Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		2.5
Overall		3.5

Mr. Deeds Blu-ray Movie Review

Do the deed and buy the Blu-ray.

Reviewed by Martin Liebman December 14, 2010

Some genetic lottery winner now controls the fate of this company.

Trends come and go in Hollywood, but the one constant through all the recent years, Ray, has been remakes. Remakes come in all shapes and sizes, with studios churning out re-imaginings of beloved classics, obscure cult titles, and random television shows alike to varying degrees of success. Audiences seem either not to mind or not to notice, and it's the latter that, maybe, might be the most fitting descriptor of Comedian Adam Sandler's 2002 film Mr. Deeds, a remake/re-imagining of an old Gary Cooper picture called Mr. Deeds Goes to Town that dates back to the 1930s and was directed by none other than Frank "It's a Wonderful Life" Capra. Adam Sandler might not be Gary Cooper, but his modern retelling of the story of an average Joe suddenly finding out he's heir to a vast fortune is amicable enough, the movie enjoying more hits than misses but nevertheless in need of a bit more dazzle and purpose. Mr. Deeds runs the gamut of genre cliché, but it does so with an underlying sweetness and a collection of nicely-realized characters that help lessen the burden of the film's transparent plot developments.

Hello Blu-ray.com!

Longfellow Deeds (Adam Sandler, Grown Ups) lives an ordinarily serene life in a small New Hampshire town. He runs a popular pizza joint and hasn't given up on the dream of seeing one of his greeting cards purchased by Hallmark. Little does Deeds know that his life will forever change when news of the death of Preston Blake, a billionaire business tycoon and head of Blake Media, hits the airwaves and sends the company into a frenetic search for the mogul's last living heir. It turns out Longfellow has just inherited 49% of the company, valued at a a mind-numbing $40 billion dollars. Deeds is convinced by two of Blake right-hand men -- Chuck (Peter Gallagher, Sex, Lies and Videotape) and Cecil (Erick Avari, Paul Blart: Mall Cop ) -- to convert the shares into cash, so off to the big city goes the small town denizen to cross a few "T's" and dot several last "I's." Deeds finds himself living a life of untold luxuries, staying in Blake's cavernous mansion and waited on hand and foot by a butler named Emilo (John Turturro, You Don't Mess with the Zohan) who harbors a peculiar fetish. Unfortunately, it doesn't take long for the tabloid press to follow Deeds' every move, and budding journalist Babe Bennett (Winona Ryder, The Informers) takes on the task of posing as Deeds' girlfriend. While her tabloid program aims to take the newly wealthy bachelor down, she comes to see his softer side, pitting her feelings against her career. Will wealth and romance change Deeds, or will his small town upbringing save him making big-time mistakes?

Mr. Deeds is a sweet and fun if not predictably routine Comedy that goes about the business of seeing it characters through a series of emotional highs only to have them deflated at the end of the second act, setting the stage for the happily-ever-after ending. It's formula, but there's a reason that formula is, well, formula: it works and has been proven to do so time and again. Mr. Deeds is no exception; it's merely another movie that doesn't stray from the predictable nature of its genre. There are no surprises here, and once the film's been set-up and the characters and their dynamics introduced into the plot, there's not much doubt as to how things will work out in the end. That's OK, because audiences don't go to a movie like Mr. Deeds expecting anything else and certainly not demanding a refund when the film fails to break new ground. Adam Sandler movies and other pictures of this sort are the cinematic equivalent of comfort food: empty calories maybe, but tasty and satisfying nevertheless. Well balanced humor and good characters are all that's really needed in a movie like this, and Director Steven Brill's (Drillbit Taylor) film adequately covers all its required bases.

Most important to Mr. Deeds is its goodhearted nature. The movie is generally in good taste and espouses mostly good virtues. Deeds is portrayed as a good man who sees the world with perhaps a bit of naïvete, but he doesn't suddenly change who he is simply because his bank account has almost magically swelled to epic proportions. The picture's small-town, do-good, happy-go-lucky, tender center is a real asset, and because the film finds a good and human balance that remains throughout, the audience may more readily identify with the characters and care about seeing them through to the end. The film's humor is light and mostly generic; there's nothing crude or distasteful here, but Mr. Deeds manages to keep a smile on viewers' faces for the duration not only as a result of its gags but a tenderness that works in spite of a see-through plot. The cast is uniformly excellent, with Sandler and Ryder sharing a believable chemistry with one another and both of them pulling off the film's critical balance between goodhearted humor and tender emotions. John Turturro is the show-stopper as the butler with a foot fetish, while veteran character actors Peter Gallagher and Erick Avari shine in their roles. Look for a humorous cameo by Rob Schneider, but watch Big Daddy first.

