Love Guru, The (DVD)

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And that's about it. The rest of the film consists of an endless series of sexual innuendos and appearances by various supporting players, all of whom are more amusing than Myers. For instance, diminutive Verne Troyer plays the coach of the Leafs. He's the subject of much abuse at the expense of his size. Timberlake and Alba are simply too good for the material. Ben Kingsley, of all people, plays Pitka's personal tutor, Guru Tugginmypudha, in a few minutes of slumming. Stephen Colbert and Jim Gaffigan play a pair of idiot sports announcers, Jay and Trent, who pretty much steal the show. And there is an assortment of cameo appearances that amount to next to nothing from Jessica Simpson, Val Kilmer, Mariska Hargitay, the voice of Morgan Freeman, and others.

Is "The Love Guru" really as bad as I make it sound? Maybe not for everyone. As I said, the supporting players are the best part of it. Alba and Timberlake are especially engaging; Colbert and Gaffigan at least approach comedy; and the Freeman voice-over gag actually works. The rest, and that's mostly Myers, is forgettable.

Video:
Even for a standard-definition movie, the overall quality of this 2.35:1 ratio picture is somewhat soft, blurred, and fuzzy. Fortunately, the colors are bright and vivid, and the black levels are fine, which go a long way toward making the video acceptable. In fact, the colors are bright to the point of being eye-catching, which seems entirely appropriate for a lowbrow comedy like this one.

Audio:
The Dolby Digital 5.1 sound doesn't do much to justify its name. Most of the audio consists of dialogue, which comes across cleanly and quietly, so that's to the good, as is the occasional dynamic thrust. Still, there is hardly any use of the surrounds, save for the most minor musical ambience enhancement, nor is there much of a frequency range involved. So the Dolby audio does about the least that one expects of it, and is merely OK.

Extras:
Disc one of this two-disc set contains the feature film and the extras. Things begin with three featurettes: "Mike Myers and The Love Guru" is a ten-minute look inside the film; "One Hellava Elephant" is a five-minute look at the model elephant used in the film; and "Hockey Training for Actors" is an eight-minute look at the instruction the actors took on playing the game. Next, there are eleven deleted and extended scenes, including an alternate ending, totalling about thirteen minutes. Then there's "Back in the Booth with Jay and Trent," about five more minutes with the goofy sports announcers; and, finally, about four minutes of bloopers and ten minutes of outtakes.

Things wrap up with previews of other Paramount films at start-up and in the main menu; twenty scene selections; a widescreen theatrical trailer; and English, French, and Spanish spoken languages and subtitles.

Disc two contains a digital copy of the film for PCs, iPods, and other compatible players.

Parting Shots:
For months before this picture opened, Hindu groups were protesting it and urging boycotts of it. Now that I've seen it, I can begin to see their point. Not only might the movie offend Hindus, it might offend anyone with good taste. As a critic, I'd urge a boycott on the grounds the movie is a waste of time and talent. "The Love Guru" is fairly mindless stuff that may appeal to die-hard Myers fans.

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