‘Grown Ups’ has heart

Walking into the theater to see “Grown Ups,” which boasts an all-star army of… Walking into the theater to see “Grown Ups,” which boasts an all-star army of comedic valor that includes Adam Sandler, Rob Schneider, Kevin James, Chris Rock and David Spade, I expected that the movie would be a typical goofy comedy.

We’ve all seen and laughed unashamedly at the antics of these actors in their own films, but what mayhem, what shenanigans, what all-out epic tomfoolery would these guys pull off when not two, not three, not four but FIVE of them were tossed into the same cinematic stew?

The result, I decided as I purchased my $8 popcorn, simply must be one of two scenarios: either total hilarity of historic proportions or a flop, sort of a “too many chefs in the kitchen” kind of result.

What I got, however, I wouldn’t characterize as either of these.

“Grown Ups” definitely did provide some good laughs — at one point, Rob Hilliard (played by Schneider) absentmindedly dips his hand into a bucket of chicken immediately after tossing the ashes of the other guys’ deceased basketball coach. They yell at him for touching the chicken with “coach hands,” but everyone is so hungry that they eat it anyway.

These moments, however, are overshadowed by the overall — get ready for this folks — plot of the movie. There is, in fact, more to “Grown Ups” than stupid humor. The movie centers around the theme of family and the realization of what is most important in life. In addition to laughs, “Grown Ups” packs a lot of heart.

To some, this might be a refreshing take. Maybe it will even produce a little bit of warm fuzziness. To others, perhaps it might border on cheesy.

Either way, “Grown Ups” offers up a few life lessons in addition to the typical array of broken appendages and brainless one-liners, like it or not.