“Anger Management” (Columbia Pictures)
You will need a course in “anger management” after you have sat through the mind-numbing Jack Nicholson/Adam Sandler movie “Anger Management.” This film is frustrating because it takes two good talents and wastes them completely. Even Marisa Tomei comes off looking bad and acting with lackluster enthusiasm in the film, and she is usually pretty chipper in any role.
In the film Dave Buznik (Sandler) is a guy who lets life run over him. He has been that way since childhood and just can’t help it. His girlfriend (Tomei) tries to get him to be more assertive but it just isn’t in his makeup. On a plane trip one day he is frustrated by his inability to get the Flight Attendant to issue him a headset. This ends up with a Sky Marshall zapping him and having him arrested.
In court the judge (Lynne Thigpin) sentences him to an anger management course. It is led by Buddy Rydell (Nicholson). Dave doesn’t think he needs the course but after another altercation he is forced to let Buddy move in with him so he can get more personal attention.
Things go from bizarre to more bizarre as Buddy leads Dave on a wild ride to cure his anger issues. The frustrating thing is that Dave doesn’t have any. Having Buddy set up situations whereby Dave can be cured is totally annoying to Dave and to the audience.
Sandler is playing just another variation on all of his characters from Happy Gillmore to Billy Madison to Mr. Deeds. He doesn’t seem to have any new tricks in his deck of cards. Nicholson on the other hand is playing a new type of wild man. He is energetic and frenetic, even if he is also annoying.
Tomei is playing “the girlfriend”. It is a thankless role and she does nothing to enliven it. Heather Graham is much more fun in a brief cameo. Cameos abound throughout the movie. Some are not so funny, and some are really not so funny.
The movie is rated PG-13 for profanity and sexual situations.
“Anger Management” has to go down as one of the most annoying movies in recent history. The weak plot, the sameness of Sandler, and the only sporadic humor makes the audience want to flee the theater. And what is this with “I Feel Pretty” from “West Side Story”! Didn’t Robert DeNiro sing that as a joke getter in “Analyze That” In this movie they sing it over and over and over. Enough already!
I scored “Anger Management” an enraged 3 out of 10.
©2003 Jackie K. Cooper
