Review: ‘You Are So Not Invited to My Bat Mitzvah’ is vapid showcase for Adam Sandler’s family

The “Saturday Night Live” alum cedes the stage to his daughters in Netflix comedy geared toward teenage girls and their problems.

Idina Menzel, Samantha Lorraine, Adam Sandler, Sunny Sandler and Sadie Sandler in “You Are So Not Invited to My Bat Mitzvah.”

Photo: Courtesy of Netflix

“你真不是我的蝙蝠Mitzv邀请ah” is a comedy made for teenage girls and Adam Sandler’s family, and if you’re outside those narrow demographics, there might not be enough to keep you interested in this anything-to-please made-for-Netflix fluff.

Sunny Sandler stars as Stacey Friedman, who has a best friend in Lydia (Samantha Lorraine), a boy crush in Andy (Dylan Hoffman), a sister/confidant in Ronnie (real-life sister Sadie Sandler), a pair of annoying but loving parents (real-life dadAdam Sandler,Idina Menzel) and a looming bat mitzvah.

A bat mitzvah, of course, is a Jewish coming-of-age ritual for girls (a bar mitzvah is for the boys) that symbolizes the passage from childhood to adulthood. But apparently in modern times — at least in the filmmakers’ view — it’s an excuse to throw a huge expensive party, complete with DJs but very little religion.

Oscar Chark, Sadie Sandler, Zaara Kuttemperoor and Zev Gorenstein in a scene from “You Are So Not Invited to My Bat Mitzvah.”

Photo: Courtesy of Netflix

As Adam Sandler’s Danny Freidman grouses to his daughter, “When I got bar mitzvahed, we had a party in Grandma’s basement. We all split this giant matzah ball. That was the fun. You know what the theme was? Being Jewish.”

For Stacey, the goal is to getDua Lipato perform at her bat mitzvah.

On the way to adulthood, there is much childishness. Stacey and Lydia have a falling-out over Andy’s affections, and infantile gossip is a natural part of their clique (which includes Miya Cech, who grew up in Davis and starred in“Marvelous and the Black Hole”). Other sitcom-level misunderstandings occur, including the marital problems of Lydia’s parents, played by Jackie Sandler (Adam’s wife) and Luis Guzmán.

Sunny Sandler stars in the Netflix film “You Are So Not Invited to My Bat Mitzvah.”

Photo: Courtesy of Netflix

Director Sammi Cohen takes an attention-deficit disorder approach to storytelling, in which every feeling and plot twist is punctuated by a current pop song, and any hint of emotion or thoughtfulness is interrupted by a needle drop.

Adam Sandler, in the midst of afour-project deal with Netflixthrough his Happy Madison production company, obviously intended “You Are So Not Invited to My Bat Mitzvah” as a showcase for his family, and Sunny Sandler handles her lead role with charm. She has a future in the business, it seems.

But he forgot that there are many Adam Sandler fans out there, and those people surely will be disappointed. He is barely in it. If any movie needed a riff on the “Chanukah Song,” this is it.

Reach G. Allen Johnson:ajohnson@sfchronicle.com

More Information

1 star“你真不是我的蝙蝠Mitzv邀请ah”:Comedy. Starring Sunny Sandler, Adam Sandler, Idina Menzel, Jackie Sandler, Sadie Sandler and Jackie Hoffman. (PG-13. 103 minutes.) Streaming on Netflix starting Friday, Aug. 25.

  • G. Allen Johnson
    G. Allen Johnson

    G. Allen Johnson is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer.