Bucky Larson: Born to Be a Star Blu-ray Review

The Blu-ray presentation of "Bucky Larson: Born to Be a Star" is a technical marvel, transcending the quality of the film itself. Sony’s 1080p transfer is exceptional, showcasing crisp details and vivid colors throughout. The film's digital origins are flawlessly handled, with no observable banding or noise, lending it a film-like quality that enhances the viewing experience. Textures, especially in fabrics and facial details, are rendered with extraordinary precision, bringing an almost tactile feel to the visuals. Black levels are deep and accurate, contributing to a strong contrast that remains consistent without any fluctuation.

Presented in a 1.85:1 aspect ratio, the transfer employs AVC MPEG-4 encoding, ensuring clarity and sharpness on par with some of the finest Blu-rays available. Colors are remarkably bright and vibrant, skillfully balanced to reflect both small-town Iowa and big-city California settings. While the color palette features warm, yellowish hues, this appears intentional, adding to the film's stylistic choices. Despite these creative decisions, the colors remain vivid and pop with intensity. There are no issues with compression or edge enhancement, though minor aliasing and digital noise do appear occasionally but never detract from the overall visual excellence.

Overall, this Blu-ray presentation of "Bucky Larson: Born to Be a Star" delivers an impressively high standard of video quality. Whether it's the detailed textures or the vibrant colors, every frame has depth and clarity that make the visual experience strikingly immersive. This technical proficiency provides a stark and somewhat ironic juxtaposition against the film's less stellar content but demonstrates Sony’s commitment to high-quality home video releases.

The Blu-ray audio presentation of "Bucky Larson: Born to Be a Star" offers a generally solid DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track, demonstrating competent handling of its unique soundscape. The dialogue is crisp and remains centered, ensuring clarity throughout the film. Sony delivers a balanced sound mix with music and sound effects vividly occupying both the front and surround channels. The audio showcases a good range, providing an immersive experience without being overwhelming. However, it should be noted that while the soundtrack is punchy and well-separated, certain scenes require volume adjustments to balance dialogue and music effectively.

Technical aspects of the DTS-HD MA 5.1 mix are commendable, with a robust low end that supports both the score and popular music selections nicely. The track features light atmospherics that enhance the background without overshadowing the primary audio elements. The surround usage is subtle but effective, creating an enveloping ambiance particularly suited for scene transitions and external settings. Though generally effective, some viewers might find the overall audio output to be on the quieter side, necessitating a higher volume to appreciate all nuances accurately. Careful calibration ensures that dynamic sections, such as party scenes, do not overpower dialogue, maintaining a balanced listening experience.

In summary, the audio presentation is proficient, complementing the exceptional video quality. While not offering extensive surround effects, it leverages its DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track to deliver clear dialogue and vibrant musical elements that support the comedic tone of the film. Whether it’s the subtle ambient noises of a grocery store or the lively atmosphere of industry parties, the audio mix maintains its integrity and enhances viewer engagement without unnecessary distraction.

The Blu-ray extras for "Bucky Larson: Born to Be a Star" offer a mix of featurettes, gag reels, and previews. Though the content varies in quality, the insights into the film's production and cast provide some value for fans. The titles of the extras can be ambiguous, often offering more wordplay than clarity, but each featurette provides a unique glimpse into different aspects of the movie's creation. Whether it's behind-the-scenes footage or interviews with the cast, these extras aim to expand the viewer's experience beyond the film itself.

Extras included in this disc:

• Laughter Is Contagious: A gag reel showcasing on-set bloopers and comedic antics.
• Behind The Teeth: Interviews with cast and crew discussing the movie's origins and production.
• Gary: Tough Customer: Focuses on Kevin Nealon’s comedic contributions.
• Bucky Sparkles: A brief but humorous look at Bucky’s exaggerated expressions.
• Trailers: Previews for "Jack and Jill," "30 Minutes or Less," "A Good Old Fashioned Orgy," and "Attack The Block."
• BD Live enabled

While "Bucky Larson: Born to Be a Star" does succeed in eliciting occasional laughs with its crude and juvenile humor, the movie falls remarkably flat in nearly every other aspect. We follow Bucky, a naive Iowan grocery bagger portrayed by Nick Swardson, who discovers his parents’ past as 70s adult film stars and sets off to Hollywood to follow in their footsteps. The comedy primarily revolves around lowbrow jokes related to Bucky's perceived inadequacies, with a plot that is as predictable as it is uninspired. Despite featuring seasoned actors like Edward Hermann, Miriam Flynn, Christina Ricci, and Don Johnson, the characters remain one-dimensional and fail to bring any depth to an already feeble narrative.

As Bucky muddles through Hollywood, he meets a series of stereotypical characters including a kindly waitress (Christina Ricci), a crude roommate (Kevin Nealon), and a director (Don Johnson). The film's attempt to blend slapstick humor with heartfelt moments stumble badly; scenes meant to be sweet or dramatic are devoid of genuine emotion and come across as forced. Swardson’s portrayal of the clueless protagonist relies heavily on exaggerated facial expressions and a contrived accent, which wears thin quickly. The inclusion of notorious comic actors such as Stephen Dorff and Pauly Shore doesn’t save the film from its pervasive lack of wit and originality.

Despite being backed by Adam Sandler, the script fails to deliver anything beyond cheap laughs. Even more disheartening is seeing talented actors like Ricci and Johnson stooping to such uninspired material. The humor lacks sophistication and the story lacks substance, turning "Bucky Larson" into what feels like an overly extended, poorly executed skit rather than a feature-length film. If you find yourself considering this Blu-ray, even at a discounted price, it's worth recalling that your imagination will likely conjure funnier scenarios than what this film provides.

"Bucky Larson: Born to Be a Star" is widely regarded as an egregious failure in the comedic genre. The film's humor is consistently described as puerile and ineffectual, failing to elicit any genuine laughter. Despite the clear intention to create a lighthearted comedy, "Bucky Larson" falls spectacularly short. Many reviewers note that it lacks any redeemable qualities and stands as a testament to Nick Swardson's unsuitability for leading roles.

Technically, however, Sony's Blu-ray presentation of "Bucky Larson" is commendable. The video quality is strikingly clear, and the audio is robust, capturing every detail with precision. The Blu-ray transfer is noted for its high definition clarity, vibrant colors, and sharp contrast levels. The sound mix provides an immersive experience, although it's largely wasted on the subpar content of the film. Interestingly, the included special features also suffer from the same lack of value as the film itself.

In conclusion, while "Bucky Larson: Born to Be a Star" benefits from a technically superb Blu-ray presentation, this alone is not sufficient to justify engaging with the content. The movie's lackluster jokes and overall poor execution render it a viewing experience to be avoided. The exceptional audio-visual quality only highlights what could have been a decent presentation if paired with competent content. Overall, despite the high technical standards met by this Blu-ray edition, the core material makes it unworthy of consideration. Skip it.