The Heartbreak Kid (2007 remake/HD-DVD + DVD-Video)
Picture:
B/B- Sound: B+/B- Extras: D Film: D
NOTE: This film has been reissued in the Blu-ray
format and the HD-DVD version is now discontinued. Read more at this link:
http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/7923/The+Heartbreak+Kid+(2007)/Hot+Rod
This
horrid, dreadful remake of the 1972 film of Neil Simon’s great play (originally
directed by Elaine May and starring Charles Grodin and Cybill Shepherd) by the
once hot Farrelly Brothers sticks Ben Stiller in the Grodin role and is lame
from the first scene with his real life father.
Then it gets worse!
Stiller
plays the same tired dork he has been building his career on for years and to
be frank, it is becoming embarrassing for all the wrong reasons. Running 114 minutes or 10 more than the
original version, it goes on and on and on and on and when you wonder why you
did not hear about this in theaters, you’ll understand once you start
watching. Hope Simon got a big paycheck
for this possibly worse film ever made of one of his works. Michelle Monaghan and Scott Wilson also star
and are also wasted in this story of a bachelor trying to finally get married
at 40 years old. Weren’t we just down
this road?
The 1080p
2.35 X 1 digital High Definition image is color problematic on the otherwise
decently defined HD version, but despite being shot in Super 35mm, looks like a
poor HD shoot because the digital internegative seems to have messed up the
color. This problem is repeated on the
anamorphically enhanced DVD. The Dolby
TrueHD 5.1 sounds good, but makes no sense to be here for a dialogue-based film
and seems desperate. Extras include gag
reel, deleted scenes, audio commentary by the directors, trailer, four other
featurettes and the trailer, which is in HD on the HD-DVD.
- Nicholas Sheffo
