"Leo" Movie Review

Adam Sandler shines in his performance as an old, singing lizard in Netflix’s animated musical comedy, “Leo”. Directed by Robert Marianetti, Robert Smigel and David Wachtenheim, the film follows the life of an ancient lizard and his grumpy turtle terrarium mate in an elementary school in Fort Myers, Florida.

The Netflix film, produced by Adam Sandler and Mireille Soria, centers around a talking (and singing!) lizard living life as a class pet in a fifth-grade classroom: the same room he’s been in for the past 74 years. When Leo the lizard has a midlife crisis, he decides to leave his cage for good.

When the affectionate and beloved fifth-grade teacher takes a maternal leave of absence, Leo and his terrarium mate, Squirtle, find themselves in the hands of an old-school substitute who insists on a student bringing home a class pet every Friday.

These weekend trips provide Leo with his chance to attempt to escape to his “dream:" the Everglades swampland. However, Leo is continually dragged back to the classroom by the students’ issues, which include the strict substitute that insists on them learning the old-fashioned way.

The film boasts a star-studded cast - including Bill Burr, Cecily Strong, Jason Alexander, Rob Schneider, Jo Koy and Heidi Gardner amongst numerous others. In addition, Sandler’s two daughters (Sadie and Sunny Sandler) and his wife (Jackie Sandler) voice relatively main characters.

Towards the beginning of the film, the audience is introduced to Fort Myers Elementary School and its students who range in age from kindergarten to fifth grade. “Leo” manages to capture the “grown up” feeling of the school’s oldest grade, while also perfectly capturing the untamable excitement and endless energy of kindergarteners through the hilarious wide-eyed expressions of the bobblehead toddlers.

The family-friendly film brilliantly incorporates humor as it depicts the ups and downs of the last year of elementary school through the eyes of a class pet. The light-hearted comedy also manages to teach its audience the important lesson of reaching out for help and talking through things with people you trust.

Throughout the film, Leo uses his age-old wisdom to give life advice to the anxious fifth graders as they prepare for middle school. This year’s fifth-grade class includes a hated class queen, the class queen’s minions, a bully, a chatterbox, a quiet genius and a kid with helicopter parents (as in, an AI drone follows him around) amongst a few others.

As Leo helps the array of children gain confidence, the audience can get to know each child, despite the wide ensemble of fifth-grade students, through little clichés and song breakouts. While the spontaneous songs weren’t always the most euphonic, the short-lasting outbursts make them passable and rather entertaining to watch.

Overall, “Leo” was a high-quality animated film with memorable characters and a plotline embedded with perfectly crafted humorous moments. This family-friendly Adam Sandler comedy is a must-watch for family movie nights.

Rating: 4/5

Sarah Taylor is a first-year majoring in telecommunications. To contact her, email smt6314@psu.edu.