Dodge Ball: A True Underdog Story

Rawson MArshall Thurber, writer/director. Vince Vaughn, Ben Stiller, Christine Taylor, Rip Torn. 2004

I did not expect this movie to be as funny as it was. I was expecting many sight gags, ubiquitous fart jokes, and occasionally one or two good lines. But what I got was a character-driven satire that had more good lines than I could count. I mean, they came at me from all directions!!

(like the "dodge ball" allusion? It was subtle, but took me awhile to come up with it!)

Seriously, though, this movie IS funny visually (read "sight gags") but when it can hit you with cerebral humour as well, then you've got something that's smart, funny, well-written, and surprisingly well-acted.

Plus, don't let Ben Stiller as a name fool you. You won't recognize Stiller in this one, because he's wonderfully cast against type, and even though he may seem like a caricature that's because it's obviously intentional - as part of the "health nut" satire.

Extremely well done.


VG