Rating summary

Movie		2.5
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		2.0
Overall		3.5

Neighbors Blu-ray Movie Review

"Delta Psi has the upper hand! Delta Psi has the upper hand!"

Reviewed by Kenneth Brown September 25, 2014

There's no surefire means to comedy gold. One man's Monty Python is another man's... Monty Python. A husband's laughs aren't often shared by his wife. A dear friend's Top Three will be radically removed from your own. Acquired tastes, personal preferences, even whatever mood a filmfan happens to be in on any given day is sometimes all that separates a garbage comedy from a classic. Some comedies appeal to a target demographic, some are more widely accessible. One audience may be driven to tears, another groans. One film meaningfully precise, the next uproariously aimless. There's high brow and low brow. Sophisticated and sophomoric. Subtle and crude. Some are tightly scripted, some built on improvisation. And yet none of it guarantees a studio a hit; critical, cult or otherwise. Tightly scripted comedies fail as frequently and disastrously as improv-driven romps. Sharp, smartly cast one-hit wonders are sometimes overlooked and soon forgotten, while mind-numbing, poorly assembled ensembles rake in millions and inspire misbegotten sequels. On and on it goes. When it'll stop, everyone knows: never. Which brings us to Neighbors, a slapdash mess of a multi-generational frat-house genre pic some will deem hilarious and others will declare downright obnoxious. Is anyone really surprised?

By all appearances, new parents Mac (Seth Rogen) and Kelly Radner (Rose Byrne) are living the American Dream, complete with an adorable baby girl and a beautiful new starter home in the suburbs. Still, the early-thirtysomethings want to believe that they have a modicum of coolness left within them. When they discover that their new next-door neighbors are none other than dozens of Delta Psi Beta fraternity brothers led by charismatic president Teddy Sanders (Zac Efron), they try to play along and make the best of an awkward situation. But when the frat's parties grow increasingly disruptive, both sides of the property line begin to fend for their turf. The neighbors' relentless sabotage escalates into outrageous one-upmanship, beginning an epic Greek war for the ages.

There are some great bits in Neighbors -- my absolute favorite being Rogen and Efron's dueling Batman impressions; Rogen donning Michael Keaton's stoic Dark Knight while Efron goes full Christian Bale -- but they're just that: bits. Pieces. Ideas. Sketches. Director Nicholas Stoller (Forgetting Sarah Marshall, The Five-Year Engagement, Sex Tape) errs on the side of improv for the duration of the film and it shows. Things that are hilarious on set, in the middle of a punch-drunk string of takes, aren't always so hilarious by the time it all makes its way to an audience. For every solid setup, punchline or ludicrous scenario, a dozen more rise, fall, and fall hard. It's clear the actors are having a blast. The filmmakers too. I imagine the entire set was vibrating with laughter, on camera and off. And Rogen, Efron, Dave Franco and the boys of Delta Psi Beta bring their A-games. Yes, even Efron, who many will be eager to dismiss, yet proves time and time again he's more than up to the task at hand. (Only Rose Byrne seems out of her depth, sticking to the relative safety of the R-rated kiddie pool while her co-stars are doing flips and cannonballs off the adults-only diving board.) The real problem, though, is a lack of cohesion and direction. It's young vs. old in a battle for the ages! But it's also little more than that, with a sprinkling of interesting character beats minus anything substantial in the way of a unifying vision or whip-smart script. Genre tropes are perpetuated and regurgitated rather than refined or subverted, and there's a prevailing sense no one quite knew what the final film would or should look like until it was being stitched together in the editing bay.

That's not to say I didn't laugh. Oh, I did. Often and loud. But I was also keenly aware of what wasn't working on screen; where the film desperately needed some tightening; which stretches could have used a merciless re-write; which chunks clicked into place and which threatened the stability of the whole house of cards; which sequences were delivering the goods and which were bumbling around in a drunken stupor, grasping at anything that might help Neighbors stay upright. Add a dead-end third act to the overwhelming list of hits and misses; one that builds to a delirious high before abruptly cutting off the oxygen and passing out on the floor. I'd call it an anticlimax, but "sudden coma" is probably more accurate. The saving grace? Again and apparently always: the cast. Rogen, Efron and company aren't just invested. They're unphased and undeterred by the very pressing possibility that the film could come crashing down at any moment. They believe. Their characters believe. And so it's that much easier for us to believe what they've committed to is, at the very least, worth watching and, better, deserving of a fighting chance. That doesn't mean Neighbors is a great flick. Or even a consistently satisfying ride. Only that it has some great things to offer those willing to overlook its many, many flaws and follow it wherever it leads. Focus on those flaws, though, and you'll be begging to get off at the next stop long before it reaches its destination.

