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Blu-ray Review Russell Madness Blu-ray Review (1 Viewer)

Matt Hough

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Russell Madness Blu-ray Review

A talking dog with a talking monkey as his trainer vying for the heavyweight wrestling championship of the world? In the wacky world of professional wrestling, what’s so strange about that? Robert Vince’s Russell Madness is a kiddie sports comedy of no special distinction made by the folks who brought you the Air Bud franchise. That novelty of talking animals has long since lost its freshness, so this movie has to sink or swim on the merits of its writing and production. Russell Madness is routine in both respects.



Studio: Fox

Distributed By: N/A

Video Resolution and Encode: 1080P/AVC

Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1

Audio: English 5.1 DTS-HDMA, Spanish 5.1 DD

Subtitles: English SDH, Spanish

Rating: PG

Run Time: 1 Hr. 32 Min.

Package Includes: Blu-ray, DVD, UltraViolet

keep case in a slipcover

Disc Type: BD25 (single layer)

Region: A

Release Date: 03/10/2015

MSRP: $29.99




The Production Rating: 2.5/5

When the Ferraro family inherits the fabled Ferraro Wrestling Arena in Portland from their recently deceased grandfather, the place is in pretty run-down shape, but the will stipulates that if the family can get it back in operational order and turn a profit in a year’s time, they can then sell it and use the money for their own desires. Hubby Nate (David Milchard) has fond memories of the place and is eager to pitch in to get the arena shipshape, and with the guidance of his grandfather’s talking monkey Hunk (Will Sasso) who’s still around the place, the family gets the arena ready and stages its first card, interrupted by a terrier named Russell (Sean Giambrone) who manages with a couple of lucky moves to knock out the oily villain in the ring. The internet video of his feat goes viral, and Russell becomes a celebrity attracting the attention of the top wrestling promoter on the West Coast, Mick Vaughn (John Ratzenberger). Vaughn had been the one to put Nate’s grandfather out of business all those years ago luring away all his top names with big amounts of cash, so Nate is wary of any deals Vaughn offers him, but the lure of big crowds and lots of publicity for the arena is too tempting to turn down. Of course, Vaughn has his own nefarious plans for Russell to meet his reigning champion The Hammer (John Hennigan).

Director Robert Vince along with co-screenwriters Aaron Brooks, Kirsten Hansen, and Anna McRoberts have fashioned a fairly predictable scenario for cute little Russell that blends moments from Rocky (I know, wrong sport) with just about every crooked sports movie ever made. It may surprise children that Russell falls victim to cheating and must later seek redemption or that Nate’s immersion in the wrestling game makes him neglect his family in a mid-movie conflict that works itself out with momentarily tragic results, but adults will have seen it all before. Did we really need another Rocky-inspired workout and training montage (complete with raw egg guzzling and running up triumphantly a large flight of steps) with its own song “Russellmania” that sounds suspiciously like a ripoff of “Gonna Fly Now”? The script treats us to backstories of Hunk (who at one point calls someone a “pansy,” hardly the kind of language that writers in the 21st century ought to still be perpetuating especially in a kid's movie) and the wrestling regime of Nate’s grandfather (James Crescenzo) which recalls nostalgically old-time wrestling cards. But the script also falls back on pee and belch jokes as well as well worn slapstick shenanigans in the ring (expect some groin punches) that only the smallest of fry will likely enjoy. And the special effects for the talking animals especially for Russell seem a bit substandard (Hunk is reasonably more successful in both the talking and the body language).

The actors playing the Ferraro family (David Milchard and Tatiana Gudegast as the parents, Mason Vale Cotton and McKenna Grace as the kids) are to be commended for acting seriously surrounded by these unpredictable animals. They’re all first-rate for what they are needed to accomplish in the movie. John Ratzenberger has been made to resemble somewhat the blustering Vince McMahon of the WWE (Ratzenberger’s organization is the WUF - get the joke?), and he’s at his sleazy best. Will Sasso does a fine job with the voice of Hunk with Sean Giambrone a bit less appealing as Russell, not quite needy or confident enough at his biggest moments. As the sneaky, egotistical wrestling champion The Hammer, John Hennigan (who has wrestled professionally under several different names) is utterly convincing. Fred Willard offers lunk-headed commentary on the wrestling matches much as he commented on the dog show in Best in Show.



Video Rating: 4.5/5  3D Rating: NA

The film has been framed at 1.78:1 for home video presentation and is presented in 1080p using the AVC codec. Apart from some softness needed to make some of the special effects around the animals’ mouths convincing, the image quality is sharp and quite detailed. Color is bold and impressive with believable skin tones. Black levels are excellent, and contrast is maintained consistently. The movie has been divided into 28 chapters.



Audio Rating: 3.5/5

The DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 sound mix is much more frontcentric than surround-oriented. The music by Brahm Wenger gets good spread across the front soundstage but only passable spillage into the rear channels, and the surround effects likewise are more front directed than truly immersive, especially in the wrestling arena scenes which should have crowd cheers and other responses located in all available channels but only seem pointed toward the fronts.



Special Features Rating: 2/5

Gag Reel (2:34, HD): a few actual mistakes but much of this was staged for this bonus feature.

“Five Little Monkeys” Sing-Along (2:06, HD): the tune with sing-along lyrics printed on the screen.

Raising the Woof: Training Russell (5:07, HD): actors Mason Vale Cotton, John Ratzenberger, David Milchard, and McKenna Grace along with director Robert Vince and head trainer Thomas Gunderson talk about what it’s like acting with Russell.

Promo Trailers (HD): Night in the Museum: Secret of the Tomb, Berry Friends Forever, The Penguins of Madagascar.

DVD/Ultraviolet: disc and code sheet enclosed.



Overall Rating: 2.5/5

Families who have loved the Air Bud franchise will likely also enjoy Russell Madness, but it’s really best suited for the smallest fries in the family. The disc offers excellent visuals and acceptable if a bit underwhelming sound design for a made-for-home video release.


Reviewed By: Matt Hough


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