devil wants to incarnate as the Antichrist in New York.
|
THE
OMEGA CODE
centers the coming AntiChrist in the USA
|
The PROPHECY trilogy centers in
NY with battles between Lucifer
and Gabriel .
|
In BLESS THE CHILD the cosmic
battle between Good and Evil takes place in New York.
|
In ARMAGEDDON fragments of the
apocalyptic meteor first hits New York.
|
In THE
ASTRONAUT'S WIFE a woman is pregnant with the Antichrist
twins in New York!
|
| PAUSE
FOR THOUGHT.
I am of the strong belief that myth is the MOST powerful vehicle of
truth. God has used stories, myth and parables in culture after culture
to bring forth truth. So then, is God trying to tell us something
here? The USA is now the most powerful nation in the world, the US
dollar is the world's standard, and American English is now the official
international language. In our post-modern world "no one can
buy or sell without this mark" (Rev 13:17) of the USA, and "it's
number is 666" (Rev 13:18). Could it be that what is true in
our current mythology is truth indeed? |
 SATAN
AS A TOOL OF GOD
In the Biblical book of Job, found in the Hebrew Scriptures, Satan
is portrayed as a tool of God used to test God's servant Job. Similarly,
recent films have attempted to portray a more understandable Satan.
In this film Satan is portrayed as a necessary agent in the maintenance
of balance between Good and Evil. There is sort of an Eastern Yin
and Yang concept at work here. |
 LIVING
WITH A DUAL NATURE.
Adam Sandler so perfectly portrays that dual nature that all humans
experience, or at least, I experience. I find myself caught between
doing good and doing evil at the same time. I like the one eye covered
and one eye opened look of Nicky -it is highly symbolic of that duality. |
 "MY
FATHER WAS A DEVIL,
BUT MY MOTHER WAS AN ANGEL."
Again the idea of duality here. |
  |
GETTING
BEAT UP FOR INNOCENT REASONS.
We are all victims of our own stupidity. We are our own worst enemy.
We do stupid unintentional things that cause others to despise us.
Good lesson here in not being so quick to judge others. |
|
 QUENTIN
TARANTINO AS A STREET PREACHER.
Yes, Quentin
Tarantino is cast as a street preacher. Very appropriate because
he actually is. Quentin is the preacher in the cinematic cathedral.
Hollywood speaks to more people about their spirituality than the
church does. I often wish the church would stop preaching to just
the choir and re-enter the real world. Oh! OOPS! that would be "sinfully"
wrong. Imagine the church doing what Jesus did? How silly of me!
|
|
 QUENTINE
SPEAKS THE GOSPEL TRUTH.
His lines are: "And the Lord loves you, and the Lord loves you."
Much better than "Repent, or go to Hell." Confronting Little Nicky
he says, "You make the Lord very nervous." Actually Little Nicky
type people make the church very nervous. Do you feel that you make
the church a little nervous, too? Email me, you are my kind of person.
|
 NICKY
IS ON A MISSION TO SAVE PLANET EARTH.
Nicky is typical of "savior" and prophet types -they are
always rejected by those whom they try to help. |
 NICKY
IS RUN OUT OF TOWN.
The interesting thing about the background shot as Nicky is being
chased is that it features a mammoth church building with an extra
large cross on it. The implication is obvious. |
 THE
MACK TRUCK STRIKES.
In one of Nicky's failed attempts at saving the world from his very
evil brothers he is struck down by a Mack truck. And so it is in real
life. The Mack truck can and does strike at any moment. Things change.
Life can end suddenly. Are you ready for the next life? |
|
 WELCOME
TO HELL.
Nicky arrives back in Hell after being hit by the Mack truck --
of course.
It's
interesting to see who else is in Hell -- this may be the first
Movie in cinematic history to feature Adolph Hitler in Hell.
|
|
  HOT
BURNING HELL.
Not since WHAT DREAMS MAY COME, have we seen such a tormenting Hell.
The
purpose of Hell as presented in the scriptures is to assure us that
God -- and not Satan, by the way -- will punish evildoers, and that
justice will ultimately prevail. Fire and brimstone, to me, are
symbolic of that justice and promise of a better world to come.
I am not a literalist in terms of an actual physical fire as we
know it here on earth. I tend to see something spiritually more
profound here (do a word search on the word "fire" in the Bible
and you will see what I mean). How do you view the Lake of Fire
(God's Judgment of evil doers)? Email me.
|
 CREATIVE
DEMONS.
Hell in this film is like a Halloween party. The demons come in a
creative assortment of costumes. And actually, Evil does come to us
in a variety of forms and disguises. The Bible says Satan often comes
as an angel of light. |
  THE
DOG.
Lucifer decides to help his son by sending him back to earth with
a talking dog. Again, arriving back on earth in the subway station
in, well you know, New York City -Modern Babylon. You might recall
that in SUPERMAN -THE MOVIE the evil Lex Luther (i.e. Lucifer) had
his headquarters in a subway under the big city. |
|
|
|
 
|
|
NICKY
GETS A GIRLFRIEND AND SOME HEAD BANGER FRIENDS.
