Written and Directed by Rawson Marshall Thurber
If you can dodge this movie, you can dodge losing two hours of your life.
I couldn’t believe how bad this movie was. It was an utter waste of time unless you’re under 14 or else stoned on some type of inhalant. Sure, there were some mildly amusing parts, but nothing that made me laugh out loud. The “jokes” are mostly bizarre non-sequiturs that make you turn to the person sitting next to you to see if you missed something, only to find the same blank stare looking back at you. I kept waiting for something funny to happen and it never did, but it’s my own fault because I saw the trailer and that didn’t have anything funny in it.
The film sets up a story that we are supposed to care about: a little gym needs to raise money so the big gym doesn’t buy them out. The gym is filled with a bunch of social deviants that are unappealing so I don’t care what happens to them or their gym. The gang runs out of options to raise money, so they enter a dodgeball tournament against professionals. The big gym enters the competition as well. Hmm, I wonder if they will meet up in the final game?
Here’s an example of what little went into the creation of the characters by the writer. Steve thinks he’s a pirate, but it’s never explained why. As the pressure starts to weigh on him before the big game, Vince freaks out and tells Steve that he’s not a pirate. Steve is distraught as he walks the Vegas strip and passers-by throw things at him from a car. The next morning he misses the big game. He shows up later and doesn’t dress or talk like a pirate anymore. How could it have been that easy?
I understand the unknown actors who have never been in a film appearing in this in the hopes that this will introduce them to the public, but what the hell are the other talented people doing in it? Vince Vaughn is one of the stars and he did as much as he could with the material, which isn’t saying much. He’s not terribly funny in the film, but he’s not awful. Luckily, the others are so unfunny that it makes him look better. Stephen Root plays a version of his character Bill Dauterive from King of the Hill, so I hope Mike Judge gets a piece of the action. His character has a mail-order bride who hates him almost as much as I did.
Article comments
1 - Phillip Winn
Dude, this movie was pretty funny. I think maybe you expected too much.
BTW, the explanation of the pirate thing is actually interesting. The DVD extras reveal that the filmmaker originally wanted the movie to end with the underdogs losing, but when it tested horribly the producers insisted on filming new scenes to add the last few minutes with the cone of shame and so on. So the only scene in which we see Steve not as a pirate is one that was filmed much much later under duress.
2 - Lono
I totally enjoyed it. Now, when watching a movie like this you know it isn't great cinema... and you certainly don't pay $10 a person to see it in a theatre. No sir, a movie like this screams 'renter'. That being said, I set aside a Friday night with a 6 pack of beer and laughed my ass off watching the DVD.
The whole film is worth it just for the few shots of Rip Torn - 'if you can dodge a wrench, you can dodge a ball!'
3 - Matt Paprocki
One of the funniest movies I've seen in years. Stiller was perfectly cast here. It seems as if you missed the point. He's supposed to be ridiuclously over the top as a parody.
It has Christime Taylor too. Can't argue with that.
4 - Tan The Man
The funniest moment is when Vaughn thanks Chuck Norris for his vote to have a sudden death.
"Thank you - Chuck Norris."
Fun stuff...
5 - Tan The Man
Ben Stiller - "He tries so hard to be funny that it is painful to watch."
That might be more or a character issue than an actor issue. His character was supposed to be obnoxious.
6 - El Bicho
I only expected the movie to be funny. It wasn't.
I got that Stiller was supposed to be over the top. He was also supposed to be funny. He wasn't.
Remind me to drink at least a six-pack like Lono before any of you invite me over for comedy night.
7 - Sunny
I love this movie! It's full of one-liners that I recite all the time.
I thought it would be d-u-m-b, dumb; but I really got a kick out of it and laughed my butt off.
I'm wondering how much differnt the "unrated" version is from the original DVD that was released.