Neighbors Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

For a movie bursting with reckless behavior, Neighbors' 1080p/AVC-encoded presentation is all business. Colors are warm, lifelike and capably saturated, with natural skintones, vivid primaries and deep, satisfying blacks. Contrast and clarity are excellent too, with plenty of rewarding detail on tap. Edges are clean and crisply defined, textures are revealing, and delineation is excellent, without anything in the way of significant ringing, shimmering or crush. Likewise, errant noise, banding and macroblocking are nowhere to be found, and little distracts other than a handful of notably soft shots scattered throughout the film. (All optical it seems; the most noticable involving a wide shot of several La-Z-Boys late into Mac and Kelly's first all-nighter at the frat house.) Bottom line: no issues, no complaints.

Neighbors Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

With noisy, unruly neighbors being so central to Neighbors' semblance of a story, Universal's DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 surround track pulls out all the stops. Dialogue is clear, intelligible and carefully prioritized at all times, even when parties surge, crowds roar, fireworks erupt and general anarchy ensues. The LFE channel favors the big and bold, cranking up the bass when Mac and Kelly crash keggers or descend into the bowels of the Delta Psi Beta house, subduing low-end effects to exceedingly convincing ends whenever music bleeds through the Radners' walls, and asserting its power as each airbag explosion, party mishap and soundtrack selection demands. Moreover, the rear speakers spread the madness around the listener with ease, relying on precise directionality and slick pans to create an immersive experience. Neighbors may just be a chatty comedy, but it has more than enough sonic flair to make a lasting impression.

Neighbors Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• An Unlikely Pair (HD, 6 minutes): "I met Zac Efron several times, in the Hollywood Circuit as they call it. And he was a nice guy. And I remember what I was impressed with was that he seemed very aware that I would probably hate him!" Seth Rogen, Zac Efron and the cast and crew discuss Efron's hiring, personality, improv skills and performance. Weirdly, it goes out of its way to justify Efron's involvement; a preemptive counterattack against his critics I suppose, but so unnecessarily defensive that it leaves a strange taste.
• The Frat (HD, 6 minutes): Efron and the boys (along with the director and co-writers) discuss Neighbors' fraternity, touch on the actors' chemistry, and offer a quick rundown of the frat members.
• Partying with the Neighbors (HD, 7 minutes): "It's old people vs. young people." The filmmakers and actors upsell the movie, explain the premise and touch on the characters in this overly promotional EPK.
• Deleted/Alternate Scenes (HD, 13 minutes): Ten scenes, including "History," "Babysitter," "Shaving," "Play Date," "Negotiations," "Please Be Porn," "Realty," "Airbags," "Good for Me" and "Watch Me."
• On the Set With... (HD, 4 minutes): Prosthetic penises and dildo fund raisers. Yup.
• Alternate Opening (HD, 7 minutes): An alternate opening is available from the main menu.
• Line-O-Rama (HD, 3 minutes): Alternate line readings pile up in this improv reel.
• Gag Reel (HD, … minutes): Outtakes and crack-ups.

Neighbors Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Here we are again. Neighbors is designed to divide and, surely for a few of you, conquer. I couldn't get past its flaws, structural issues and other problems, even though I sometimes laughed myself silly. You might have a completely different response; the guy next to you, yet another completely different reaction. For better or worse, that's comedy, and Neighbors isn't about to unite anyone on much of anything. So go forth and love-or-loathe as you will. Universal's Blu-ray release fortunately isn't as divisive or problematic. It's light on extras, sure, but its AV presentation is strong, leaving the film to sink or swim on its own merits. Renting it first seems to be the wisest course of action.