Dodgeball Review
Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story Review Starring: Vince Vaughn, Ben Stiller, Christine Taylor
Director: Rawson Marshall Thurber
Year: 2004
Dodge, Duck, Dip, Dive, and Dodge. These are mottos of life I stand by. Dodgeball is a underdog story of a guy named Peter who gym is being bought by his I guess rival White Goodman, who owns the international mega gym across the street. Peter must raise fifty thousand dollars to pay his losses, and the best way of doing that next to selling blood and semen, is to play in a dodgeball tournament with the prize winning of fifty thousand dollars. However White has his own team and is making sure Peter stay as far away from the prize money as possible. The movie in the end is funny and is one of those comedies you come back to a lot for it’s characters. First I’d like to talk about Ben Stiller’s character. Whenever Ben Stiller plays a bad guy his character is better than his good guy counterparts. Like Heavyweights and this movie, he’s better in these movies than Night at the Museum or stuff like that. White for instance is probably the biggest douche on the planet, and he plays him perfectly. And like all douches, he thinks he’s amazing, which gets really funny. And movies like Dodgeball and The Watch prove to me that Vince Vaughn and Ben Stiller have good chemistry on camera. I don’t know why, but they just make me laugh when there together. And while we’re talking about characters let’s just talk about this movies characters as a whole. The Average Joes team has a collective of a really funny team working together and putting them under a name makes it that much better. Other characters like guest appearances by Chuck Norris and Lance Armstrong are as bad ass as they are funny, especially Lance Armstrong’s cameo. Add that with a crazy coach and dodgeball commentators and side characters with as much character as the main ones it makes for a good movies. It’s written good and makes you laugh while thinking, but thinking to much. There is a lot of physical comedy meaning a lot people are going to be hit in the face or balls with big red rubber balls. But it works, it’s like what are they going to do mildly hit them in the shoulder? No for a comedic affect people get hit with a lot of balls in places they don’t want to. Usually physical comedy like that is hit or miss, pun not intended. And for this one it defiantly hits and you’ll laugh around just about all the times people get hit in the face, most of those taken by Justin Long or the other crappy players. But a reason I like Dodgeball a lot is it may not call me out to watch it as it sits on my shelf, when I do watch it because someone I know wanted to or just like I randomly wanted to watch it today, I know I’m enjoying it as it goes on. Each of the characters are likable, and even when it does stupid things like having a guy wanting to be a pirate, it oddly works and you roll along with it. The movie is clever at times by being stupid, if that makes sense. And it does what it can to be funny with what it has. The actors all do their part, and seeing them get really hard in the face with dodgeballs is just funny. Patches also gives the most odd yet epic lines ever. Weather it’s about people humping doorknobs or someone falling out of a boat and can’t hit water, you laugh. Then you think about that line minutes later and your still laughing a little, almost by how stupid it is. Ultimately Dodgeball is a very enjoyable movie, barely hitting an eight, but still a really likable movie, and really doesn’t have a big problem with it. I remember seeing it really young in theaters, and each time since I remember laughing and enjoying it each time, and in the end that’s why it earns the long lasting badge. I can’t really think of one person who doesn’t like this movie, and it really feels different than most other comedies I’ve seen. When I try to compare it other comedies, nothing really rings in my head at first. In the end I say Dodgeball is a great movie, and definitely worth watching.
Dodgeball gets a 4/5
Spoilers: You know when Peter the Pirate got that treasure you thought it touching. Also I like how the beginning and end of the film end with a commercial. I actually saw the alternate ending and thought it was terrible. Also I don’t like how they took out Justin Long’s kiss, his character deserved a girl damn it! But Patches dying should have had a longer part, and a little mourning. I mean it was sad, no more dope one liners for the rest of the movie? That’s sad! R.I.P. Patches!
Dodgeball gets THE CHARACTER BADGE
Dodgeball gets THE "CREATIVITY" BADGE