It will surprise you who plays the girl friend. Can you figure it
out?
Also,
his hard rock friends are interesting since our culture associates
hard rock with evil forces and rock artists capitalize on this association.
Consider, for example, the hellish look and style of Kiss, Marilyn
Manson, Ozzy Osbourne (who appears in the film), and Alice Cooper.
The interesting thing about this list is that Ozzy is drug free,
happily married, living next door to Pat Boone, and Alice Cooper
is a Christian who considers his music anti-Satan. I love paradox.
Life is so intriguing, so contrary. I just love it.
|
 REMEMBER
BACK MASKING?
Remember in the 80s when there was all this talk about the Devil actually
placing messages in Rock n Roll records that could only be understood
if you played the record backwards? This back masking was supposed
to influence our fine upstanding youth in an unconscious way and turn
them into devil worshippers. Such nonsense. Although there was and
is back masking that goes on, it has nothing to do with a satanic
plot to take over the youth of the world. Such nonsense is just an
extension of racism against the black culture that gave the world
Rock 'n' Roll music. In the 50s Rock was considered dangerous "Race
Music" that would turn youth into "Jungle Savages." Since African
culture made strong use of drums, it was reasoned by some very racially
sick people that any music with a strong beat in it was somehow demonic.
All of this makes me so very sad. And especially so when the biggest
propagators of what I see as an extension of racism were and are television
evangelists. |
  |
DEVELOPING
HIS POWERS
In order to overcome evil, Nicky must learn and develop his strengths
and abilities. |
 
|
| SPIRITUAL
DEVELOPMENT IS IMPORTANT, BUT IT SEEMS TO BE THE LAST THING ON EVERYBODY'S
LIST. |
  |
THE
MOST IMPORTANT BATTLES ARE THE SPIRITUAL ONES.
As I write this review I am in the midst of a very difficult time
in my own life. I relate to the images here. We all have our own demons
and situations in life that we need to battle. Prayer is for me is
a great resource. What do you do to fight off your demons? Email me. |
|
|
|
HITLER
IN HELL
Subject: FYI
Date: Sun, 29 Apr 2001
From: Shawn
Dear
David, Hello, my name is Shawn and I've been a long time fan of
your site, and have e-mailed you a couple times. I just read your
"Little Nicky" review and I have a correction for you. "South Park,
Bigger Longer and Uncut" beat Little Nicky to placing Hitler in
Hell. South Park is really a fascinating show, once you get past
the toilet humor. I hope all is well and keep up the good work.
In Christ's Love,
Shawn Willox http://geocities.com/willoxst
Response:
You are so right. Thank you for the correction. -David
LEARN
FROM THE HOLY ONE
Subject: Yes...
Date: Sun, 3 Dec 2000
From: Ann
I
do make the church nervous because I do not like frivolous preaching,
hypocrisy or exhorbitant spending at the expense of the sheep. So
I immediately start asking certain questions of the head preacher
on my first visit (if he should be so lucky to be in the area when
I am coming or going). But unlike you, I do not think the world
could 'teach us a thing or two' as there is a definite difference
between the devils' children and God's children, the world and the
Kingdom of God; we need to learn our lessons straight from the Holy
One. If there is any spiritual values at all that truly promote
the Kingdom of God, they are usually so vague or so mired in the
ungodly ideas presented, one would really have to be spoken to by
the Holy Spirit Himself to catch them. I too, enjoy films immensely,
though sense that my Saviour will eventually wean me away as the
night comes, when no man can work the works of God.
~ Ann
P.S. I think its naive for a seasoned Christian to think every film
made has spiritual messages pointing us to God.
Response:
We can learn from both the non-Christian and the Christian world.
You are not of the world, but you are in it. Use the culture as
a point of connection. Start where the people are. I hope you will
not get so "holy" that you become disconnected from the
very world that "God so loved." Bridge builing is fun.
Dialogue is fundamental in any relationship. -David
WHAT
DEMONS LOOK LIKE
Subject: Lake of Fire
Date: Sun, 05 Nov 2000
From: dan
This
is not necessarily in reference to the Lake of Fire but the passage
after it (Creative Demons). Why is it do you think that demons are
represented in that manner? I've always thought it would be more
subtle and apt if the demons still looked like the angels they once
were supposed to be. --dan
Response:
What demons do is ugly -and so they are pictured ugly. The way they
appear in temptations is attractive -like angels of light.
YOUR
TYPE OF PERSON
Subject: Little_Nicky
Date: Sat, 4 Nov 2000
From: Dan Hardway
Read
your review on Little Nicky. Think I am your type of person. I make
most churches very nervous. Hell is the experience of an unregenerate
soul exposed to the glory of God without mediation. Hollywood has
more prophets than the church right now. Remember, according to
Joel the only qualification for receipt of the spirit of prophecy
is to have flesh.
Dan Hardway
Response:
You are so right .-David
|
OFFICIAL
SITE
LITTLE NICKY Copyright. © New Line
Productions Inc. 2000.
All Rights Reserved.
|
|
