8. Reign Over Me
Not everything Sandler does if some lowbrow slapstick comedy featuring homophobic comedy and love interests, as the excellent and occasionally devastating Reign Over Me starred Sandler grieving over the loss of some loved ones in 9/11. A childhood friend played by Don Cheadle is there for Sandler as he grieves. Its a depressing movie but one that showcased Sandlers acting abilities that for whatever reason he now seems to lock away for the most part. It also has a few scenes of Sandler playing Shadow of the Colossus for PS2. Its not randomly inserted in to the movie either as parallels can be drawn from that games story to Reign Over Me: Shadow of the Colossus is a game where you go on an adventure destroying 16 Colossi in a vain attempt at bringing a loved one back to life. Sandler's progress in the game is directly correlated to the point in the film too. This is just one of a few dramatic roles Sandler has taken, and it's a damn shame because he does have some serious acting chops. Furthermore. there was a sea of shameless and terrible movies cashing on a horrible tragedy after 9/11 but the one with Adam Sandler of all people; that's the most emotional and touching one. It's simultaneously devastating and spiritually inspirational.