Adam Sandler and his crazy antics are back… this time, he is animated. I went into the viewing of this film with very low expectations; and although this is not a quality movie, it did turn out to be mildly more entertaining then I expected. This film is over-the-top and childish at time, but Sandler is comical as the voices of the three main characters, and the musical numbers are entertaining in a manner in which only Adam Sandler can provide. This movie will not be for everyone, but die-hard Sandler fans will p…obably be entertained.
- ”You’ve never seen Adam like this. Adam Sandler’s EIGHT CRAZY NIGHTS is a hilarious animated holiday fable that’s also a musical, featuring star voices from Jon Lovitz and Rob Schneider. When extremely disgruntled small-town guy Davey Stone (voiced by Sandler) faces another holiday season in his New England hometown, he does what he always has – he screws up big and lands in jail. Davey’s old basketball referee, Whitey, bails him out with the bright idea of putting Davey to work doing community service. But Davey turns his sentence into a daily disaster for Whitey and the whole town! After a few surprises – including the mysterious reason for Davey’s bad attitude and the reappearance of a childhood sweetheart – Davey might find a reason or two to change his ways.” – Columbia-Tristar
Audio
The Dolby Digital 5.1 audio track included on this disc is pretty good. The sound separation is accurate, and the dialog is clear. You will find only minimal surround activity, but there is an occasional nice touch of base. The musical sequences were presented nicely, and the overall audible feel was solid.
Video
This disc includes both 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen and 1.33:1 full frame transfers. The colors were very nicely portrayed, the darks were deep and clean, and the transfer was free from scratches and dust. I did notice a number of instances of digital artifacting which detracted from the viewing experience.
Special Features
The special features on this set are split over two discs. On disc one, you will find…
- Two Audio Commentaries: The first commentary included on this disc features co-writer/co-producer Allen Covert and Adam Sandler in the characters of Whitey & Eleanore. This track is somewhat annoying, and is quite useless in conveying pertinent information about the film. The second track, called a “Technical” commentary, includes director Seth Kearsley, head of animation Stephan Franck, art director Philip A. Cruden, effects supervisor John Bermudez, and executive producer Ken Tsumura. This track, although somewhat more educational, is still very boring and busy. All-in-all, these two commentaries were disappointing.
- A Day With the Meatball: How this fits in, I do not know. It is a 2-minute feature about Sandlers dog which is amusing, yet out-of-place on this DVD.
- Chanukah Song Part 3: This music video was recorded at a taping of Saturday Night Live, and is the latest version of Sandlers beloved Chanukah Song.
- Also included on this disc are trailers for Crazy Nights, Anger Management, Big Daddy, Medallion, Mr. Deeds, Peter Pan, Radio, and a few others.
Disc two is set up as an interactive map of Dukesberry, the town in which the film takes place. The main venues from the film each contain a number of special features…
- Nine Featurettes: These featurettes are all rather short, ranging between 30 seconds to 6 minutes. Topics that are discussed in these featurettes include each of the main characters (Davey, Whitey, Eleanore, The Deer, Jennifer & Benjamin, and The Townspeople of Dukesberry), “Creating Dukesberry”, ”Dukesberry Sings”, and the “Voices of Dukesberry”. These are all very fluffy pieces that give a little deeper info in to the characters, the setting, and the story.
- Animation Progression: This feature allows you to toggle between an number of storyboards, rough animation, and final animation using the “Angle” feature on your DVD player. Unfortunately, side-by-side comparisons are not included.
- Deleted/Alternate Scenes: Each venue contains a number of deleted scenes, all of which were cut for good reason, and each of which are available with optional audio commentary. They are still worth a watch for the most part.
- HBO First Look: This 12-minute featurette is pretty much a marketing piece that tells the story through a number of clips and interviews. Pretty standard stuff here.
Final Thoughts
Did this film deserve a 2-disc special edition release? No. But even though the film was not great, the disc does come through with good quality, and a nice variety of special features. This one is a renter.
Special Features List
- Commentary by Whitey, Eleanore, and writer-producer Allan Covert
- Commentary by Seth Kearsley, art director Philip A. Cruden, head of animation Stephan Franck, effects supervisor John Bermudas, and executive producer Ken Tsumura
- Nine original featurettes: Eleanore, Whitey, Creating Dukesberry, Townspeople of Dukesberry, Dukesberry Sings, Jennifer & Benjamin, Voices of Dukesberry, Davey, The Deer
- 13 deleted/alternate scenes with optional commentary
- Multi-angle animation progression
- HBO First Look special
- “Chanukah Song Part 3” music video
- “A Day with the Meatball” short film
- Trailers
