BLU-RAY
REVIEW: DUE DATE
02/20/11
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 Due Date, 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, Due Date 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).
On February 22th, Due Date will
also be available ON DEMAND through Digital Cable, Satellite TV,
Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 game consoles and it can be
downloaded for rental or purchase on iTunes and Amazon Video On
Demand.
SYNOPSIS: From The Hangover director Todd Phillips, Due Date throws two unlikely companions together on a road trip that turns out to be as life-changing as it is outrageous. Expectant first-time father Peter Highman (Robert Downey Jr.) looks forward to his new child’s due date five days away. As Peter hurries to catch a flight home from Atlanta to be at his wife’s side for the birth, his best intentions go completely awry when an encounter with aspiring actor Ethan Tremblay (Zach Galifianakis) forces Peter to hitch a ride with Ethan on a cross-country trip that will ultimately destroy several cars, many friendships and Peter’s last nerve.
FILM REVIEW: Peter
Highman: If I miss the birth of my own child, I'm gonna choke you out with your own scarf. Wrap that thing 'round your head, and choke you out.
Ethan Tremblay: Sounds a bit... drastic.
Drastic is this movie’s middle name. But then again, if it weren’t as drastic as it is, it wouldn’t be nearly as funny as it is. First off, talk about an odd couple. Peter Highman (Robert Downey Jr.) is a successful architect who has an affinity for detail; ergo he is an uptight control freak who is on a deadline. Watch out! Circumstances beyond his control pitted him together with his complete opposite. Ethan Tremblay
(Zach Galifianakis) is a free spirit, fly by the seat of his pants, actor wannabe who has really, really rubbed Peter the wrong way. Actually, I think Oscar and Felix probably got along better than these two if you can believe that. Robert and Zach were very well cast for these roles because they show a strong contrast. Robert is quick-witted, fast and sharp. Zach in comparison is slow and blunt. Both are incredibly funny in this film, but Zach has a slight edge because his character and his character’s antics are more comical. Zach is excellent at playing kooky crazy slash idiotic, as we have all come to learn from his repertoire. Robert’s strong point is his snappy line delivery, and he delivers. There are some small, almost cameo style supporting performances that also helped make this movie enjoyable. Juliette Lewis has mastered the art of playing white trash or a variation of it. Here she plays a self proclaimed pharmacist of sorts and she conveniently operates right from her own home. Danny McBride is one of those modern day, really off the wall comedians and he plays a Western Union employee. I don’t want to give away too much about his scene but let’s just say that it was crazy and only someone like him could pull it off. It was interesting to see Jamie Foxx in this picture as Darryl, close friend of Peter and his wife Sarah (Michelle Monaghan). He didn’t contribute a whole lot of comedy, but the scenes that involve him and just the existence of his character do contribute plenty. So what about Michelle you ask? Well, yeah, she is a very pretty woman, yeah. (Unfortunately she really doesn’t do much in this movie). And let us not forget another successful contributor of comedy to this unsettling film . . . the dog. Ah yes, Ethan’s boy, Sonny, a beautiful French bulldog, Priscilla’s favorite. He was great.
This movie has a good amount of LOL moments along with a few WTF moments. It was interesting to hear the combination of laughter and gasps from the audience. So yeah, you will laugh and hard at times but the movie as a whole is predictable and lacks some depth. It could be that the story is just too simple. This is your typical, what I like to call Murphy’s Law comedy where everything that can go wrong does. It does have some nice scenery and camera shots at times throughout the drive though, I’ll give it that. So just take the movie at face value and like me, you’ll get exactly what you’re expecting. Or look at it this way, if you liked Road Trip, Old School, Starsky and Hutch, School for Scoundrels, and/or The Hangover (all directed by Todd Phillips) then chances are you will like this one because it falls right into place with the Todd Phillips collection of comedies, just not first place though.
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, and French that provides a
good complement to the picture. It also includes
English Spanish French
subtitles.
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
and Spanish
SPECIAL FEATURES:
Deleted Scenes
Action Mashup
Too Many Questions Mashup
Gag Reel
“Two and a Half Men” Sequence featuring Ethan Tremblay
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