Shout Factory apparently raided my old VHS tapes to slam together this double feature Blu. “Men at Work” and “Easy Money” used to be the material that kept HBO existing throughout the week. “Easy Money” starts the disc as a weird comedy vehicle for Dangerfield. Touted as his first comedic lead role, the film was meant to capitalize on his beer commercial success that followed up his star turn in “Caddyshack”. The end result is a movie that plays like an older/filthier take on “Brewster’s Millions”. But, you’ve got Taylor Negron in it.
“Men at Work” was Emilio Estevez’s directorial follow-up to “Wisdom”. The film was a comedic murder mystery involving garbage men. It was an effort to capitalize on Charlie Sheen’s recent success with “Hot Shots”, but it plays more as a time capsule for those few months it was shot in 1990. There’s tons of gay jokes, Cosby sweaters and forced golf clapping to fulfill that nostalgic itch.
The Blu-Ray comes with no special features. The A/V Quality is strong on both, but there are weird audio choices. “Easy Money” has an appropriate DTS-HD 2.0 master audio track. But, “Men at Work” was presented in DTS-HD mono. For a film from their early nineties, but pre 1992, there should have been far more going in the back channels. In the end, I’d recommend a purchase to fans.
Release Date: 8/25/15