Tommy Boy - 30th Anniversary 4K UHD SteelBook

When Tommy Callahan (Farley) graduates from college, he’s given a job by his dad at the family auto parts factory. Shortly thereafter his father dies, unexpectedly, of a heart attack, and it’s up to the immature, unproven slacker Tommy to save the company and save the whole town in the process. Along for the ride is his father’s right-hand man Richard (Spade), and they hit the road to sell as many new brake pads as possible to stop the bank from foreclosing on the plant.

When I was a kid, my school bus driver was this guy who reminded me very much of Otto from The Simpsons. He wore a baseball cap and sunglasses and was the chillest guy you could imagine. One time he asked us kids if we were sick of listening to the radio, so he started a collection to get us a CD player. Every dollar we put in this CD player fund (which was just a coffee can with a slit in the lid), he’d put in two. So if we collectively raised five bucks, he’d toss in ten and we’d have fifteen bucks. It took us a while, but before long we had enough money for a CD player and listened to commercial-free tunes on our way to school in the morning, and on the way home in the afternoon.

One day, coming home from school he asked me, “Your mom works at the video store in town, right?” I told him she did. He went on, “I bet you watch a lot of movies.” I told him, yeah, that’s true. “It’s been a long time since I’ve seen a good, funny movie. Do you have any recommendations?”

I said that there was this new movie I thought was sooooo funny. “It’s called Tommy Boy,” I told him. “It’s about these two guys who have to save a town from losing their auto business.” He seemed skeptical, but he said he’d give it a shot. It was only a few days later when he stopped me and told me he watched Tommy Boy based on my recommendation and that he liked it very much, that he hadn’t laughed that hard and that long in ages. 

And then he said something I’ll never forget. He said I should be a movie critic. He said that I had a knack for being able to recommend something that I knew the person would like. He wanted to laugh, so I recommended to him the funniest movie I knew of (at the time). So, it’s fitting and wonderful that I should have the chance to review the critically-maligned Tommy Boy, which I love so much, and helped, in part, begin my interest in writing about film.

Tommy Boy isn’t a classic film in the traditional sense. It’s a dumb, formulaic comedy with a million story beats we’ve seen in a million movies. It’s cobbled together from the bits and pieces of movies that have come before it. It’s not “original” but it sure as hell is funny. It’s funny and comforting and the whole thing is anchored by Chris Farley’s brilliant comedic performance, and the genuine chemistry he has with David Spade as his snarky sidekick.

By the end of the film, you know precisely what’s going to happen. Tommy is going to grow up, learn to be a man and he’s going to save the day for everyone–making friends along the way, and even finding some time for some romance. These kinds of movies aren’t made for the critics, who are going to bemoan the familiarity of the story and how derivative it all is. This movie is for putting on when you’re having a bad day. There are enough genuine, earned laughs in this picture to forgive any so-called formula to the plotting. Sometimes we want predictability. We want to have our brains massaged while we laugh and forget our worries. For that purpose, Tommy Boy is a masterpiece.

Vital Disc Stats: The 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray
For this review, I was provided with the very handsome steelbook release of Tommy Boy on 4K UHD Blu-ray. A two-disc release (both UHD and standard Blu-ray) is housed in a metallic case, colored yellow-gold with original artwork adorning the front and back. Inside the case is a code for digital redemption, and spanning the interior is a wide screenshot from the film.

When I had the chance to review Chris Farley and David Spade’s second cinematic outing, Black Sheep, released by Kino Lorber Studio Classics, it was explained that it had been restored from its original 35mm camera negatives. I was unable to confirm if Tommy Boy had gotten the same treatment, but I would be surprised if it hadn’t. It simply looks too good to have not been. It looks gorgeous here in 4K, graded in Dolby Vision HDR. Colors pop. The black of nighttime sequences is inky and true-black, devoid of noise or color banding. And details are sharp across the board. Director of Photography, Victor J. Kemper, is a cinematic veteran and brought his A-game to every feature he works on, whether it’s Dog Day Afternoon, Pee-Wee’s Big Adventure, or in this case, Tommy Boy. Truly, the film has never looked better on home video.

For Tommy Boy’s release on 4K UHD, Paramount has used the same Dolby TrueHD 5.1 surround mix from its previous Blu-ray release, and you’ll have no complaints from me. It’s a terrific mix, if just a tad low. I had to turn up the volume a smidge louder than I typically do, but everything was mixed at that level, so I was never slammed with music or effects that got too loud. Surround activity is constant and playful, from Tommy talking into his rotating fan, the pneumatic tube used for shipping order whooshing into the rear of the soundstage or a deer gone berserk and tearing up Richard’s car. This is a fantastic mix, well-balanced and favoring dialogue clarity through it all.

There are, sadly, no new special features for this release. All supplements are contained on the Blu-ray disc, also included with this release. Still, there’s a lot here including audio commentary, featurettes, deleted/extended scenes, and more.

• Audio Commentary - Director Peter Segal
• Featurettes:
• Tommy Boy: Behind the Laughter (SD 29:08)
• Stories From the Side of the Road (SD 13:31)
• Just the Two of Us (SD 9:46)
• Growing up Farley (SD 7:29)
• Storyboard Comparisons (SD 13:54)
• Deleted Scenes (SD 6:43)
• Extended Scenes (SD 22:19)
• Alternate Takes (SD 4:18)
• Gag Reel (SD 4:16)
• Photo Gallery
• TV Spots
• Theatrical Trailer

Part of my love of Tommy Boy is pure nostalgia, given my history with it. And part of it is that it’s a genuinely fantastic vehicle for Chris Farley’s high-energy brand of humor, and in David Spade he had a perfect straight man, forming an all-time comedy duo. The movie is genuinely, laugh-out-loud funny and sweet in nature. Paramount’s release of Tommy Boy doesn’t have any new features and utilizes the previous Dolby TrueHD mix from its Blu-ray, but the picture is simply stunning. The video transfer, along with attractive new packaging, is the sole reason to upgrade here. For my money, I say it’s Highly Recommended for fans and first-time buyers.