Anger Management (Blu-ray) Official AVSForum Review [Text View]

Ralph Potts

05-14-08, 10:58 AM

<img src="http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=110345&d=1210767454"hspace="12"align="left">
The Review at a Glance: (max score: 5 )

Film: <img src=" http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=109944&d=1210373692">

Extras: <img src=" http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=109944&d=1210373692">

 Audio/Video total rating:
 ( Max score: 100 )
<h2>75</h2>
 
Studio and Year: Sony/Columbia Pictures - 2003
MPAA Rating: PG-13
Feature running time: 106 Minutes
Genre: Comedy

Disc Format: BD-50
Encoding: MPEG-4 (AVC)
Video Aspect: 2.40:1
Resolution: 1080p/24
 
Audio Format(s): English/French Dolby TrueHD 5.1
Subtitles: English, English SDH, French
Starring: Jack Nicholson, Adam Sandler, Marisa Tomei, Luis Guzman, John Turturro
Directed by: Peter Segal
Music by: Teddy Castellucci
Written by: David Dorfman
Region coding: A,B,C

Blu-ray Disc release Date: May 20, 2008

 
<center><h2>"I’m so pretty…oh so pretty "</h2></center>

<h4>Film Synopsis:</h4>

After a small misunderstanding aboard an airplane escalates out of control, timid businessman Dave Buznik (Adam Sandler) is ordered by the court to undergo anger management therapy at the hands of specialist Dr. Buddy Rydell (Jack Nicholson). Dave reluctantly accepts the doctor's counseling, but after another mishap Buddy steps up his aggressive and unorthodox treatments by moving in with Dave. As Buddy wreaks havoc with every aspect of his life, Dave must decide whether to crawl back into his shell or finally stand up for himself. 
<h4>My Take:</h4>
When Anger management first came to video I rented (perish the thought!) it. I recollect liking it but I must not have felt that it had replay value because I never bought it. After watching it again I can’t say for sure that it has high replay value but I did come away feeling as though I must have missed something the first time. I think that Jack Nicholson is one of the finest actors of his generation. I find that I like him much better onscreen than off but that is a topic for another discussion. Adam Sandler has his moments. His screaming crazy man act gets old after a while but I can say that there have been several of his films that I have truly liked. AM is on that list. Director Peter Segal does a commendable job handling a rather large cast which is chock full of credible supporting players. Marisa Tomei is an attractive and talented actress who in my opinion has never really lived up the Academy Award she received for My cousin Vinny. I don’t mean that to sound as bad as it does because I like her. John Tuturro, and Luis Guzman are both scene stealers in their roles as Buddy’s (Nicholson) angry patients. Cameos by Bobby Knight, Woody Harrelson, John McEnroe, and Heather Graham help to elevate the laugh level.<img src=" http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=110344&d=1210767454"hspace="6"align="right">Anger Management is not perfect but then again it really does not need to be. It just needs to make you laugh. It succeeds in doing that and it does so with humor that is palatable.
<h4>Parental Concerns:</h4>The rating is for crude sexual content and language.

 AUDIO/VIDEO - By The Numbers:
REFERENCE = 92-100 / EXCELLENT = 83-91 / GOOD = 74-82 / AVERAGE = 65-73 / BELOW AVERAGE = under 65 

**My audio/video ratings are based upon a comparative made against other high definition media/blu-ray disc.**

(Each rating is worth 4 points with a max of 5 per category)

<h4>Audio: 68</h4>
<ul>
<li>Dynamics: <img src="http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=109944&d=1210373692"></li>
<li>Low frequency extension: <img src="http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=109943&d=1210373647"></li>
<li>Surround Sound presentation: <img src="http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=109944&d=1210373692"></li>
<li>Clarity/Detail: <img src="http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=109946&d=1210373692"></li>
<li>Dialogue Reproduction: <img src="http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=109947&d=1210373699">
</li></ul>

<h4>Video: 82</h4>
(Each rating is worth 4 points with a max of 5 per category)

