Sony Pictures Home Entertainment presents

Deuce Bigalow: European Gigolo (2005)

"Did you know Holland invented chicken and waffles? Black people all over the world will be forever grateful for that."- T.J. (Eddie Griffin)

Stars: Rob Schneider, Eddie Griffin
Other Stars: Jeroen Krabbe
Director: Mike Bigelow

MPAA Rating: R for (pervasive strong crude and sexual humor, language, nudity, drug content)
Run Time: 01h:22m:59s
Release Date: 2005-11-29
Genre: comedy

Style Grade	Substance Grade	Image Transfer Grade	Audio Transfer Grade	Extras Grade
D+	D-	A+	A	B-

 

DVD Review

Many ex-Saturday Night Live cast members have crossed over to become big-time movie stars, but just as many have tried their hands at acting in films and failed miserably. Rob Schneider is among those who failed, at least in the handful of pictures that he's received top billing on. He is the man you'll remember when you reflect on the joys of comedy classics like The Animal, The Hot Chick and, of course, Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo. That surprise hit's inevitable sequel became a reality in 2005, when we were unwittingly subjected to Deuce Bigalow: European Gigolo.

Not that it had much to improve upon, given that the original Deuce Bigalow adventure was terrible, but this sequel is beyond bad. Ok, it is a little more tolerable than the original, but this one manages to take the gross-out gage to the next level, and uses clichéd USA vs. The World jokes as a worn-out crutch. This feud is harped on enough in everyday life and in the news; the last thing we need is for it to be the main subject of a terrible excuse for a comedy.

The "story" goes like this: Everyone's favorite man-whore Deuce Bigalow is still in mourning over the loss of his wife, who was killed by a shark. Deuce blames himself for her death (he mis-diagnosed a beach as being shark-less), and carries her wooden leg around with him everywhere as a reminder. Soon, it's off to Amsterdam, with his dead wife's leg in tow, and a meeting with old friend and former pimp T.J. (Eddie Griffin), who wants Deuce to take up his old profession again so he can investigate a string of recent man-whore murders.

After an introduction to the freedoms that Amsterdam offers and some heavy prodding, Deuce is back in action. He soon meets women that are even weirder than his stateside clients, including a woman with a hole in her throat, one who is in desperate need of a bath, and one with a male organ for a nose. Deuce does meet a woman named Eva (the appropriately named Hanna Verboom), an obsessive compulsive beauty, who he falls in love with, but can't rule out as a suspect in his investigation.

If there haven't already been enough examples to warrant pulling the plug on Rob Schneider's career, Deuce Bigalow: European Gigolo, will hopefully be the nail in the coffin. His comedic presence and timing are abysmal, and his uninteresting personality and physical features make his characters extremely difficult to care about for five minutes, let alone a (mercifully brief) 80-minute feature. While a few of the supporting actors do a decent job given the unfunny script (despite being a poor man's Dave Chappelle, Eddie Griffin almost gives us a reason to give European Gigolo a chance), this is undoubtedly Schneider's show, and that is a problem this picture just can't overcome.

It seems like the only time Rob Schneider is the least bit tolerable, and, dare I say, funny, is when he's in a supporting role in an Adam Sandler vehicle. He's had his moments in the otherwise forgettable The Waterboy, Big Daddy, and 50 First Dates, but whenever he's had to carry a film on his talents alone, the result is an unfunny disaster. Still, people continue to either go to his movies at theaters or snatch them up on DVD, so it looks like we'll be trying desperately to laugh during a Rob Schneider film for many years to come.

Rating for Style: D+
Rating for Substance: D-

 

Image Transfer

	One
Aspect Ratio	1.85:1 - Widescreen
Original Aspect Ratio	yes
Anamorphic	yes

Image Transfer Review: The 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen presentation was mastered in HD, and it definitely shows. Nearly every minute detail on the actors' faces is visible, down to the last pore. All of the scenery is detailed and very sharp, with bright, immaculate color-rendering that's difficult to beat.

Image Transfer Grade: A+
 

Audio Transfer

	Language	Remote Access
Dolby Digital 5.1	English, French	yes

Audio Transfer Review: This Dolby Digital 5.1 mix is almost as impressive as the video transfer. This is still a typical, dialogue-driven comedy, but there's a bunch of music in the film, and these songs are given a nice boost by tight, aggressive bass and wide dynamic range. The dialogue is well integrated into the overall mix and never suffers from any hissing or other distortion.

Audio Transfer Grade: A 

Disc Extras

Animated menu with music
Scene Access with 28 cues and remote access
Subtitles/Captions in English, French with remote access
13 Other Trailer(s) featuring Stealth, Seinfeld: Seasons 5 & 6, Fun With Dick and Jane, The Fog, Rent, The Da Vinci Code, Into the Blue, The Pink Panther, Christmas With the Kranks, Open Season, The Cave, Memoirs of a Geisha, Ringers: Lord of the Fans
2 Deleted Scenes
3 Documentaries
5 Featurette(s)
Packaging: Keep Case
Picture Disc
1 Disc
1-Sided disc(s)
Layers: dual

Extras Review: The extras are plentiful, beginning with Behind the Gigolo: The Making of Deuce Bigalow European Gigolo, which is broken down into two parts. Each part runs over 20 minutes, and features a mixture of location footage in Amsterdam, cast interviews, and more endless minutes of Rob Schneider being annoying. Still, there is some surprisingly interesting film production talk, so this entire documentary is worth a look.

The Casting Lounge shows just how great Rob Schneider's job really is, as this four-minute segment chronicles the casting of the store window/wet T-shirt girl. It doesn't get much better for these guys than watching a group of women try to out-wet-T-shirt each other.

T.J.'s Float Crib is a five-minute piece with Eddie Griffin (in character here) taking us on a tour of his water vehicle of choice.

So You Want to Be a Man-Whore is a collection of commercials for fake products that Deuce and his colleagues use on a daily basis.

Next, is Comedy Central's Reel Comedy Special on Deuce Bigalow: European Gigolo. This 21-minute special is hosted by Schneider and Griffin, and is basically another collection of behind-the-scenes footage and clips from the film.

A Burger and a Bentley is a commercial with Schneider mocking the infamous Paris Hilton TV spots for a national fast food joint.

Man-Ho 101 is an attempt by the cast to identify all of the inside terminology used by the male prostitutes.

There is also a pair of deleted scenes, a rather small number given that many comedies like this have a huge amount of cut footage. Unfortunately, these clips aren't any better than the unfunny bits in the finished film.

Extras Grade: B-
 

Final Comments

This isn't much of a surprise if you've ever endured a Rob Schneider vehicle, but Deuce Bigalow: European Gigolo is a trying, unfunny film that wears out its welcome after the first few scenes. Sony Pictures Home Entertainment gives this mess more than its due on DVD, as their disc features excellent audio and video presentations, as well as a healthy collection of supplements.

Chuck Aliaga 2005-11-28