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REIGN OVER ME

 ABOUT THE MOVIE

Genre: Drama
Starring: Adam Sandler, Don Cheadle, Jada Pinkett Smith, Liv Tyler, Saffron Burrows, Donald Sutherland, Mike Binder
Director: Mike Binder
Rating: NC-16 (Some Coarse Language and Sexual References)
Year Made: 2007

 

 


 SPECIAL FEATURES

- Behind the Reign: The making of Reign Over Me
- Extended jam session with Adam Sandler and Don Cheadle
- A Still Reign: Photographic Montage
- Trailers

 


 TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Languages: English/Spanish/
Portuguese/Thai/French
Subtitles: English/Thai/Spanish
Chinese/Korean/Portuguese/French
Aspect Ratio: 2.40:1 Widescreen
Sound: Dolby Digital 5.1
Running Time: 2 hrs 4 mins
Region Code: 3
Distributor: Origin Entertainment
Official Website:
www.sonypictures.com/

 

 

SYNOPSIS:   

Adam Sandler, Don Cheadle, Jada Pinkett Smith and Liv Tyler star in this heart-rending story about Charlie Fineman who has slipped away from reality after the sudden loss of his wife and children. But Charlie's life takes a turn for the better when he runs into his old college roommate Alan Johnson whose life is torn between the demands of career and family. Their renowned friendship rekindles their long-forgotten bond and both men emerge enriched and enlightened.

MOVIE REVIEW

There isn’t anything much I remember about this drama after watching it – except how wonderfully touching and real the characters are.

Telling a guy-buddy tale of how a successful dentist suddenly meets his college roommate who has lost his entire family. While the thriving and respected dentist has his own set of family and problems of expectations, the emotionally unstable bummer chooses to forget the past he once had. The two come together and a moving reminiscence of the friendship they once had occurs, and at the end of the day, they discover how important it is to let others into their problem-ridden states of mind.

While the last movie where I was left very impressed with Adam Sandler was 2002’s Punch-Drunk Love, this movie about family and friendship has left me pleasantly amazed with his acting chops. He has proven again he is not just The Waterboy, Big Daddy and Little Nicky. Whether it’s his ruffled and messy hairdo, his introvert behavior or his muttering persona, Sandler deserves credit for portraying the grief a man has to live through when faced with a personal tragedy.

Then there is Oscar nominee Don Cheadle (Hotel Rwanda), who effortlessly plays the tortured man career and family man. His steadfast and comfortable performance settles in nicely the moment he appears on screen.

Elsewhere, there are equally strong and mature performances by supporting actresses like Jada Pinkett Smith, Liv Tyler and a very notable Saffron Burrows, who plays Cheadle’s difficult dental patient.

There is also a collection of very apt songs featured in the movie – Pearl Jam’s “Love, reign O’er Me”, The Killers’ “All These Things That I’ve Done” and Bruce Springsteen’s “Out In the Street” are essential listens for music lovers.

The resonating and remarkably engaging themes of friendship and family weave themselves nicely throughout the movie’s 124-minute runtime, and it never feels long and dreary – simply because these issues are what we urbanites are probably facing in real life, and not having enough courage to face them.

It’s kind of heartrending how a film has to do the job of reflecting real life with reel life.

SPECIAL FEATURES :

This Code 3 DVD contains a 17-minute Behind the Reign, where writer director affectingly talks about how he got his inspiration for the movie from victims who have lost their families during the 9-11 attacks. The part he says how people can’t find people to talk to is almost heartbreaking. There is a five-minute Jam Session with Adam Sandler and Don Cheadle where you see the two actors strumming guitars enjoyably – it’s a comforting sequence to sit through. A Still Reign is a six-minute photo montage of stills and behind-the-scene pictures complete with heartfelt piano accompaniment. There are also Previews for a slew of features like Click, Vantage Point, Spider-Man 3, Sleuth, Superbad, Angel-A, Interview, Spanglish, The Company, Close Encounters of the Third Kind and Coming to Blu-Ray.

AUDIO/VISUAL:

The disc has a pristine visual transfer which beautifies the sidewalks of New York City actually complements the heartwarming mood of the movie, while the audio is presented in English, Spanish, Portuguese and Thai 5.1 Dolby Digital, or French Dolby Surround.

MOVIE RATING:



DVD RATING :

Review by John Li

 
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This review is made possible with the kind support from Origin Entertainment

 


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