Drillbit Taylor opens with two seemingly unrelated stories. Friends Wade (Nate Hartley) and Ryan (Troy Gentile) are excited about beginning middle school. Unfortunately, their joy is immediately diffused as they run afoul of school bullies, Filkins (Alex Frost) and Ronnie (Josh Peck), who humiliate them in front of a crowd. Meanwhile, we meet Drillbit Taylor (Owen Wilson), a drifter who panhandles on the freeway and hangs out with other “domicile challenged” individuals. Drillbit states that he’s tired of seeking handouts and that he wants to raise just enough money to move to Canada.

After days of torment, Wade, Ryan, and their new colleague, Emmit (David Dorfman), decide to hire a bodyguard. Drillbit, an ex-military man, learns of this and convinces the boys that he’s the man for the job. Actually, Drillbit only plans on taking their money and heading North. Drillbit teaches the boys some self-defense techniques, and when that doesn’t work, he decides to accompany them to school, where he finds a whole new world of scam opportunities.

However, it’s Wilson who keeps Drillbit Taylor afloat. Even though we aren’t supposed to like his character at times, the movie certainly picks up when he is on-screen. Wilson’s natural energy brings a lot to the role, and he makes even the most bizarre dialogue sound genuine. Again, Wilson isn’t able to bring out Drillbit’s scoundrel side, but he has no problem portraying the laidback nature of a man who has no job and no worries. Aside from Wilson, the only highlight in the movie is the scene where the boys audition potential bodyguards. If the rest of the film had been even half as funny as that scene, then we would have had a minor classic on our hands.

Drillbit Taylor comes to protect DVD courtesy of Paramount Home Entertainment. The film has been letterboxed at 2.35:1 and the transfer is enhanced for 16 x 9 TVs. The image is sharp and clear here, showing no distracting grain and defects from the source material. The picture has a nice amount of detail, and the colors look very good. The transfer is well-balanced, as the image is never overly dark or bright. I noted some artifacting at times, but otherwise the picture was solid. The DVD carries a Dolby Digital 5.1 audio track which provides clear dialogue and sound effects. The in-film music provides some nice bass effects and the crowd scenes (of which there are several) bring us notable stereo and surround effects. But, in the end, this is a comedy where active audio isn’t the focal point.

The Drillbit Taylor DVD contains an arsenal of extras. We start with an AUDIO COMMENTARY from Director Steven Brill, Writer Kristofor Brown, and actors Troy Gentile, Nate Hartley, David Dorfman. This is a fun talk, as Brill and Brown go solo at first, discussing the fundamentals of the film. They are then joined by the boys who share their stories from the movie’s production. "The Writers Get a Chance to Talk: Kristofor Brown and Seth Rogen" (14 minutes) is a pseudo audio commentary where Brown and Rogen (via telephone) discuss the film. Despite this odd format, the chat is funny and they reveal a take on the movie which sounds better than the finished film. The DVD contains thirteen DELETED/EXTENDED SCENES which run 17 minutes. There are a few good moments here, but most of it resembles material already in the film. "Line-o-rama" (4 minutes) is similar to the deleted scenes, as it contains alternate takes of scenes from the film. There are some lines here that are better than those in the final cut. The DVD has a 4-minute GAG REEL. "Rap Off" (4 minutes) shows Jagues "Ku" Slade instructing Troy Gentile and Alex Frost for their rap contest. "Sprinkler Day" (3 minutes) shows on-set footage of the scene where the sprinkler are activated. "Bully" (3 minutes) is an odd segment which simply shows behind-the-scenes footage of Alex Frost and Josh Peck in action. Steven Brill comments on the lack of attention span of his actors in "Directing Kids" (3 minutes).  In "The Real Don: Danny McBride" (6 minutes) the actor describes his character.

Paramount Home Entertainment has also brought Drillbit Taylor to Blu-ray Disc.  The film has been letterboxed at 2.35:1 and the Disc contains a VC-1 1080p HD transfer which runs at an average of 30 Mbps.  The image is sharp and clear, showing no grain and no defects from the source material.  The colors look good, most notably reds, and the black tones look true.  The image is neither too bright or too dark.  However, the picture is somewhat soft and certainly lacks in detail at times when compared to other Blu-ray transfers.  The picture is certainly sharper than the DVD, but I was disappointed by the overall look.  The Disc has a Dolby TrueHD 5.1 audio track which runs at 48 kHz and an average of 3.5 Mbps.  The track provides clear dialogue and sound effects.  Being a comedy, the audio here isn't overwhelming, but it's decent.  The stereo effects are fine and really come through during crowd scenes in the school.  The big confrontation scene provides a nice amount of stereo and surround effects with nice stereo separation.  There isn't much bass here, save for the in-movie music.

Although this isn't address on the box, The Drillbit Taylor Blu-ray Disc contains a few extras which aren't on the DVD.  "Panhandle" (3 minutes) features extended versions of Drillbit begging for money on the freeway.  "Kids on the Loose" (3 minutes) is simply on-set footage of the three main boys acting silly.  "Super Billy" (3 minutes) profiles Billy O'Neill and shows some scenes not in the film.  "Bodyguard" (3 minutes) gives a behind-the-scenes look at the interview scene, which some deleted shots.  "Trading Punches" (90 seconds) shows the boys rehearsing the scene where they hit one another.  "Filkins Fight" (7 minutes) examines the preparation for the confrontation scene.  "The Life of Don" (2 minutes) is a faux interview with Danny R. McBride's Don character.  Finally, the Disc has two THEATRICAL TRAILERS.