Blended appears in an aspect ratio of approximately 1.85:1 on this Blu-ray Disc. This was a good but not exceptional presentation.
For the most part, sharpness seemed positive. However, a little more softness crept in than I would’ve expected, especially during interior wide shots; those could be a bit on the tentative side. Still, overall definition worked fine. I witnessed no issues with shimmering or jagged edges, and edge haloes were absent. No print flaws marred the presentation either.
Colors went the moderately stylized route, with an emphasis on amber and teal. They did warm up as the film got to Africa, though, and looked good within design parameters. Blacks were dark and deep, and shadows showed nice clarity. The mild softness left this as a “B” but it was still a pretty positive presentation.
I thought the DTS-HD MA 5.1 soundtrack of Blended lacked a lot of zing, though it worked fine for this sort of film. Of course, I didn’t expect a dazzling soundfield from this sort of comedy, and I got what I anticipated.
In terms of effects, general ambience ruled the day. Surround usage stayed limited; the back speakers gently fleshed out various settings and boasted good music involvement but did little more than that. Some of the African spots had a bit more pep, but nothing impressive occurred.
In those forward channels, the music provided nice stereo separation and opened up the mix reasonably well. There wasn’t a whole lot of activity or movement, but the effects conveyed a passable sense of space and place. The track functioned appropriately for the story most of the time.
Audio quality appeared fine. Dialogue was consistently warm and natural, though I noticed a little edginess at times. Effects were a minor component of the mix, and they seemed appropriately subdued and accurate; there wasn’t much to hear, but the various elements were clean and distinct. The music came across as acceptably distinctive. This was a largely standard “comedy mix” and became a decent reproduction of the material.
Most of the disc’s extras revolve around its 10 featurettes. We find “Safari” (3:13), “Animals” (3:34), “Parasailing” (2:19), “Ostriches” (1:51), “Dick’s Customer Service” (2:27), “Herlihoops: Basketball Actor” (1:06), “Adam and Drew: Back Together Again” (2:21), “Bella Thorne’s Makeover” (1:58), “Nickens” (1:39) and “Georgia” (2:40). Along the way, we hear from director Frank Coraci, executive producer/actor Allen Covert, stunt coordinator Grant Hulley, assistant stunt coordinator Johann Spilhaus, visual effects supervisor Rob Bredow, producer Mike Karz, production designer Perry Andelin Blake, and actors Adam Sandler, Drew Barrymore, Terry Crews, Emma Fuhrmann, Alyvia Alyn Lind, Bella Thorne, Abdoulaye NGom, Kyle Red Silverstein, Shaquille O’Neal and Tim Herlihy.
Across these, we learn about sets and locations, the movie’s animals, stunts and effects, cast and performances. Don’t expect much substance here, as the featurettes remain consistently perky and fluffy. We get occasional useful tidbits but not many, as the clips stay light, frothy and largely devoid of information.
A Gag Reel goes for five minutes, 53 seconds. It shows a fairly standard combination of mistakes and chuckles. A few references back to some older movies amuse but don’t expect much out of the ordinary.
Six Deleted Scenes occupy a total of six minutes, 12 seconds. These mix alternate takes/lines with short extensions of existing sequences and some short gags. None of these add anything to the narrative or characters, but fans of the film might find some laughs.
The disc opens with an ad for Dolphin’s Tale 2. No trailer for Blended appears here.
A second disc delivers a DVD copy of Blended. It includes three of the featurettes as well as the gag reel and the deleted scenes.
Although the first two Drew Barrymore/Adam Sandler pairings delighted, Blended fizzles. It drags far too long and lacks more than a couple of minor chuckles along the way. The Blu-ray presents generally good picture and audio along with a minor roster of supplements. Despite the charms of its leads, Blended disappoints.