Tommy Boy is a fun movie, but Farley's physical comedy schtick gets a little old after a while. The saving grace of this film is David Spade and his cynicism. While it would be a miserable experience to live life as such a smug, hateful little man, it is gobs of fun to watch. The chemistry between Farley and Spade works very well and thankfully Tommy Boy does not turn into a long Saturday Night Live sketch. The story moves along at a pretty quick pace, which helps to keep the audience interested.
Color rendition is nice, but the picture looks a little grainy in areas.
The Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack is uneventful, as with most comedies. However the music is nicely integrated into the track, dialog sounds natural, and there are a few neat directional sound effects. In chapter 7, Tommy and his girlfriend are discussing his father's recent death. On the DVD edition, it is obvious that he has a tear welled up in his eye, but on the VHS edition, I never was able to notice. This might not seem like a big deal in print, but on viewing it actually gives the tender scene a much more emotional feel, which heightened the experience.