Anger Management

Anger Management arrives as a comedy directed by Peter Segal, and its first strength is a clear sense of purpose. Jack Nicholson and Adam Sandler give Anger Management a recognisable human centre before the larger mechanics take over. The central situation in Anger Management comes into focus without a long explanation: Dave Buznik is a businessman who is wrongly sentenced to an anger management program, where he meets an aggressive instructor. Across its 1h 46m running time, Peter Segal keeps Anger Management alive in individual scenes and uncertain between them.

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The acting in Anger Management is anchored by Jack Nicholson, who treats even functional scenes as opportunities to reveal character. Adam Sandler answers that approach with a different energy, giving Anger Management welcome friction whenever the pace begins to settle. Around them, Marisa Tomei helps Anger Management feel like an ensemble piece rather than a vehicle with decorative support. Under Peter Segal, the performances in Anger Management share a tone even when the writing gives them unequal depth.

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Anger Management gains much of its identity from comic timing built around character, a choice that makes the world readable as well as attractive. The contribution of Revolution Studios allows Anger Management to combine comic timing built around character with a consistent visual language. Within its United States setting, Anger Management makes particularly good use of well judged reactions when the story needs to change scale. Sound and editing preserve the personality of Anger Management by supporting detail instead of announcing every intended response.

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Rather than summarise every event in Anger Management, it is enough to note how Dave Buznik places the central character under growing pressure. Jack Nicholson gives that tension a face, which stops Anger Management from becoming a mechanical sequence of developments. David Dorfman uses an important relationship to widen the stakes of Anger Management without losing sight of the original problem. Where a difficult choice becomes predictable, Anger Management recovers interest through the consequences surrounding it.

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As director of Anger Management, Peter Segal proves alive in individual scenes and uncertain between them in the transitions between intimate material and larger demands. A strong scene in Anger Management often begins with a modest detail before Peter Segal lets its meaning expand. For Anger Management, the cast and craft keep the experience watchable because the central tone remains visible even during busy passages. The weakness in Anger Management is that too many scenes explain effects the actors have already suggested, although Peter Segal usually finds the original rhythm again.

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Anger Management uses its comedy framework to consider embarrassment, status and the gap between confidence and reality. For the character played by Jack Nicholson, that idea gives Anger Management stakes beyond the next immediate obstacle. The recurring pressure of the central character prevents the theme in Anger Management from feeling like decoration added after the story. Peter Segal makes Anger Management more thoughtful whenever the implications remain inside action and reaction.

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The lasting judgement on Anger Management is an uneven film with enough personality to remain interesting for comedy fans who respond to personality and timing. Anger Management earns that response through the focus of Jack Nicholson, the contribution of comic timing built around character and the direction of Peter Segal. It remains true that too many scenes explain effects the actors have already suggested during Anger Management, which keeps enthusiasm measured. Still, Anger Management understands the experience it wants to create and communicates that intention with recognisable personality.