“Little Nicky” is a fairly entertaining comedy, but compared to some of Adam Sandler’s earlier films, it’s more of an entertaining drama.

The movie tells the story of Nicky (Sandler), who is one of three sons of the devil (Harvey Keitel). At the end of 10 thousand years, it is customary for the devil to give up his throne and pass it on to one of his sons.

Adrian (Rhys Ifans) is the super-evil son, Cassius (Tommy “Tiny” Lester Jr.) is the super-strong son, and Nicky is the not-so-evil son.

But the devil decides that none of his sons are fit to take over hell, so he chooses to reign for another 10 thousand years.

Quite the devilish thing to do.

Adrian and Cassius are outraged by this and decide they will go to earth and form a new hell. They leave hell together through the fiery entrance, freezing it and making it so no souls can enter.

The devil begins to deteriorate because of this, and is forced to send Nicky up to earth to find his brothers and get them back through the fiery gates of hell at the same time by trapping them in a flask.

So Nicky ventures to earth, only to find that he has no clue what he is doing. After a few deaths and trips back to earth, the devil has set up an old friend on earth to help Nicky out — a talking bull-dog named Beefy (voice of Robert Smigel).

Meanwhile, Adrian and Cassius have been possessing bodies across New York such as priests, the mayor and the police chief, turning everyone into evil-loving sinners.

Getting Cassius into the flask wasn’t too difficult for Nicky, but Adrian’s evilness is too much for Nicky to handle, and Beefy forces Nicky to unleash the evil inside of him.

Along with trying to save the devil and earth, Nicky meets a girl named Valerie (Patricia Arquette), and falls in love with her.

“Little Nicky” is filled with high-profile celebrities, and unlike some movies, they are a big part of what makes this movie good.

For instance, Rodney Dangerfield is Nicky’s grandfather, and Kevin Nealon is the gatekeeper for hell. Both are very funny and bring their characters to life in their own personal way.

Allen Covert, Peter Dante and Jonathan Loughran are all Nicky’s friends. You may remember these three as football players in “Waterboy” or Sonny’s friends in “Big Daddy.”

Even Chubbs (Carl Weathers) from “Happy Gilmore” makes an appearance. He is in heaven teaching dance lessons — it’s all in the hips.

Other big names found in “Little Nicky” include Reese Witherspoon, Jon Lovitz, Quentin Tarantino, Rob Schneider, Henry Winkler, Dana Carvey, Ozzy Osbourne, Bill Walton and Regis Philbin.

Director/screenwriter Steven Brill keeps things pretty light with the script, constantly reiterating the fact that it is a comedy.

The most stereotypical sets imaginable for heaven and hell were presented with flowers and beautiful angels and fire and demons.

Much like “The Waterboy,” Sandler’s voice in “Little Nicky” isn’t normal, and that may get on some people’s nerves. But once it is explained that he was hit in the head with a shovel and has been picked on his whole life by his brothers, it becomes clear the voice fits well with his personality.

Ifans is the surprise actor in this movie. His portrayal as the evil brother is great and adds some seriousness to the film.

Sandler is great as usual, and his posse (Covert, Dante and Loughran) is just as funny if not more than their past collaborations.

“Little Nicky” isn’t the laugh-out-loud comedy that 1994’s “Billy Madison” was, but it’s definitely entertaining. Since it’s short, aspects of the movie such as Nicky’s voice or the deteriorating devil don’t get annoying.

The laughs and the storyline stay afloat with the help of all the big names, but the highlight of “Little Nicky” isn’t the humor — it’s the cleverness. To take on something such as good and evil and make fun of it but still get a good point across is genius.

The Sandler-obsessive will love this movie as it falls somewhere between “Bulletproof” and “The Wedding Singer.”

Those Sandler fans who just like his funniest stuff, wait for “Little Nicky” to hit video.