Definitely not newsworthy

Rating: 2/10 (22 December 2004)

At this point in his movie career I think everything is boiled down to one simple question. Do you find Will Ferrell funny? For those who feel he helped revive the increasingly unpopular Saturday Night Live, you will probably enjoy this film. For those who are skipping Christmas this year because of the movie Elf, I suggest you bypass this one.
The movie tells the story of Ron Burgundy, a hot-shot anchor for the local news station. When his boss brings in a young female reporter named Veronica Corningstone (Christina Applegate) the sparks fly between her and Burgundy and they are soon dating quite happily. However, when things take a turn for the worse for Ron, Veronica is given the chance to shine in his position. Of course this relic from the days when women never left the kitchen is quite offended by the whole thing. The rest of the movie is Burgundy trying to regain his stature against Veronica and a rival group of newsmen.
Perhaps his movie was just poorly cast, but not a single character seemed the least bit believable. Where as Ben Stiller (who has a small role in Anchorman) gave us a very funny performance as a super macho man in Dodgeball, Ferrel's arrogant character was rarely worth a smirk. And poor Steve Carell, who kept me in stitches many nights on the Daily Show, is given a role who's insignificance is only outdone by it's poorly written lines.
I'd love to see Ferrel attempt another role besides an overacted slapstick comedy hero. Even if he fails, the attempt would be refreshing and prove that there really are people that belong in movies like this.