Mr. Troop Mom Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		2.0
Video		3.0
Audio		3.0
Extras		1.0
Overall		2.0

Mr. Troop Mom Blu-ray Movie Review

George Lopez stars in this mundane, made-for-Nickelodeon bore...

Reviewed by Kenneth Brown June 25, 2009

October 26, 1986 may not mean anything to you, but it was a defining moment in my childhood. Not because first basemen Bill Buckner made a fielding error that would cost the Boston Red Sox the World Series, not because my parents took me to the theater to see Crocodile Dundee, and not because news reports of a UFO sighting in Iowa would give me recurring nightmares for years. No, dear readers... on October 26, 1986 Disney CEO Michael Eisner peered out from my TV screen and introduced me to The B.R.A.T. Patrol, an ABC Disney Sunday Movie that, thanks to the magical wonders of VHS, would consume my every waking, eight-year-old thought for weeks and months to come. Even now, twenty years after I literally wore out my only copy, I still have fond memories of watching Sean Astin and his ragtag, military-base compatriots foil the plans of a group of sinister thieves.

I say all that to say this: somewhere, right now, an excitable girl is giggling her way through Mr. Troop Mom, glued to the screen with the same wide-eyed anticipation and slack-jawed grin I had while watching The B.R.A.T. Patrol so long ago. It doesn't mean it's a good movie, it certainly doesn't mean it will stand the test of time... it simply means that, regardless of a film's quality, family-friendly fare like Mr. Troop Mom will always find an enthusiastic young audience.

Unimaginative, formulaic, and uninspired, 'Mr. Troop Mom' gave me a headache...

Comedian George Lopez stars as Mr. Troop Mom himself, a widowed lawyer named Eddie Serrano who accompanies his thirteen-year old daughter, Naomi (Daniela Bobadilla), to a competition at Camp Hulka Rock. It seems her team, the Killer Bees, are desperate to beat a rival group of snotty girls, The Wasps, in a series of physical challenges. But if you hadn't guessed it already, Eddie prefers working a courtroom to roughing it on a campground, wearing designer suits instead of squeezing into khaki uniforms, and answering to wealthy clients rather than moody teenage girls. Still, his desperation to connect with his daughter motivates him to suck it up and engage in his most transparent I'm-an-irrelevant-middle-aged-dad schtick. As the days get hotter and the bugs grow increasingly aggressive, he struggles to help Naomi and her friends prepare for their competition, impress the camp's owner (Jane Lynch), and win the affections of a feisty camp counselor (Julia Anderson). But can Eddie show his daughter he really, truly cares for her? Can he overcome his workaholic nature? Will the Killer Bees win their competition? Can Eddie apply his successful courtroom tactics to the Hulka Rock battleground? Will George Lopez ever make me laugh? Sadly, the answers to all these questions (and more) are painfully predictable.

Produced for Nickelodeon and the mass consumption of budding adolescents everywhere, director William Dear's Mr. Troop Mom plays it safe and never oversteps its sugar-coated, G-rated boundaries. Jokes are of the harmless variety, gags lean towards the slapstick end of the comedy spectrum, and life lessons are dealt out by the dozens. Even Jane Lynch, master of foul-mouthed tirades and sexual innuendos, is on her best behavior. In fact, everything -- from Lopez's bathroom mirror mugging to his courtroom outbursts to his questionable competitive spirit -- seems primed and packaged for prepubescent consumption. Of course, it doesn't bode well for the adults in the room, particularly since the cast's rubber-faced expressions and buh-dum-tish line delivery will be familiar to anyone over sixteen. I've never been able to wrap my head around Lopez's appeal, a conundrum Mr. Troop Mom never manages to address. Lopez not only fails to give his fans anything they haven't already seen on his stale, self-titled sitcom, he fails to inject genuine heart or soul into his portrayal of a father, lawyer, widow, or survivalist. I barely cracked a smile, nodding off at one point and waking only when the credits began to roll (yes, I returned to the meandering second act point that induced my coma and gave the flick another go).

Forced to restrain every scoff, eye roll, and head rub that boils up inside, parents will absolutely loathe Mr. Troop Mom and everything it represents. At the same time, members of its target audience are likely to laugh themselves silly. My suggestion? Avoid this one as best you can and pray that it doesn't grace your daughters' radar.

