Blu-ray Movie Reviews

Chuck (Adam Sandler) and Larry (Kevin James) are best friends who work for the same fire department in Brooklyn, NY. Larry finds himself in a legal pickle with his life insurance and must enlist Chuck as his "domestic partner" in order to ensure his kids will be taken care of in case he bites the dust. What was supposed to be a quick and easy scam of the system turns out to be much more complicated when a fact-checker (Steve Buscemi) from the insurance company becomes suspicious of their relationship.

There are bad movies, and then there are bad movies, and this one falls into the latter category. Yes, there are some funny moments, but they are far too few to overcome the pathetic, insensitive, and sophomoric behavior of the two main characters. I generally like both Adam Sandler and Kevin James in their movie and TV roles, but it's a little too over the top for my taste.

Originally released on HD DVD back in 2007, the Blu-ray looks like it utilizes the same VC-1 encode. Detail is excellent in both close-ups and medium shots with only the occasional fuzzy long shot. Black levels are deep and inky with superior shadow delineation. My only gripe is that the contrast is a tad hot and the image has a "edgy" appearance with an occasional halo around bright objects. Flesh tones are accurate, although Buscemi needs to get some sun!

The DTS-HD MA 5.1 soundtrack is decent for the genre, but it's rather front-heavy for most of the film. The track truly shines during the fire sequence with great ambience and discrete effects populating the rear speakers. Unfortunately, the effort is wasted on such a poor screenplay.

Considering the entertainment value of the film, I'm not surprised that Universal dropped a lot of the supplements from the HD DVD. The lone interactive bonus feature is the "Friendship Test," which you take during the film, and it provides your score at the conclusion of the film. The only other features are two separate audio commentaries—one from the director Dennis Dugan by himself and the other by Dugan, James, and Sandler.

While the presentation is technically sound in both audio and video, it's difficult to recommend this for anyone over the age of 20. When I sit down to watch a comedy, I want to laugh—unfortunately, laughs are few and far between here. Skip it!

Release Date: July 21, 2009
Studio: Universal

Movie: 3/10
Picture: 8/10
Sound: 8/10

Review System

Source
Oppo BDP-83 Blu-ray player

Display
JVC DLA-RS1 projector
Stewart FireHawk screen (76.5" wide, 16:9)

Electronics
Onkyo Pro PR-SC885 pre/pro
Anthem PVA-7 power amplifier
Belkin PF60 power conditioner

Speakers
M&K S-150s (L, C, R)
M&K SS-150s (LS, RS, SBL, SBR)
SVS PC-Ultra subwoofer

Cables
Monoprice HDMI cables (source to pre/pro)
Best Deal analog-audio cables
PureLink HDC Fiber Optic HDMI Cable System (15 meters) from pre/pro to projector

Acoustical treatments from GIK Acoustics