Anger Management (April 7/03)
That Adam Sandler's first movie since Punch Drunk Love, Paul Thomas Anderson's brilliant love story, is the sort of comedy we've come to expect from him, says a lot about how he feels about his fans. Unlike Jim Carrey, who now makes comedies every few years, Sandler seems to accept his limitations as an actor (not that he wasn't excellent in Punch Drunk Love, but that role was tailor-written for him) and understands that most viewers want to see him in a silly comedy. And while Anger Management is a bit more serious than films like Happy Gilmore or even Big Daddy, the movie still has its share of comedic bits.
Anger Management casts Sandler as Dave Buznik, a sweet but meek executive secretary who's deathly afraid of confrontations. After a bizarre misunderstanding aboard an airplane, Dave is sentenced to 30 days of anger management therapy - under the watchful eye of Dr. Buddy Rydell (Nicholson). At his first meeting, Dave finds himself completely out of place among the other participants - including an angry New Yorker named Chuck (John Turturro) and a vicious homosexual named Lou (Luis Guzman) - and convinces Buddy to let him out of the program early. But after another bizarre misunderstanding (this time in a bar), the court orders Dave to take in Buddy as a roommate - prompting hijinks a-plenty.
Though Anger Management is tremendously entertaining - if about 10-15 minutes too long - the film's not as laugh-out-loud funny as some of Sandler's earlier works (even the much maligned Mr. Deeds had more moments of pure hilarity). The biggest difference between this movie and other Sandler comedies (such as Happy Gilmore and Big Daddy) is the absence of screenwriter Tim Herlihy. Anger Management's been penned by newcomer David Dorfman, and while the film is peppered with sporadic instances of trademark Sandler humor (including the presence of perennial Sandler co-star, Allen Covert), the underlying inexplicable and oddball jokes have essentially been excised. Given that this is his first film since Punch Drunk Love, it seems pretty clear that Sandler is attempting to utilize some of the skills he picked up in that movie. Dave is probably the most fully-fleshed out character he's played in a comedy, but that doesn't necessarily equal big laughs. The problem is - unlike Happy Gilmore or Billy Madison - Dave Buznik isn't overconfident in everything he does. The majority of the comedy from Sandler's earlier movies came through fish-out-of-water situations, where his boorish behavior clashed with snooty upperclass types. But that's just not the case here. The film doesn't even have the now-patented cheesy bad guy we've come to expect from Sandler's comedies. There's no Shooter McGavin here (Sandler's arch-rival in Happy Gilmore); Nicholson's Buddy Rydell is more of an annoyance to Dave than anything else.
It's hard to really complain, though, when the film is as enjoyable as it is. After several months of lame comedies like Head of State and Bringing Down the House, there's no denying that it was an incredible relief to watch a film that was just entertaining. Compared to those two movies, Anger Management was a laugh riot from start to finish. The enthusiasm of the eclectic cast certainly contributes heavily to the genial atmosphere. Sandler and Nicholson have great chemistry together, and Nicholson (in particular) goes for the gusto with his performance. Not since The Shining has Nicholson so gleefully gone over-the-top, and there's no doubt that after inhabiting Warren Schmidt's repressed skin, becoming Buddy must have been a huge relief. Among the supporting cast, Turturro is a lot of fun in his minor role while John C. Reilly pops up as Dave's childhood nemesis - who's now a monk. As good as he is, though, it should be noted that his funniest line (which appeared in the trailer) has been omitted from the final product. After getting into a fight with Dave and going against everything he now stands for, he screams "look what you made me do!" in the film's preview - but that line isn't in the movie. Likewise, a hilarious moment featuring Nicholson's reaction to getting the wrong kind of eggs has been rendered somewhat less humorous than it was in the coming attraction, due to the insertion of an alternate take. It's quite odd that the filmmakers would take out the most effective aspects of the film's promotional materials.
Having said that, Anger Management is one of the most purely enjoyable movies to come down the pike in a good long while. Though the resolution of the film goes on longer than it needs to and is incredibly sappy (even by Sandler standards), the movie is sure to delight fans who were turned off by Little Nicky.
