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The concept is intriguing. Dave Buznik (Adam Sandler) is bright and creative but finds himself in a dead-end job in which his boss takes credit for his work. His dedicated girlfriend, Linda (Marisa Tomei), tolerates his neuroses, very likely triggered by a painful preadolescence, the continual brunt of bullies and Arnie Shankman in particular. Through circumstances too bizarre to believe, Buznick finds himself before Judge Brenda Daniels (Lynne Thigpen), accused of assaulting a flight attendant. His clueless lawyer, Sam (Kevin Nealon), is of little help. Buznick is found guilty and instructed to attend anger management training with the renowned Dr. Buddy Rydell (Jack Nicholson).

Buznick's arc is very Kafkaesque; his innocuous behavior provokes inexplicable reactions. His fellow anger group members are indeed suffering from uncontrollable outbursts of rage. Among them are Lou (Luis Guzman), a playfully violent homosexual, and Chuck (John Turturro), a paranoid rage-aholic who believes that serving for several hours in Grenada entitles him to the same consideration earned by veterans who served in Vietnam for years. When these two act out during a session, Rydell is helpful and supportive, but when Buznick says anything, he's treated like a dangerous psycho.

And that sets the tone of the film. The reactions to Buznick's mild behavior are so unlikely and out of proportion that the viewer is left wondering what the hell is going on. For over an hour and a half, Rydell tortures Buznick psychologically, humiliating him, putting him in situations that would cause any normal person to flee to the closest asylum. We're forced to accept the notion that Buznick cooperates with the good doctor because if he doesn't, he'd be thrown in jail for a year. But Rydell's methods are so unorthodox that I wasn't sure whether this was a fantasy aspiring to humor or simply a misguided comedy. During the climax an explanation revealed, leaving the viewer to wonder who's paying the bills?

Nicholson, consistently inventive and fascinating to watch, could have saved the show, but perhaps sensing a lack of creative direction, seems to have overcompensated by going a bit over the top. And Sandler returns to a character consistent with his familiar screen persona. Even before I watched the supplements, I came to suspect that making the film was fun for the filmmakers and the players, but I'm disappointed that the sense of fun wasn't transferred to the audience. And there's some sloppiness here as well. During the incident at the elevator-based parking garage, the owner rather than an attendant drives the car, and the elevator operator abandons the driver, conveniently leaving a vast chasm for the gag. These two circumstances short-circuited my willing suspension of disbelief, something to be avoided in a reality-based comedy. Somewhat later in the film, if you look carefully at the procession of cars behind Rydell's Range Rover just after they escape from the monastery, you can clearly see the filmmakers' police car escort at the back of the line, strobe lights flashing. The director ignored it in the editing room and during the commentary.

And yet, the film did attract a surprising number of actors and celebrities for cameos. Woody Harrelson is the outrageous Galaxia (and Garry the Guard), an uncredited Heather Graham plays Kendra, a lovely woman with a body image problem, an uncredited John C. Reilly is the adult Arnie Shankman in retreat at a Buddhist monastery, and also uncredited is Harry Dean Stanton as a blind man accidentally clocked by Buznick. You will also find John McEnroe, Rudolph Giuliani, Judith Nathan, Roger Clemens, Cody Arens, Bobby Knight, Tony Carbonetti, Bob Sheppard, Robert Merrill, Sid Ganis, and Derek Jeter. I have to admit that I did enjoy a few laughs, but it doesn't bode well when the cameos are more entertaining than the film.

Video: How Does The Disc Look?

The film's theatrical aspect ratio of 2.40:1 is presented in anamorphic video. The disc's video is typical of recent releases from Columbia-Tristar Home Entertainment. Color rendition based on flesh tones is extremely natural. Saturated colors are painted to the screen with no chroma noise or smearing. Shadow detail is excellent, as is small object detail. Finely grained textures are above average, but not exceptional. Compression artifacts are not visible. And the video is slightly contaminated with edge halos that are sometimes visible but never intrude. Strangely enough, as I consider this conventional DVD's video quality I would give the edge over the recent Superbit release of Leon The Professional.

Audio: How Does The Disc Sound?

The disc's Dolby Digital 5.1 track is fine. Discrete surround sounds are heard from time to time, but the audio is predominantly in the front channels. EX decoding will neither help nor hinder this particular audio track. Sound effects are not an issue here; they are designed to serve the visuals as a mix of practical, Foley, and library sounds. I noticed no extended bass. Teddy Castellucci's sweet orchestral score sounds very good, with a pleasant sense of spaciousness and with pleasing fidelity. The dialog remains clear throughout without a hint of compression raspiness.

The alternate language is in French, also presented in Dolby Digital 5.1. Subtitles are provided in French and English, for which Closed Captions are also available.

Supplements: What Goodies Are There?

Columbia-Tristar Home Entertainment has included a nice array of extras on this special edition DVD. The first supplement is a screen-specific audio commentary by director Peter Segal and Adam Sandler. For the most part, Segal and Sandler just watch the film and joke around. (Segal enjoys Sandler more than I do; he certainly giggled more than I did.) But ever once in a while, Segal would offer a relevant comment concerning the film. He comments on locations, shooting challenges, and special effects. I was surprised at the number of CGI shots in this film - with the exception of a Lexus, they are very well integrated, particularly the thousands of Spidermen dressed in civies at Yankee Stadium.

Next is the Do You Have Anger Problems? game, an inconsistent, tongue-in-cheek multiple-choice quiz that questions your judgment based on little excerpts from the film. There are four deleted scenes (10:16, aggregate) on this DVD. Most elevate Buznick's frustration level and perhaps the audience's; that may be why it was decided to delete them from the theatrical cut. The fourth is cute, John McEnroe acting out; I liked the development of a tennis metaphor in the bickering. The scene also explains how McEnroe ended up on that couch during one the anger management group sessions.

There are two featurettes on this disc: Skull Session (17:54); and, My Buddy Jack (4:06). The first is a making-of short that provides glimpses of behind the scenes. We hear from various players and filmmakers who describe the origins of the film and attest to the fun they had on the shoot. Don't be surprised if you find many of the outtakes found on the blooper reel here. Some time is spent discussing costume design and the look of the film. It's a bit fluffy, but informative. The second is a tribute to Jack Nicholson. Be prepared for a lot of fawning.

The Bloopers Reel (5:36) is a bit of a hoot. My favorite section is a scantily clad Heather Graham trying unsuccessfully to keep it together while stuffing chocolate cupcakes in her mouth. There are ten trailers on this DVD: Anger Management (2:30); Adam Sandler's Eight Crazy Nights (1:21); As Good As It Gets (2:30); Daddy Day Care (2:19); S.W.A.T. (1:50); Hollywood Homicide (2:32); Mona Lisa Smiles (2:32); Mr. Deeds (2:28); Radio (2:32); and, Peter Pan (2:13). The 106-minute feature is organized into twenty-eight chapters.

DVD-ROM Exclusives: What do you get when you pop the disc in your PC?

No ROM extras have been included.

Parting Thoughts