Jack Nicholson and Adam Sandler, not exactly a combination you see everyday. As nutty as Nicholson can be, even he struck me (on the first impression of the trailer) as too serious of a guy to be in an Adam Sandler movie. And Adam Sandler... well, no matter where the movie put him, his character would never outshine Jack-o and neither would he himself.

This is not to say that Adam Sandler is a bad actor at all; in fact I find myself routinely impressed by his work, for what little bit I've seen. (And that doesn't even include Punch Drunk Love yet.) Anyone who's willing to say "I love my Mommy" after scoring a winning touchdown and actually make it touching at least deserves some credibility. But even his more "normal" roles work, as they are often the same nonchalant kind of character that he is.

There's not a whole helluva lot plotwise to talk about. Dave Buznik (Sandler) is a businessman who is wrongly thrown into a program for anger management, just like you saw in the trailer. I never thought that the whole plane scene was all that funny myself. Fortunately there are better things than that in the movie.

Anyway, well as you might have guessed, the anger management course is not something Dave wants to talk about to his friends and acquaintances. So here he goes showing up late for work, unable to stand up to co-workers who take advantage of him, and his relationship with his girlfriend Linda (Marisa Tomei) is in serious jeopardy.

It kind of reminds me of Liar Liar in which Jim Carrey is not allowed to lie. But instead, it's Adam Sandler and he's not allowed to get mad. (Hey, it seemed to work in How To Lose A Guy In 10 Days.) Dr. Buddy Rydell, since I've yet to mention it, is the name of Jack Nicholson's character, and this Doc will really make you say "What's up?" Something is definitely up with him... for an anger management therapist, he seems to have a few screws loose as well. He demands that Dave cook his breakfast, only to toss it violently against the wall and ask in a disarmingly sober tone, "Now, why did I do that?" Later, he has Dave flirt with a transvestite (would you believe it's Woody Harrelson?) in the back seat, and even later, walk up to a girl repeating the following verbatim (whether or not my rehashing of the quote is verbatim, I can't be too sure) -- I'm sorry I was rude, it's just really hard for me to think when I'm on the verge of exploding in my pants. (The way Jack Nicholson says that line is priceless.) If Dave doesn't do everything the Doc tells him to do, the Doc won't sign his release papers and he'll end up in a strait jacket for a year.

The Doc even goes so far as to remove all the "angry music" from Dave's CD collection, and this includes the Carpenters.. why you ask? Because of song titles like "We've Only Just Begun" and "Close To You". Heh heh.. real clever. Wonder why they didn't think to use a title like "Hurting Each Other" instead? Don't tell me I'm actually smarter than they are...

It's kind of disturbing that all this is taking place because of that damn scene on the airplane, but believe it or not, there actually is a reason for it. Chances are you already know what that is by now, though, don't ya. Well, maybe not now, but by the time you're 40-50 minutes into it, I'm sure you will.

The biggest downfall of the movie is that it spends too much time on the Nicholson/Sandler antics and not enough time on the Sandler/Tomei relationship. (Seems by the ending that the romance is what we should've been caring about) She's barely in the first 2/3 of it. So it's kind of tough to really give a rip what happens there. However, there is some redemption in the opening act, which provoked a lot of sympathy for Sandler's character as he is trying to kiss a girl, while the Bee Gees' "How Deep Is Your Love" swells in the background. I don't care what anybody says, that is a great song.

Dr. Buddy Rydell has some interesting ways of helping people to cope with their anger, compose themselves and stop it dead in its tracks. One such way is by singing a West Side Story ditty called "I Feel Pretty". He stops Dave right in the middle of a bridge because he decides Dave needs to sing at that moment. So you get to hear Adam Sandler and Jack Nicholson going at it while drivers attempt to get around, some stopping to drop a few profanities. It's a pretty good moment. I have to say this much, I actually thought to myself, "Maybe they're right, the old music really was better." And that's SCARY. So I guess the movie did its job there. At one point in the movie, you're not too sure if the idea is to repress the anger or act on it. I think Lenny said it best, "I don't remember." It's probably a good idea you just don't take it too seriously!

It gets pretty disjointed towards the end; just be prepared for a few tablespoons of romance and a big "I was wrong, I need to change, but I'll do it for you" kind of confession. You probably won't identify with the fact that Dave's biggest fear of all has been kissing a girl in front of other people. But enough, I've given away too much as it is.

I think a food analogy might be the way to go here. Adam Sandler is chocolate pudding. Jack Nicholson is Cheez Whiz (and the kicker for the recommendation). Not a lot of people like the thought of chocolate and cheese together. Even if they mix well, someone who goes to eat it might not dig the taste too much. But if they like one enough, they're willing to deal with the other. And of course, there are some who enjoy the combination. Who knows, they might even try dipping nachos in it.

It's fun while it lasts, but you probably won't find yourself thinking about it on the way home.

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Recommended:
Yes

Suitability For Children: Suitable for Children Age 13 and Older