Happy Gilmore is a ’90s comedy classic, but the ending has one major flaw that becomes even more obvious on a rewatch. Happy Gilmore is one of Adam Sandler’s best movies, as his trademark comedic rage meets a script that makes the best use of it. Although it boasts a combination of great quotes and slapstick humor, Happy Gilmore wouldn’t be the same without its heart.
Some of Sandler’s comedies are accused of mindless noise, but Happy Gilmore can be surprisingly emotional at times. The sports underdog story shows that Happy is really a sweetheart beneath his violent bursts of rage, although the movie’s touching ending misses a trick with one glaring omission.
Happy’s Late Father Deserved To Be In The Final Scene
The Movie Starts By Showing How Important Happy’s Father Was In His Upbringing
Happy Gilmore starts with a brief look at Happy’s childhood, and it shows that his love of hockey comes from his father. Happy clearly has a loving relationship with his father before his death, so it’s a little odd that he doesn’t make an appearance right at the end.
The end of Happy Gilmore shows Chubbs looking down on Happy from heaven, alongside the alligator that took his life and Abraham Lincoln for some reason. This is played as a subversive joke about Hollywood endings, but it’s also undeniably sweet in its own way. It would be even better with Happy’s father standing next to Chubbs.
The death of Happy’s father – at a hockey game no less – is what fuels Happy’s anger. It also explains why he lives with his grandmother, which is one of his most endearing traits. Although Happy’s father dies while he is still a child, it would have been nice to see him in heaven with Chubbs, who is a kind of father figure for Happy in his golfing journey.
Does Happy Gilmore 2 Resolve The Original Movie’s Ending Problem?
The Sequel Ends With Another Look Up Into The Heavens
Netflix’s Happy Gilmore 2 had a chance to refer to Happy’s father, but the sequel chose to ignore him once again. The start of the movie shatters the blissful finale of Happy Gilmore by killing off Happy’s wife Virginia and showing him being kicked out of his grandmother’s home. This wipes the slate clean.
The ending of Happy Gilmore 2 echoes the same imagery from the original, with Chubbs once again smiling down on Happy from above. This is a nice tribute to Carl Weathers, who pᴀssed away last year. The sequel shows even more faces up in heaven, including unimportant side characters who die in the movie, like Eminem’s cameo as an abusive spectator.
Again, Happy’s father is absent from this scene. It’s even worse the second time round, since there are so many more characters who show up in the clouds. It’s possible that the sequel didn’t want to refer all the way back to the start of Happy Gilmore, because audiences could easily have forgotten all about Happy’s father. It certainly seems as though the sequel forgot.
