Anger Management

Release Date: April 11, 2003

Jack's got bad breath.

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Ever since his early days as Stud Boy on MTV's Remote Control, Adam Sandler has been making people laugh. Sure, it's not a brand of humor that works for everyone, but it has been enough to make him a box-office draw worthy of a $20 million-per-film paycheck. Despite the misstep of 2000's Little Nicky, he remains one of the more in-demand name actors in Hollywood, with four different films currently scheduled for theatrical release over the course of a year. He'll follow up Mr. Deeds, Paul Thomas Anderson's Punch-Drunk Love and the animated 8 Crazy Nights with what looks to be a tent-pole release for Revolution Studios and Columbia/Sony: Anger Management.

Sandler's character is named Dave Buznik, a timid, mild-mannered businessman who is wrongly sentenced to an anger management program. There, he meets an ultra-aggressive instructor who certainly does not practice what he preaches, and may be the one guy who can make Dave actually lose control.

In what has to be considered a casting coup, the part of anger management instructor Buddy Rydell will be played by none other than three-time Academy Award® winner Jack Nicholson. He was truly the dream choice for Sandler and Revolution's Joe Roth, who waited well over a month for the veteran actor to read and consider the script before he finally agreed to a deal. The comedy should offer the two men plenty of opportunities to play off their apparent conflicting personalities, a prospect that on paper looks extremely intriguing and promising.

Two lovely ladies of cinema will also be featured in the film. Recent Oscar® nominee Marisa Tomei will play Sandler's love interest, while Heather Graham appears as a woman named Kendra who Buznik encounters when he is out with his psycho instructor. O Brother, Where Art Thou?'s John Turturro, who also has a part in Sandler's Mr. Deeds, has a supporting role.

Veteran comedy director Peter Segal (Nutty Professor II, Tommy Boy) had a $56 million budget to play with, thanks to both Sandler and Nicholson agreeing to salaries lower than their normal asking price. Filming began in April of 2002 from a script by David Dorfman, and took place in Los Angeles, Boston and New York City.

Anger Management has all the ingredients of a comedy hit, and thanks to the presence of Nicholson, has an additional element most Sandler films cannot boast: multi-generational demographics. Here's hoping the chemistry between the two makes for a hilarious combination. (Kim Hollis/BOP)




Vital statistics for Anger Management
Main Cast Adam Sandler, Jack Nicholson, Marisa Tomei
Supporting Cast Luis Guzman, Jonathan Loughran, Kurt Fuller, Krista Allen, January Jones, John Turturro, Lynne Thigpen, Woody Harrelson, Kevin Nealon, Heather Graham
Director Peter Segal
Screenwriter David Dorfman
Distributor Sony/Revolution Studios
Trailer Click Here for Trailer
Official Site http://www.sonypictures.com/angermanagement
Rating PG-13
Running Time 106 minutes
Screen Count 3,551
Talent in red has entry in The Big Picture



Comparison films for Anger Management
Title
Date
Opening
Adjusted Opening
Screens
PSA
Adj PSA
Total BO
Adjusted Total
Mult
Big Daddy 6/25/9941.54 49.50 3027 13723.00 15668.0 163.48 194.81 3.94
Waterboy, The 11/6/9839.41 50.66 2664 14794.00 18295.4 161.49 207.62 4.10
Mr. Deeds 6/28/0237.16 38.63 3231 11501.00 11501.0 126.20 131.21 3.40
Rush Hour 9/18/9833.00 42.42 2638 12509.00 15469.6 141.17 181.50 4.28
Meet the Parents 10/6/0028.62 32.01 2614 10949.00 11781.9 166.23 185.96 5.81
Wedding Singer, The 2/13/9819.10 24.55 2821 6771.00 8373.5 80.25 103.17 3.66
Analyze This 3/5/9918.38 21.90 2518 7299.00 8333.5 106.69 127.14 5.80
Little Nicky 11/10/0016.06 17.96 2910 5519.00 5938.8 39.44 44.12 2.46
Happy Gilmore * 2/16/968.51 11.61 2022 4209.00 5523.1 38.62 52.68 4.54
Billy Madison 2/10/956.64 9.20 1834 3621.00 4828.0 25.46 35.29 3.83
Bulletproof 9/6/966.01 8.19 2240 2683.00 3520.7 21.20 28.92 3.53
Punch-Drunk Love 11/1/024.00 4.15 1252 3197.00 3197.0 17.79 18.49 2.73


     


 
 

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