Cast: Adam Sandler, Jack Nicholson, Marisa Tomei, John Turturro
Director: Peter Segal
Producers: Barry Bernardi, Derek Dauchy, Todd Garner, Jack Giarraputo, John Jacobs, Joe Roth
Screenplay: David Dorfman
Cinematography: Donald McAlpine
Music: Teddy Castellucci
U.S. Distributor: Columbia Pictures
Adam Sandler fans, rejoice! Your favorite comic actor has returned to the form that made him a box office success. After a trio of offbeat choices that alienated significant portions of his target audience (the Mr. Deeds remake, Paul Thomas Anderson's quirky Punch Drunk Love, and the animated 8 Crazy Nights), Sandler has offered his loyalists a belated Valentine in the form of Anger Management. This new comedy has all the requisite elements we have come to expect from Sandler pictures: flatulence, big dick jokes, assorted forms of vulgarity, and cartoon violence. The only thing that's missing is the trademark Sandler obnoxiousness (he plays a fairly mild-mannered individual). But we have Jack Nicholson for that.
The movie has Nicholson, but it really doesn't need him. He's window dressing – a big name to boost interest. This scenery-chewing part could have been played equally as well (if not better) by someone like Christopher Lloyd. But it certainly can't hurt to have Nicholson's face and name on the poster. Undoubtedly, some viewers who might not otherwise be caught dead attending an Adam Sandler film will give Anger Management a try because of Nicholson. They will likely be disappointed. In order to appreciate the movie, you have to like the star.
Anger Management is essentially a one-joke movie that milks its central conceit long after there's nothing left. Dave Buznik (Sandler) is the mildest and meekest of guys, but, as the result of a series of improbable misunderstandings, he is ordered by a judge to undergo anger management classes taught by self-help guru Buddy Rydell (Nicholson). In reality, Rydell, a loose canon with an explosive temper, is more in need of anger management than his client. For a while, the film culls some humor from this situation, but the screenplay goes to the well too many times.
Anger Management's comedy is uneven. There are times when the movie is very funny – Dave and Buddy's visit to the Buddhist monastery is an example – but there are occasions when the jokes are flat and familiar. Take, for instance, the scene in which Dave and Buddy spend the night together in a double bed. This is essentially a re-enactment of a similar situation from Planes, Trains and Automobiles. The difference? That movie had a great punch-line; this one doesn't. And that's the difference between something being worth a mild chuckle instead of a belly-laugh. There's also an extremely odd in-joke that references Auto Focus.
The film is top-heavy with cameos. There's a "surprise appearance" in nearly every scene, and, for the most part, the actors/personalities call attention to themselves. After a while, it becomes distracting. It's not too bad when the individual in question is an acknowledged actor (such as Heather Graham, Woody Harrelson, or John C. Reilly) – these people know how to handle themselves in front of a camera. But the appearances by Roger Clemens, John McEnroe, Bobby Knight, and especially Rudy Giuliani are downright embarrassing. What a comedown for the hero of 9/11 to utter the line, "Give her a five-second Frenchie!" The appearance of so many familiar faces seems to be a way for Sandler to prove how many people he knows.
Director Peter Segal has not previously directed Sandler, but, with Tommy Boy and Nutty Professor 2 on his resume, he's no stranger to this sort of comedy. I suspect that Anger Management might have been a funnier film if the movie hadn't been forced to contain a throw-away romantic subplot (with a criminally underused Marisa Tomei in the girlfriend role) and a cringe-worthy "moral." The more consistently amusing a movie is, the easier it is to overlook such flaws. The sporadic nature of Anger Management's laugh-inducing material makes it the kind of outing that's better suited for home video watching than a trip to theaters. Except, of course, for Adam Sandler fans, who will get exactly what they expect.
© 2003 James Berardinelli