Ferrell-ly Funny

Blades Of Glory

(PG-13)

originally published April 4, 2007

Will Ferrell

Most Adam Sandler/ Chris Farley/ David Spade/ Rob Schneider flicks leave me cold, and that is all right by me. Only one man exists who can tickle my funny fancy with his inanity, Will Ferrell. The curly-haired giant brightens the drabbest of films, be they “SNL” skits turned features (Night at the Roxbury and The Ladies Mancome to mind) or overrated hits (Old School,Wedding Crashers). In Blades of Glory, Ferrell is the only reason this routine sports comedy medals. After being exiled from male figure skating, Chazz Michael Michaels (Ferrell) and Jimmy MacElroy (Jon Heder) make history, stunning the skating world by defying conventions as pairs partners. Coached by Coach himself (Craig T. Nelson, how we’ve missed you), sex addict Michaels and MacElroy (who “looks like a 15-year-old girl, but not hot”) put aside their differences to return to iced glory. Strangely, for a film about pairs figure skating, Bladessure is a single skater’s show. Ferrell, channeling his inner Neil Diamond into the hilarious, '70s-styled “Chazzle dazzle” of “sex on ice,” revives the DOA jokes of Jeff and Craig Cox, whose screenplay is based on a story co-credited to Busy Phillips (?!) of "Freaks and Geeks." Ferrell takes his parody seriously. He is a superb character actor who doesn’t tell jokes or repeat dialogue; he becomes Ron Burgundy, Ricky Bobby, and Chazz Michael Michaels. While none of his comedic costars - Heder, Will Arnett, Amy Poehler, Jenna Fischer and Rob Corddry - can skate for more than a laugh or two without stumbling on the horrendously bumpy jokes, Ferrell is triple lutzing and Salchowing like Michelle Kwan. Arnett seems particularly hamstrung; I laughed more at boxing announcer Jim Lampley than the former “Arrested Development” standout (counting Let’s Go to Prison, that’s two disappointing outings in a row for Arnett). In the pantheon of Ferrell comedies, Talladega Nightswould take the gold, Anchormanthe silver, and Bladesthe bronze. Bladesshould feel no shame when wearing its third place medallion. Talladega Nightswas one of last year’s smartest dumb satires, and Anchormanquotes can still be heard on a daily basis. Blades isn’t terribly memorable, but it is hard not to get into the spirit of competition when Michaels and MacElroy first grab each other’s crotches on the ice. This unjaded flick reminds us all why Ferrell should be Hollywood’s choice to represent the good old U.S. of A. if ever a comedy decathlon were added to the Olympic lineup.

Drew Wheeler

Too Nice Noir

The Lookout

(R)

originally published April 4, 2007

Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Matthew Goode

I’ve been ripping through the pulp noir of Charlie Huston recently, so I slipped comfortably into Get Shorty screenwriter Scott Frank’s directorial debut - a dark neo-noir about Chris Pratt (Joseph Gordon-Levitt of last year’s criminally overlooked Brick), a high-school hockey standout whose future crashed into a stalled combine on Highway 24 along with his Mustang, girlfriend and two passengers - without hesitation. Now Chris can barely remember his daily routine. He also has trouble controlling what he says (declaring his intentions to have sex with someone isn’t much of a conversation starter), suffering outbursts of fuming frustration that are easily understood. A privileged life of superstardom awaited Chris Pratt upon graduation; now he has trouble getting out of his Life Skills class due to an inability to adequately sequence his day. Imagine being so addled you cannot find the can opener necessary to access that night’s dinner, and you can intuit Chris’ frustration, which mounts with every waking screen moment. Then he meets Gary Spargo (Matthew Goode, Match Point), a shifty smooth talker who claims to have dated Chris’ older sister. Creepily charismatic, Gary offers Chris everything he’s been missing since the accident - a girl (Wedding Crashers’ crazy-hot Isla Fisher), his past, and most importantly, acceptance, belonging. All Chris, the nighttime janitor at a small-town Kansas bank, has to do is play the part of the lookout in the heist Gary and his crew - Marty (Morgan Kelly), Cork (Aaron Berg), and the silent, Geddy Lee-resembling muscle, Bone (Greg Dunham) - are planning.

Sounds simple, right? Under the supervision of Frank, whose words have helped fashion the two best Elmore Leonard adaptations, Get Shorty and Out of Sight (sorry, Jackie Brown, you’ve got too much film for your meager plot), The Lookout is about as simple as two outstanding crime thrillers, Blood Simple and A Simple Plan, to whose level this flick strives but falls short (no harm there, those two Coen and Sam Raimi films are tops in many a critical book). Frank gets a lot of the little stuff right. He nails the tragic, stupid, teenage romanticism of Chris’ accident and the stiff shot of humor provided by the blind roommate (Jeff Daniels). The Lookoutcould have been a bit of a tougher talker. Also, stories like this - good guys pressed into morally questionable action by really bad guys - don't usually end like this one does. A tougher Lookout could have scared two broken thumbs up out of me.

Drew Wheeler