Due Date is almost a modern remake of the classic John Hughes film Planes, Trains & Automobiles; a buddy comedy about the straight man (Robert Downey Jr.) being forced to travel across country with the annoying, fat slob (Zach Galifianakis) in order to get home to his family. In this case, he’s trying to get home to his wife who is about to give birth, rather than wanting to get home in time for Thanksgiving dinner.
Robert Downey Jr.’s character is a hell of a lot meaner than Steve Martin’s in PT&A, however. He often “sees red” and makes poor life decisions that result in someone being punched, something being broken, and dogs being spit on. Ethan Tremblay (Zach Galifianakis) is an aspiring actor who desperately wants to appear on Two and a Half Men and spread his father’s ashes along the way. The two bump into each other and after they’re both kicked off their plane, hilarity ensues.
It’s not the most ground-breaking comedy ever, but I enjoyed it. It had a good blend of wackiness, Robert Downey Jr. being himself (awesome), and even heart.
The Blu-ray
The Blu-ray packs a great-looking picture, 5.1 DTS-HD audio, and a few bonus features. There is a gag reel that’s actually worth your seven minutes, if only to get a glimpse of what it must have been like to be around these two guys. There are a couple other features including deleted scenes, the complete Two and a Half Men sequence, and a short clip featuring all the annoying questions Ethan asks.
Due Date is an honorable addition to the genres of road trip and buddy comedy movies, and should keep you happy for a couple hours if you’re a fan of Zach Galifianakis and/or Robert Downey Jr.