<ul>
<li>Resolution/Clarity: <img src="http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=109947&d=1210373699"></li>
<li>Black level/Shadow detail: <img src="http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=109945&d=1210373692"></li>
<li>Color reproduction: <img src="http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=109947&d=1210373699"></li>
<li>Fleshtones: <img src="http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=109944&d=1210373692"></li>
<li>Compression: <img src="http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=109948&d=1210373699" </li></ul>Anger Management comes to Blu-ray Disc featuring MPEG-4 (AVC) encoded 1080p video that has an average bitrate of 27 mbps and Dolby TrueHD 5.1 channel lossless audio that has an average bitrate of 1.4 mbps.<img src="http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=110343&d=1210767454 "hspace="6"align="left"> Sony as been pretty consistent when it comes to the quality of the high definition video on their catalog release titles. I mean that in a positive way. Anger Management is another solid video presentation whose strong points outweigh its few weak spots. Images are rendered cleanly with well articulated resolve and three dimensional characteristics. I saw no signs of video noise or compression related anomalies. The video is visually stimulating with clearly definable lines and solid texture. Occasionally there is a slight softening effect which does not appear to be related to the encoding. It may be due to focusing or filtering but I couldn’t say for certain. It is not something that is presents itself long enough to interfere with the shot’s overall quality but I thought I should mention it. Colors are naturally depicted with slightly under saturated primaries. Flesh tones were on the bland side with little tonal variation. This was apparent more so with Sandler and Nicholson whose complexions reminded me of silly putty. Cast members with more pigmentation in their skin came across looking more life like. White levels appeared to be within normal ranges. Blacks and shadow delineation were above average but not as good as I have seen. Overall this film presented very well in high definition. I suspect that most will be very pleased with it.
The Dolby TrueHD soundtrack was a fine match with the subject material. A film like this requires little use of the entire surround platform to deliver its elements. Good dialogue delivery is essential and with the excellent detail and clarity offered here dialogue intelligibility was never an issue. The mix was proportionately spread out across the front three channels. Tonal balance and separation was quite good which provided realistic vocal quality among the various cast members. The surrounds and subwoofer saw limited use and was reserved primarily for the music score and ambient sound effects. This is a capable mix that easily handles the elements contained within this soundtrack.

<h4>Bonus Features:</h4>The bonus features presented here were above average. They offered a glimpse into the background and production of the film. There was plenty of behind the scenes video footage and stills along with interviews of the cast and crew. It offers a fun look at working with Jack Nicholson and Adam Sandler as seen through the eyes of the crew and cast members. The gag reel is actually pretty good and runs for about five minutes straight. I have seen very few deleted scenes that should have been kept in the theatrical release (although there have been some!) and those shown here are no different. All of the bonus content was presented in standard definition video. 
<ul>
<li>Feature length commentary by Director Peter Segal and Adam Sandler </li>
<li>Skull session – Behind the scenes featurette </li>
<li> My Buddy Jack - Featurette</li>
<li> 4 Deleted scenes</li>
<li>5 Minute Gag reel </li>
<li> Blu-ray disc previews</li>
</ul>

<img src="http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=110346&d=1210767471 "hspace="6"align="right">

<h4>Final Thoughts:</h4>

Anger Management is a good, not great comedy, that achieves its success based on the strength of its casting. Not to take anything away from screen writer David Dorfman but without the ensemble cast this would not be the same. I appreciated it more upon viewing it a second time. Fans of Anger Management can feel confident in picking this up as it is definitely an upgrade of their standard definition DVD. Sony Blu-ray continues to support high quality video encodes and lossless audio mixes on their Blu-ray disc releases. The fact that they provide this on their catalog titles as well is indicative of their commitment to the format. As enthusiasts we would all hope that high definition on an optical disc becomes the standard for home video. In order for Blu-ray to succeed in that regard consistent support such as this from every studio is probably a necessity in my opinion. 

<img src="http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=109949&d=1210373731" align=left>
 
 Ralph Potts
AVS Forum Blu-ray Reviews

 Reference Review System:


Sony VPL-VW50 SXRD 1080p High Definition Front Projector
Carada Precision Brilliant White 96" Screen
Oppo 970HD universal disc DVD Player (480i HDMI)
Toshiba HD-XA2 HD DVD Player (HDMI Audio/Video)
Panasonic DMP-BD30 Blu-ray disc Player (HDMI Audio/Video)
Sony Playstation 3 Blu-ray disc Player (HDMI Audio/Video)
Marantz DV7001 Universal Disc Player
Denon AVR 5308CI THX Ultra 2 Preamp/Video Processor
Outlaw Audio Model 7700 seven channel amplifier
B&K Reference 200.7 Series 2 seven Channel amplifier
Canton "Ergo" Series speakers
Axiom Audio QS8 Quadpolar speakers
SV Sound PB-13 Ultra (Rosenut finish)
APC AV S15BLK Power Conditioner/Surge Protector
Wireworld, VizionWare, Audioquest, Best Deal Cables - Audio/Video/Speaker Cabling
Cool Components - CP-CP102 cooling package