Click Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		1.5
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		2.5
Overall		3.0

Click Blu-ray Movie Review

Don't skip past part of your life for this dud.

Reviewed by Martin Liebman November 14, 2008

Just point and click.

Few movies can boast of being a bigger disappointment than Click. Funny man Adam Sandler's (Anger Management) 2006 comedy-that's-really-a-drama-turned-tearjerker is one of the most uneven, unfunny, and uninteresting films of the past decade. Despite a fantastic premise that promised to offer moviegoers a novel spin on both the Comedy and Sci-Fi genres, Click instead plays as a foul-mouthed potty humor film in its first half that suddenly turns 180 degrees into a sappy drama with a message. The abrupt turn of events is just too sudden, the second half of the film too draining, hitting audiences over the head with its blunt message, completely eliminating even a smidgen of comic relief.

But will it clean the litter box?

Michael Newman (Sandler) is an ambitious architect with dreams of one day becoming a partner at his firm. He also has a bad temper, a short fuse, and a knack for putting work ahead of family. One evening, frustrated at his poor remote control management skills, he angrily leaves home to purchase a new universal remote control, logically ending up at...Bed, Bath, and Beyond. One can only surmise that Radio Shack, Target, Wal-Mart, and Best Buy don't exist in Michael Newman's universe. Anyway, Newman collapses onto a model bed, frustrated with his life and exhausted from his stress, only to spot a door labeled "beyond" at the back of the store, past the bed- and bath-related items. There, he finds a mad scientist type named Morty (Christopher Walker, Man on Fire), who gives Newman a fancy Star Trek-inspired blue remote control, supposedly the most advanced in the world and so cutting edge that it has not yet been released to the public. This sleek device not only turns the television on and off, but it can pause, fast-forward, and rewind real life. It can even mute annoying neighbors and obnoxious dogs and display a picture-in-picture window of a ballgame to supplement the doldrums of real life. It turns out that Newman can even access a Blu-ray-like menu of his life, chapter skipping to various parts of his existence, or even listening to a commentary track on life events, narrated by James Earl Jones. When Newman begins relying too heavily on the remote, passing life by and experiencing only those moments he chooses, he soon finds himself skipping further and further ahead in life until he winds up as a man he doesn't want to be.

Click offers two distinct halves, neither of which work for a myriad of reasons. The film's comedic first half flops thanks a string of unfunny jokes, unlikable and annoying characters, and a series of gags involving the remote that start out well enough but quickly wear out their welcome as the film heads towards the inevitable life-lesson second half. Only rarely does the wonder of the remote and its practically limitless possibilities wow audiences with the potential of such a device. One scene featuring Sandler's character changing the "aspect ratio" of his boss during a presentation on workplace harassment is particularly amusing, as is a scene where he pauses a game of catch so a rude neighbor child will be smacked in the face by an incoming baseball. Still, the novelty wears surprisingly thin far too soon as Newman chapter-skips around his life, even to his own conception, birth, and various childhood memories. Suddenly, Newman awakens to what amounts to years lost to the chapter skip button, right where he always wanted to be at work but also experiencing a personal life in shambles as a result of his narrow-mindedness. In an instant, the film goes from a wannabe comedy with a few laughs to a wannabe melodrama with a few genuinely emotional scenes that become lost in an avalanche of sappiness, Newman wading around each scene bemoaning what he has become. The film's admittedly significant message on the importance of treasuring the blessings life has bestowed, weathering the bad times with the good, and making the most of every moment is spoon-fed to the audience, and because the message is so heavy-handed, its importance becomes lost in the shuffle. Better films that offer viewers important life lessons, like Rudy, remain focused, uplifting, and entertaining without losing sight of either the message or good storytelling. Click falls to the complete opposite end of the spectrum, forcing its message and losing sight of the other elements that support the message.

Click Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Sony Pictures presents the digitally-filmed Click on Blu-ray with a generally handsome 1080p, 1.85:1-framed transfer. The film's opening minutes inside the Newman household look great. It has a natural, realistic appearance that sports fine detail all across the screen in addition to a nice depth about the environment. Outdoor scenes shine, too, offering richly-rendered exteriors that oftentimes seem to pop off the screen. The strength of the disc is definitely in its bright, vibrant colors, all of which look fantastic from start to finish. The scenes underneath the interior fluorescent lighting in the Bed, Bath, and Beyond store, for example, look great. Multitudes of colors jump off the screen, and the image is nothing short of lifelike. Flesh tones generally exhibit a yellow or reddish tint to them. Black levels are strong, and noise is present over the image. Overall, Click is a fine looking title that doesn't compete with the best of the best, but it provides fine high definition imagery that holds up form beginning to end.

Click Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Sporting a surprisingly robust PCM 5.1 uncompressed soundtrack, Click is one fine-sounding comedy/drama/whatever. The soundtrack is sometimes rather loud at reference volume, but it comes through with nice fidelity and clarity. The rock song playing over the opening credits spreads out wonderfully over the front soundstage with the guitar notes blaring with precision out of the speakers. There is some fine, deep bass in several scenes, two examples being a series of fireworks exploding in chapter two and several impressive, realistic, thumps and thuds in the "way beyond" section of the Bed, Bath, and Beyond store in chapter three. Various sound effects burst through the speakers, offering a fine sense of directionality. The rear speakers aren't always in use, but they come alive here and there, with effects swooping around all over the listening area, an example being the scene inside Newman's life "menu" in chapter five. Dialogue is a bit bass heavy and scratchy. Like its video transfer, Click's audio offering is very good, though not great, holding up very well even today, more than two years after the disc's initial 2006 release.

Click Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Click offers several special features fans will want to navigate. The first is a commentary track featuring actor Adam Sandler, director Frank Coraci, writer Steve Koren, and executive producer Tim Herlihy. A lighthearted, easy-on-the-ears track, the quartet offers their thoughts on the film, shooting on video, shooting locations, and more. They also joke about some of more innocuous "goofs" scattered about the film. Overall, it is a decent commentary track that fans will enjoy. Seven featurettes, all presented in 1080i high definition, are included. Make Me Old and Fat (6:34) is a behind-the-scenes look at the film's Oscar-winning makeup and interviews with various cast and crew members. FX of 'Click' (5:09) examines the film's unique approach to special effects. Design My Universe (4:47) looks at the film's set design. Cars of the Future (3:09) is a fun peak at the advanced automobile designs seen in the film. Humping Dogs (1:11) takes a behind-the-scene glance at one of the film's most lame gags. Director's Take (4:22) features the cast and crew discussing their relationship with director Frank Coraci. Fine Cookin' (2:57) is a series of outtakes featuring Adam Sandler in his "overweight" makeup. Rounding out this supplemental package are four deleted scenes (1080i, 3:05).

Click Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Click is like some sort of mad scientist's assemblage of parts that were fed into a machine that randomly threw together several reels of film with nary a concern for cohesion or pacing. No doubt the film has its heart in the right place, which counts for something, but it is a classic example of a good idea with an ill-conceived script and sloppy execution. Nevertheless, the film has its following, and fans will not be disappointed with this Blu-ray release. With impressive video and audio presentations and a few supplements, the disc is fine from a technical perspective. Click is also a piece of Blu-ray history, the first disc to arrive as a BD-50, or 50 gigabyte Blu-ray disc. Nevertheless, Click is recommended only for die-hard fans of the film, or anyone looking to add a small piece of history to their Blu-ray collections.