DVD Review: “Reign Over Me”

Alan Johnson (Cheadle) is a dentist who, despite his beautiful home and loving wife (Pinkett Smith) and family, doesn’t feel like he can talk to anyone. One day, he bumps into his old college roommate Charlie Feinman (Sandler), a 9/11 widower whose grief over the loss of his family caused him to retreat from the world. As they rekindle their old friendship, both men learn to open up and deal with their problems. Cheadle is great as usual, but Sandler’s Charlie was surprisingly heartfelt and believable, a far cry from his previous roles. The scene where Charlie finally opens up to Alan about what happened to his family was heartbreaking. Pinkett Smith and Liv Tyler round out a great ensemble. I cringed a bit when I realized that the story involved September 11th, but overall it was handled tastefully and discretely, focusing on how it affected Charlie and not on the politics of it. Beautiful street-level cinematography helps round out the package. Special features on the disc include a making of featurette, a photographic montage and a neat little jam session between Cheadle and Sandler. Very well done.