Mr. Deeds Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Mr. Deeds inherits a strong 1080p, 1.85:1-framed transfer, no surprise given Sony's track record. This disc yields a fine film-like image that's nicely detailed from top to bottom, covering all the usual bases and rarely, if ever, home to a scene that's less than adequate, with most of the transfer ranking as well above average. The image is crisp and colorful, with a nicely-balanced palette that reveals the picture's every hue with ease. Nighttime exteriors are handled well; blacks don't reach an elite level, but crush is minimal and never does the nighttime sky or other dark corners of the frame appear overly gray or excessively bright. Mr Deeds' Blu-ray transfer retains a layer of natural film grain that helps preserve the overall cinematic texture, and the image doesn't suffer from any major bouts of aliasing or banding, though the opening tiles do wobble about the screen quite a bit. Still, Mr. Deeds is quite the looker for what is a generic and not-so-well-reviewed Comedy that's already approaching a decade in age.

Mr. Deeds Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Mr. Deeds features a surprisingly active DTS-HD MA 5.1 lossless soundtrack. Unlike Sony's release of Big Daddy that seemed content to blandly pour out sound from the front speakers, Mr. Deeds goes for a more active and immersive feel with the back channels carrying their fair share of the material. Music plays with a big and rich feel across the front and supported by a fair bit of back channel play, yielding an immersive and satisfying experience. Atmospherics, too, play all around the listening area; whether the chilly winds that swirl around the soundstage in an opening sequence or ambient city noise, Mr. Deeds' lossless soundtrack does a good job of bringing its varied environments to vivid sonic life. Dialogue is nicely focused up the middle, and the track handles the film's "make a weird noise" segment quite well; as characters yell and screech and do whatever it is they do to produce unusual vocal rackets, the track plays the resultant echoing sensations quite well with the surrounds once again doing a good job of placing the listener in the scene. Comedies don't sound much better than Mr. Deeds, and the track seems to go above and beyond the call of duty with every passing scene.

Mr. Deeds Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Mr. Deeds isn't loaded with extras, but what's here is just fine for a midlevel Comedy Blu-ray release.

• Audio Commentary: Director Steve Brill and Writer Tim Herlihy affably discuss various ideas that were nixed from the final script; scouting trips, shooting locations, and set dressings; the work of the primary actors; the appearances of various background characters; anecdotes from the set; and even the story, themes, and relevancy of the original Frank Capra film. Fans of the film will enjoy this track; it's about as far from stuffy as possible while still offering some pertinent information. If only more commentaries were as nicely balanced as this.
• Deleted Scenes (480p, 3:10): Fake Cop Hat, The Nutbuster, Telling Jokes, Under the Cherry Tree, Fake Astronaut, and Enjoy Your Pizza.
• From Mandrake Falls to Manhattan (480p, 18:22): A standard making-of piece that looks at the original Gary Cooper film, the new version's tone, its stunt work, the casting process, and shooting locations and set design.
• Spare No Expense (480p, 6:31): A brief glimpse into the visual and thematic importance of creating the opulent sets and visually arresting shooting locations seen throughout the movie.
• Clothes Make the Man (480p, 6:46): A look at the film's wardrobe choices and how they mesh modern style with the look of the original movie.
• Music Video (480p, 4:02): "Where Are You Going" by The Dave Matthews Band.
• Outtakes (480p, 1:42).
• Deeds Greeting Cards (480p, 2:53): Animated versions of a few of Deeds' cards. Included are Easter, St. Valentines Day #1, Passover #1, St. Patrick's Day, Passover #2, and St. Valentine's Day #2.
• "Pizza with French Fries and Oreos" (480p, 0:39): An easter egg of sorts that shows a few behind-the-scenes clips of Sandler enjoying a recording session for the film's soundtrack.
• BD-Live.



Mr. Deeds Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 




Mr. Deeds is a fun little diversion that's certainly not a genre-defining picture but instead one that proudly carries the torch of Comedy cliché. The film's predictability and generic structure are actually assets considering that Director Steven Brill's film does right by standby formula. The picture's goodhearted nature is made possible thanks to several quality, if not transparent, characters and a few fine performances that help make the movie a pleasant but not necessarily memorable watch. Sony's Blu-ray release of Mr. Deeds yields a surprisingly strong technical presentation and a genre-average allotment of extra content. Recommended.