BLU-RAY
REVIEW: DINNER FOR SCHMUCKS
01/02/11
OVERVIEW: “Steve Carell is a comic wonder” and “Paul Rudd is terrific” (Peter Travers, Rolling Stone) in the hilarious and “genius” (Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times) comedy DINNER FOR SCHMUCKS, setting a date on DVD and
Blu-ray January 4, 2011 from Paramount Home Entertainment. Directed by Jay Roach (Meet The Parents, Meet The Fockers), who was awarded Comedy Director of the Decade at ShoWest in 2011, DINNER FOR SCHMUCKS is the “outrageously funny”
(Shaun Edwards, Fox-TV) and heartwarming story of a rising executive (Rudd) who inadvertently finds a way to fast-track his career by participating in his boss’s exclusive dinner party, at which the winning executive brings the biggest buffoon. Enter Barry (Carell), an IRS employee with a penchant for creating historical dioramas with mice, and you have a recipe for one outrageous dinner and “the funniest movie since The Hangover” (ABC 7 News).
SYNOPSIS: “Dinner
for Schmucks” tells the story of Tim(Paul Rudd), a guy on the
verge of having it all. The only thing standing between him and
total career success is finding the perfect guest to bring to
his boss’ annual Dinner for Extraordinary People, an event
where the winner of the evening brings the most eccentric
character as his guest. Enter Barry (Steve Carell), a guy with a
passion for dressing mice up in tiny outfits to recreate great
works of art. From Jay Roach, director of “Meet the Parents”
and “Meet the Fockers” comes an unforgettable feast about
two unlikely friends and one very memorable dinner.
FILM REVIEW: So
let’s see here, we have all three Austin Powers movies,
Mystery, Alaska, Meet the Parents and Meet the Fockers to name a
few of Director Jay Roach’s comedic masterpieces. His
reputation precedes him, no doubt. And yet, when I first heard
of this film and its title, I was immediately turned off. The
previews didn’t help much either. Honestly, the movie seemed
to be a complete waste of time. It looked stupid with a narrow
storyline revolving around this particular dinner. Mr. Roach, I
apologize. How could I have doubted you? Boy was I wrong. The
first thing you need to know is to not be misled by the
simplicity of the title of the movie. It is a lot more than what
you’d expect. This movie is hilarious. If you have read my
reviews from the past you know I have a cry meter. If a movie
can make me cry from laughing so hard, that’s a point in its
favor. Yes, disclaimer, I have a very open sense of humor which
includes slapstick type comedy such as Austin Powers so bear
that in mind. I cried at least twice and it was good, I needed
that, it had been a while. I have seen hundreds upon hundreds of
movies in my lifetime and I’m pretty sure I’ve never seen an
intro like this one. So right from the get go, you’ll be
starting to chuckle.
There are various forms of humor such as your classic
one-liners, physical humor, and situational humor where the
comedy is found in the situation itself. This movie has some of
each but it exceeds the most with situational humor. This is
mostly thanks to a truly unforgettable character, Barry, played
by Steve Carell. Thank you, thank you, thank you Steve for going
back to your roots, comically speaking. I still believe that one
of Steve’s best performances ever was his role as Brick in
Anchorman. So it was more than a treat for me to watch him match
or maybe even exceed that performance with this one. This is
Steve Carell at his finest and he steals the show. Barry is a
not-too-sharp IRS employee, desperately in need of friends, and
whose only hobby is taxidermy, and he is freakishly talented at
it. It seems that Paul Rudd either gets a more “serious”
role in a comedy or he is a lunatic . . . no grey area with
Paul. Well in this one he is the more serious character,
hard-working, corporate ladder climbing, trying hard to impress
his girlfriend so she will marry him, Tim. As fate would have
it, he runs into Barry and his life would never be the same. You
just can’t go wrong with Paul Rudd in your cast. The rest of
the cast was very nicely appointed. Kristen Schaal played a
small role but strong. I just had to mention her because I think
she’s adorable. There were two supporting cast members that
really stood out for me, Jemaine Clement, and of course, Zach
Galifianakis. Jemaine plays Kieran, an eccentric, narcissistic
artist with a one track mind, and Zach plays Therman, Barry’s
co-worker and mind controller. They both truly nailed their
roles and added a lot of good laughs. Overall, and at first
thought, I would call this a mix of The Cable Guy and I Love You
Man. You won’t be disappointed.
Film
Review
By Cine Marcos
cinemarcos@smartcine.com
BLU-RAY:
The film is
presented in 1080P widescreen in a 2.40:1 aspect ration
preserving its theatrical format. The picture is just
flawless, bringing to perfection the special effects of the film. Not only the picture looks great in
this release, also the sound it is good, a 5.1 DTS-HD Master
Audio (48kHz/24bit) in English, Spanish, Portuguese and French that provides a
good complement to the picture. It also includes
English Spanish French
subtitles.
In terms of special features
the blu-ray includes a behind-the-scenes look with the cast called
“The Biggest Schmucks in the World”, a gag reel entitled “Schmuck Ups” and deleted scenes. The Blu-ray also includes a look at the men behind the Mousterpieces, a montage of the guests at the infamous dinner and a spoof of LeBron James’ press conference by Steve Carell and Paul Rudd.
VIDEO:
2.40:1 Anamorphic Widescreen 1080P
AUDIO:
English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio, French 5.1 Dolby Digital, Spanish 5.1 Dolby Digital and Brazilian Portuguese 5.1 Dolby Digital
Subtitles -
English, English SDH, French, Spanish and Brazilian Portuguese
SPECIAL FEATURES:
The Biggest Schmucks in the World
Schmuck Ups—Gag Reel
Deleted Scenes
The Men Behind the Mousterpieces
Meet The Winners
Paul and Steve: The Decision—LeBron James press conference spoof
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