Mr. Troop Mom Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

As you might already expect, Mr. Troop Mom features a patchy 1080p/VC-1 transfer that runs an obstacle course all its own. Even though the film's palette is more satisfying on Blu-ray than on DVD, delineation is just as unforgiving, black levels are still inconsistent, and skintones remain erratic, bouncing between natural, pasty, flushed, bronzed, and chalky hues (oftentimes within the same scene). More distressingly, contrast is a continuous crapshoot, blessing some shots with convincing depth while cursing others with lifeless dimensionality. Granted, overall image clarity is moderately impressive for a low budget, made-for-TV production -- object definition is fairly sharp, background detail is somewhat revealing, and edge enhancement has only been used sparingly -- but a prevailing softness (brought on by a hasty and excessive application of noise reduction) leads to spongy facial features and an endless parade of smeared textures. Then there's the matter of the transfer's technical proficiency (or lack thereof). Not only does faint artifacting occasionally disrupt the picture, unpredictable noise haunts the summery skies, and moiré patterns are a frequent distraction (I couldn't stop staring at Lopez's shimmering hair).

That being said, the Blu-ray edition still offers young videophiles greater stability and vitality than the concurrently-released standard DVD. If you can't be dissuaded from dropping Mr. Troop Mom in your shopping cart, rest assured that the best way to experience Lopez's neutered antics is in high definition.

Mr. Troop Mom Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Mr. Troop Mom's banal Dolby TrueHD 5.1 surround mix isn't much better. It thumps its chest and roars as loud as it can, but it lacks the prowess and precision of more delicately crafted lossless tracks. Case in point: while a blaring soundtrack tends to overwhelm the soundscape with lethargic bass beats and muddled guitar riffs, the rear speakers are surprisingly subdued. Distant crowds are seemingly comprised of mimes, the forest has apparently been evacuated, and the wind has little impact on the trees (at least so far as the film's underdeveloped soundfield is concerned). Likewise, LFE output is robust but unwieldy, burdening lighter effects with the same one-size-fits-all support given to collapsing structures and tumbling campers. Worse still, dialogue is all over the place. Thin and hollow one moment, dense and unrefined the next, voices are at the mercy of environmental elements, inept sound design, and obvious post-production looping. While I doubt the folks at Warner could have spruced up the mix any more than they already did, the end result can't even compete with other television audio tracks on the market. Average at worst, adequate at best, Mr. Troop Mom sounds as unexceptional as it looks.

Mr. Troop Mom Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Mr. Troop Mom sets up camp on Blu-ray with the same blink-and-you'll-miss-it supplemental package that graces its standard DVD counterpart. Still, it's not a total loss: Warner presents the bulk of the film's production featurettes in high definition.

• Naomi's Journal (HD, 10 minutes): And the award for most unnecessarily cumbersome featurette goes to... "Naomi's Journal" on Mr. Troop Mom! After a brief 24-second intro, a secondary menu pops up that allows viewers to access six grating production featurettes centered around young actress Daniela Bobadilla ("Becoming Naomi," "My First Film Role," "The Girl Scout Experience," "Sharing Daddies," "Making Friends," and "Having Fun on Set"), as well as six character shorts ("Paulina," "Sam," "Kayla," "Yvette," "Skyler," and "Catalina").
• George Goes to Camp (HD, 6 minutes): A behind-the-scenes EPK in which cast and crew discuss how much fun they had on set. Just be warned, gushing compliments fly with abandon.
• Killer Bees vs. Wasps (HD, 5 minutes): Pure promotional fluff, this featurette feels like an extended commercial more than anything else.
• Rockin' the Bonfire (HD, 4 minutes): A quick overview of the time The Naked Brothers band members spent on the set.
• Additional Scenes (SD, 5 minutes): Four yawn-inducing 4:3 deleted scenes.
• Gag Reel (SD, 4 minutes): This collection of outtakes is akin to watching someone's family vacation videos.

Mr. Troop Mom Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

I never... never fall asleep while watching a movie, but Mr. Troop Mom knocked me out cold. As boring, predictable, and monotonous as they come, Lopez's family-oriented comedy is a tiresome mess. Even so, there are countless young girls out there who will love every second of it. It's just a shame their fledgling nostalgia will be sullied by the Blu-ray edition's inconsistent video transfer, uneventful TrueHD track, and shallow supplemental package. Ultimately, I suppose anyone with an eight to twelve-year old daughter will have good reason to rent this syrupy, made-for-TV drivel. Everyone else -- even Lopez apologists -- should stay far, far away.