The Waterboy

Director:	Frank Coraci
Writers:	Tim Herlihy and Adam Sandler
	Touchstone; PG-13; 91 minutes
Release:	11/98
Cast:	Adam Sandler, Kathy Bates, Henry Winkler, Fairuza Balk, Jerry Reed, Larry Gilliard Jr. and Blake Clark

Moviegoers ignored reviews of The Waterboy and took in the movie en masse, making its $39.1 million opening weekend take the highest-grossing November and December opening in history. Bayou waterboy Bobby Boucher (Sandler) has endured an emasculating mother (Bates) and the barbs of the football team for years. When he gets fired from his job and then hired at a less prestigious school by a paternal coach (Winkler), who encourages Bobby to stand up for himself, the 31-year-old unleashes a talent for tackling and becomes the team's star player. Bobby's idiocy and the Bates' backwoods mama provide the fodder for the few lowbrow laughs.