Blu-ray Review: I Now Pronounce You Chuck & Larry

Release Date: July 21st, 2009
Running Time: 116 minutes

The Film

Like Jim Carrey, Adam Sandler is an actor whom I adored in the ‘90s. His string of goofball comedies was an excellent showcase for his talents. Then somewhere along the line, around Little Nicky, I stopped laughing. In between dabbling in interesting dramedies, Sandler’s comedic efforts were no longer hitting the mark for me; so much so that I can’t remember the last time I went to the theater to see a Sandler film. Despite universally horrid reviews, Sandler’s latest attempt, I Now Pronounce You Chuck & Larry, still grossed over $185 million worldwide at the box office.

Adam Sandler and Kevin James star as FDNY fire fighters Chuck Levin and Larry Valentine. One day Chuck saves Larry’s life on the job and Larry promises to repay him however possible. A widower with two kids, the near-death experience is harrowing for Kevin. He wants to designate his children as the primary beneficiaries of his life insurance but is having tons of paperwork issues. In order to have a beneficiary, Larry asks Chuck to enter into a civil union with him to which he reluctantly agrees. However, the city soon looks into them as a fraud case and they have to hire lawyer Alex McDonough (Jessica Biel) for help. Alex suggests they get married, so the pair gets hitched in Canada and moves in together.

Things go smooth enough until one evening when Chuck publicly defends gay rights and gets in the press. With their marriage revealed, Chuck and Larry find themselves shunned by their coworkers and friends. They only find understanding in Fred Duncan (Ving Rhames), another gay firefighter who doesn’t get mocked due to his imposing presence. To make matters more complicated, Chuck develops feelings for Alex, and a relentless city agent (Steve Buscemi) continues to investigate the couple. With a series of testimonies from women claiming Chuck and Larry are heterosexual, the couple is called into court to defend their marriage. The pair will have to prove their devotion to each other or be convicted of fraud.

On paper I Now Pronounce You Chuck & Larry seems like it could be a worthwhile comedy with an important message at the core. Unfortunately the material is approached in such an immature, scattered, and at times offensive, nature that any semblance of good will is wiped from the story. The comedy is full of countless unoriginal homophobic and sexual jokes mixed with plenty of “Sandlerisms” that stopped working a decade ago. Lame physical gags are thrown in for cheap laughs as well. Then there’s Rob Schneider’s character as an Asian minister that makes the “ethnic” robots of Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen seem downright politically correct. It’s an odd experience when the “jokes” of a comedy counteract the message of the story—a fact that I’m not sure anyone involved with the film understood.

The Disc

The video is presented in a 1.85:1, 1080p High Definition transfer. The look of the film, particularly the colors, can be very inconsistent. Many scenes are drab and lacking pop while others will look very vibrant and realistic. Fine detail is noticeable in textures and faces but the image is rather flat in terms of dimension. Though heavy grain can impair lower lit scenes, in general video errors such as compression artifacts or noise are not a problem. The print is clean as well.

The audio is offered in an English DTS HD 5.1 Master Lossless audio track and French/Spanish DTS 5.1 Surround Sound with English/French/Spanish subtitles. This is actually an impressive mix for a comedy. Good sound design brings realism and weight to the abundance ambience. All of the various settings are brought to life quite well. Panning effects are present and avoid being too gimmicky. Music is spread well across the various channels, and heavy bass is used when necessary. With balanced dialogue, this is probably a better mix than the film deserves.

The Extras

The selection of extra content is very poor and even omits a lot from the HD DVD release, including Deleted Scenes, featurettes, and more.

Two Commentary tracks are offered: one with Director Dennis Dugan, and the other with Dugan, Adam Sandler, and Kevin James. By himself Dugan is a weak commentator, often stating the obvious between other bland comments or long pauses. When together with Sandler and James, the trio offers a sporadic track full of random comments. Fans of the actors will enjoy the friendly nature of the discussion, but there’s not much substance there.

Universal’s “U-Control” has one interactive feature called the “Friendship Test.” Throughout the film random questions like those straight out of a Cosmo-type magazine pop-up at random intervals.

Lastly, the My-Scenes sharing option is available through BD-Live.

Final Thoughts

I Now Pronounce You Chuck & Larry is a base comedy with a very thin Blu-ray disc. Unless you are a passionate fan of the actors that must own everything they appear in, I’d recommend leaving this title on the shelf.