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| Special Features: |
Widescreen anamorphic format
CHapter selection
Deleted Scenes
Gag Reel
Featurette: "Breaking Down Bringing Down the House"
Featurette: "The Godfather of Hop"
Commentary with director Adam Shankman, Writer Jason Filardi, and Queen Latifah
Queen Latifah music video "Better Than the Rest" |
| Video Format: |
Anamorphic Widescreen (2.35:1)
[SS-DL]
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| Languages: |
English (Dolby Digital 5.1)
French (Dolby Digital 2.0)
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| Subtitles: |
English for the hearing impared.
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| Captions: |
Yes
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| Casing: |
1-Disc Keep Case
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"Bringing Down the House" is a totally ridiculous comedy, which overcomes a stupid script with very likable performances by all involved. It is a watchable and somewhat enjoyable piece of fluff that delivers laughs and sentiment.
Peter Sanderson (Steve Martin) is a divorced tax attorney who still loves his wife. He meets 'Lawyer Girl' in an internet chatroom. 'Lawyer Girl' e-mails Peter a picture of herself. The two set up a meeting at Peter's house. When peter opens the door, he doesn't find the pretty blonde in the picture's foreground, but instead he finds Charlene (Queen Latifah). When Peter enlarges the photo he was sent, he sees Charlene being arrested in the background.
 Peter has more trouble getting rid of Charlene than Mathew Modine did with Michael Keaton in "Pacific Heights." Turns out that Charlene is an escaped bankrobber who wants Peter to help her clear her good name. Of course, the two bond. Of course, Charlene helps him win his wife back. Of course, this is all totally unbelievable. At the same time "Bringing Down the House" entertains. Sometimes that is enough.
Queen Latifah has a wonderful screen presence. She and Steve Martin have great chemistry together. Tell the truth, I wanted him to hook up with her rather than his ex-wife. Eugene Levy turns in another strong comic supporting role as an associate of Peter's who has a thing for this new Cocoa Goddess. Laurence Olivier's widow, Joan Plowright turns in a funny performance as the heiress Peter is trying to land for the law firm. Blonde hottie Missi Pyle is both sexy and funny as Peter's ex-sister in law who subscribes to the Anna Nicole Smith school of marriage: marry them rich with one foot in the grave.
A fun movie. Good picture and sound. Fair extras.
 Picture Quality: 7/10
The picture is not bad. Some shimmering and delineation problems. The picture is also a bit soft around the edges. Nice flesh tones.
Sound Quality: 9/10
Good soundtrack. Nice balance between the ranges. The music thumps when it is supposed to. No loss of dialogue.
Easter Eggs:
No Easter Eggs found during review.
Extra Features: 6/10
The extras are hit and miss. A commentary track was not really necessary for this type of movie. I got through some of it, but I really didn't care. The same goes for the Behind the Scenes featurette. Your typical promotional material.
 I did like the gag reel. The deleted scenes were also fine. The best thing about the extras, (and it wasn't that great) was the featurette "The Godfather of Hop." The goofy segment paints Eugene Levy as the mastermind behind the American and Canadian Hip Hop scene. Mr. Levy is always funny, so I enjoyed this. Thinking back though, it was pretty corny.
The Final Word:
Worth the price of a rental. Die-hard fans and relatives of the filmmakers may want to purchase.
Rusty White
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