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Preview by: Jack Foley
Temper is the one thing you can't get rid of by losing
it - Dr Buddy Rydell
JACK Nicholson has played mad before (just think of his harrowing
turn in The Shining), but seldom for out-and-out laughs, and his
pairing with Adam Sandler might not have been something that most
movie buffs could have predicted.
But in Anger Management, he plays a psychiatrist (Doctor Buddy
Rydell), assigned to counsel Adam Sandler’s mild-mannered
Dave Buznik following a misunderstanding on board an aeroplane,
who proceeds in tearing his life apart with the most radical form
of therapy.
For Sandler, however, the character of Dr Rydell had Nicholson
written all over it, because ‘I tried to imagine Buddy as
someone who made me feel nervous at times and comfortable at other
times, and I immediately thought of Jack’.
"As I continued reading and imagining Jack in the role,
I laughed even harder, which made it more fun to read. And then,
he actually said ‘yes’," he explained.
"Jack brings legitimacy to the role to Doctor Buddy Rydell
because, in his attention to detail, he sounds like a therapist
and embodies Buddy’s philosophy," says the film’s
director, Peter Segal. "But he also brings that menacing
edge that is innately Jack, which plays against all the caring
qualities you expect from a reputable therapist."
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Not only did Nicholson bring his persona and precise sense of
character to bear on Doctor Rydell, he also brought the same kind
of attention to the overall structure of the story.
"Jack was involved in helping us shape not only his character
but providing ideas and jokes that made the whole film funnier,"
says executive producer, Allen Covert, who also portrays Andrew,
Dave’s rival for the affections of his girlfriend Linda (Marisa
Tomei).
Nicholson’s suggestions gave the comedy additional resonance,
according to Sandler.
"The audience laughs at the funny stuff, but they also laugh
when the story fools them, when it shakes them up."
Coming from two distinct disciplines, the mesh between Sandler
and Nicholson proved to be ideal.
"There was an immediate chemistry between them," says
Covert.
"The combo of the concept and the casting is a dream come
true," adds Segal. "Anytime I describe Anger Management
– ‘It’s a comedy about a guy played by Adam Sandler
who has to take anger management classes. And Jack Nicholson is
the therapist,’ – the reaction is immediate. Everyone
says the same thing: ‘I’m there.’"
So how exactly did Nicholson approach Doctor Rydell?
"One thing we talked about was bringing an off-balance sense
to the audience’s perception of Buddy," says Segal,
"so they’d constantly be asking themselves if he is
really a good therapist or maybe a bit insane and dangerous. The
more he kept the audience guessing, the better he thought the
story would be."
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