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Neighbors invites itself onto Blu-ray with a release that presents this movie in solid high definition along with about 45 minutes of bonus material. The movie itself is one that will likely appeal to fans of Seth Rogen and Judd Apatow but not to too many other people. In its simplest terms, the story follows the clash between a thirty-something married couple and the wild fraternity that just moved in next door. That premise allows for a series of typical fraternity gags and pranks, and a general atmosphere that being outrageous is automatically funny. Sadly, the movie just isn’t that funny, and the gags become tiring in short order. Again, fans of Seth Rogen will likely enjoy this – it certainly did well at the box office. More casual viewers would do well to think twice before parting with coin.
Studio: Universal
Distributed By: N/A
Video Resolution and Encode: 1080P/AVC
Aspect Ratio: 2.40:1
Audio: English 5.1 DTS-HDMA, English DVS 2.0, Spanish 5.1 DTS, French 5.1 DTS
Subtitles: English SDH, Spanish, French
Rating: R
Run Time: 1 Hr. 39 Min.
Package Includes: Blu-ray, Digital Copy, UltraViolet
Disc Type: BD50 (dual layer)
Region: ABC
Release Date: 09/23/2014
MSRP: $29.98
The Production Rating: 1/5
“If it BENDS, it’s Funny; if it BREAKS, it’s Not Funny!”
-Lester (Alan Alda) in Crimes & Misdemeanors
It’s oddly appropriate that Neighbors focuses on the conflict between a fraternity and the next door neighbors. It shares many qualities of a typical fraternity party – at least as they have been presented in movies over the past 40 years. It’s too loud, too crude, too obnoxious and it goes on way too long. The remarkable thing is that the movie only runs about 95 minutes, and it STILL feels way too long. The simple story pits young parents Mac and Kelly (Seth Rogen and Rose Byrne) against the brothers of the Delta Psi Beta frat house, led by Teddy Sanders (Zac Efron). After the first polite exchanges, things quickly devolve into cheap pranks and open warfare between the two houses. Viewers who enjoy this kind of comedy, and who are particularly fond of Seth Rogen’s mode of humor (as seen in movies like This is the End) will likely have a good time. More casual viewers are warned that there really isn’t a middle ground here. If you like this kind of movie, you’ll have a good time here. If you’re not already a fan, this will be a LONG time getting through it – unless you hit the “Stop” button first.SPOILERS: In terms of formula, it appears that the filmmakers were trying to see if they could mix two comic genres – in the same way that Knocked Up combined the silly gross-fest humor seen here with a more female-oriented relationship comedy. In the present case, the movie tries to combine Animal House material with something a little closer to Forgetting Sarah Marshall. The cast is certainly game to try this material out, as seen from the enthusiasm that Rogen, Byrne and Efron throw into their scenes. The problem is that the individual scenes simply drag on too long, and the combination of characters doesn’t seem to add up to anything. Granted, there’s definitely an audience for this material – from a fairly restrained budget, this movie made a LOT of money. My instinct says that this has to be an audience of younger men close enough to college age to enjoy all the frat jokes. People outside that demographic are likely to have a lot less patience for this stuff.Neighbors was released on September 23rd on Blu-ray and DVD. The Blu-ray includes the movie in high definition picture and sound, as well as the aforementioned 45 minutes of bonus materials. The DVD holds about 21 minutes of those bonus materials. The Blu-ray also includes the DVD edition in the packaging, along with instructions for downloading a digital copy.
Video Rating: 4/5 3D Rating: NA
Audio Rating: 4/5
Special Features Rating: 2.5/5
Overall Rating: 1/5
Reviewed By: Kevin EK
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