Big Stan


Big Stan is a 2007 American prison comedy film that was directed by, produced by, and starring Rob Schneider. The film co-stars Marcelo Ortega, Jennifer Morrison, Scott Wilson, Henry Gibson, Richard Kind, Jackson Rathbone, M. Emmet Walsh, and David Carradine. The film was Henry Gibson's final role before his death in 2009. Although released in some markets during the fall of 2008, it was released straight to DVD in the U.S. on March 24, 2009. It debuted at number 17 on the DVD rental charts of March 23–30, 2009. On the radio show Loveline, Schneider stated that this film is an "anti-man-raping" film — referring to prison rape.

Plot

Stan Minton is a rich real estate con artist who is married to Mindy. One day, Stan is arrested for conning elderly people out of their savings which he tries to do to Mrs. Darby. His lawyer Mal does all he can to defend him at the trial. Upon being found guilty by the jury and sentenced to 3 years in prison while being given 6 months by Judge Perry to get his affairs in order, Stan panics and fear of jail-house rape leads him to hire the mysterious guru known as "The Master" who helps transform him into a creative martial-arts expert.
During his incarceration, Stan uses his new-found skills to intimidate his fellow prisoners and prevents the prisoners from hitting or raping each other. He gains the prisoners' respect, and eventually becomes their leader, bringing peace and harmony to the prison yard. But the corrupt warden Gasque has a plan to profit by turning the prison into a war zone, forcing its closure, and selling off the property as valuable real estate. Stan helps him with the real estate aspects in exchange for early parole, however his peacemaking efforts threaten the warden's plan for a riot and he is persuaded to bring back violence.
In a last minute attack of conscience, he deliberately blows the parole hearing to rush back and prevent the deaths of his fellow inmates, only to discover that his message of peace has sunk in and the prisoners are dancing instead of fighting. Warden Gasque orders the guards to open fire on the dancing men. When they refuse, he grabs a gun and shoots wildly. Warden Gasque attempts to shoot Minton, but he is stopped by Mindy and the Master, who had snuck in.
Three years later Minton leaves the prison, which is now run by one of the more sympathetic guards as Gasque is now an inmate after he was arrested for his illegal activities. Stan is met by his wife, his young daughter Mindy Jr., and the Master outside the prison.

Cast

Rob Schneider's mother Pilar cameos as one of the Board of Governors. Wes Takahashi, former animator and visual effects supervisor for Industrial Light & Magic, makes a cameo appearance as a bartender.

Reception

On Rotten Tomatoes the film has an approval rating of 11% based on reviews from 9 critics, with an average rating of 3.02/10.