Film Reviews

Anger Management

• Rating:
• Director:
• Starring: Adam Sandler
• Details: US / 101 mins / (12PG).

Trivial if indiscriminately funny comedy in which Adam Sandler plays mild mannered business executive Dave Buznik. After a series of bizarre coincidences (the kind that only ever seem to happen in the movies), Buznik is accused of air rage. Since he has never been in trouble with the law before, Buznik is assigned to an anger management course with Dr. Buddy Rydell (Nicholson), an acclaimed specialist on the subject. Thing is, it seems that the one who is really in need of some therapy is the highly strung, highly aggressive Rydell himself.
While the premise of Anger Management has undisputed potential (had it been played a little darker and straighter), the filmmakers are too eager to go for the easy, obvious gags. Understandably, this artistic impatience leads to a lack of quality control and the movie is far too reliant on the force of its central actors' personalities. Though certainly not as nunaced as his performance in Punch Drunk Love, Sandler goes down the low key route again with some success, leaving the way open for Nicholson to dominate. Jack is having so much fun with his wild eyed raging bull of a character that occasionally he makes the audience forget that the material doesn't extend beyond the predictably low brow.

Review by Garreth Murphy