Eight Crazy Nights

Plot

Jewish alcoholic Davey Stone has a criminal record that has earned him animosity in his hometown of Dukesberry, New Hampshire. On the first night of Hanukkah, he is taken to court for recent crimes including dining and dashing, indecent exposure, and destruction of public property. Whitey Duvall, a diminutive, eccentric aging volunteer referee from Davey's former youth basketball league, convinces the judge to let Davey do community service as a referee-in-training.

The judge warns that if Davey commits another crime before his tenure ends, he will be sentenced to at least ten years in prison. At his first game, Davey harasses the players; Whitey has a seizure, and the game is halted with Davey forfeiting. Whitey takes Davey to the mall, where they encounter Davey's childhood crush Jennifer Friedman, now a divorced single mother, and her preteen son Benjamin. Davey still harbors feelings for Jennifer, but Whitey reminds him he squandered his chance.

Whitey's attempts to encourage Davey are met with humiliation and assault. Davey bonds with Benjamin playing basketball, but Benjamin's unsportsmanlike behavior, encouraged by Davey, angers Jennifer. Davey returns home to find his trailer burning down, set by a man he defeated in basketball; he rushes inside to retrieve a Hanukkah card from his late parents. Whitey invites Davey to stay with him and his diabetic twin sister Eleanore, and Davey reluctantly accepts.

Davey gradually improves until Whitey recounts Davey's past: en route to a basketball game, Davey's parents died in a car accident, which he learned of after winning the game. Enraged, Davey insults the Duvalls, and a heartbroken Whitey evicts him.

Production

Meatball Animation handled most of the animation for Eight Crazy Nights. The film was produced during Hollywood's shift from 2D to 3D animation, a time when many traditional studios shut down. Meatball hired numerous animators who had been laid off, with most of its staff reportedly coming from Fox Animation Studios and Warner Bros. Feature Animation. Additional work came from Anvil Studios, Bardel Entertainment, Goldenbell Animation, Marina Motion Animation, Spaff Animation, Tama Production, Time Lapse Pictures, Y. R. Studio, and Yowza!

Animation. This was Adam Sandler's only animated film until Hotel Transylvania in 2012, and it remains his sole traditionally-animated project. According to Kearsley, several infamous elements were originally slated for removal, including a deer eating feces and Whitey's voice—which was initially even more high-pitched and grating. However, focus groups who saw the film caused Whitey's voice to be lowered, while the product placements were kept despite being used without permission.

Release

Eight Crazy Nights landed in fifth place during its opening weekend in the U.S., pulling in $14 million from its Wednesday debut. Its North American total reached $23.6 million, with foreign earnings so small they were barely worth noting, bringing the worldwide figure to $23.8 million. Critics were harsh on the film. CinemaScore audiences gave it a B on their A+ to F scale.

Roger Ebert awarded two out of four stars, complaining about the gloomy mood and noting that the holidays aren't cheerful in Sandlerville. Salon's Matthew Rozsa described it as the most famous Hanukkah movie despite being poor. Empire's William Thomas gave one star out of five, calling it a head-scratcher and advising viewers to stay away. Sandler did win a 2003 Kids' Choice Award for Favorite Voice from an Animated Movie, but also earned two 2002 Golden Raspberry nominations for Worst Actor, one for this film and one for Mr. Deeds.

Columbia TriStar Home Entertainment released it on VHS and DVD (single and two-disc editions) on November 4, 2003; the special edition included deleted scenes, commentaries, and Sandler's short A Day with the Meatball. A Blu-ray came out on December 13, 2016.