A Ballistic Classic!

Rating: 10/10 (24 June 2005)

It took some balls to develop a film based on the sport of Dodgeball! How can a movie based on an endangered sport entice moviegoers? Well, the formula worked! "Dodgeball: The True Underdog Story" was a box office underdog hit! The film was hilarious! Vince Vaughn stars as Peter LeFleur, an Average Joe gym owner who is struggling to keep his what-else but "Average Joe" gym open for business. Moreover, "Average Joe's" reality show comes into play when White Goodwin, the competitive successful owner of Globo's Gym, threatens to buy out the Average Joe Gym for it to be utilized as a parking garage for Globos. Peter LeFleur must come up with $50k in less than a month to avoid the buyout. For Pete's sake, Why do "Average Joels" I mean "Average Joes" finish last! Ben Stiller as White Godwin was an undeniable laugh riot! His White Lies make him out to be a womanizing entrepreneur when in fact he is a self-absorbed insecure rat. However, his self-absorption creates a comical fixation to us viewers for the Globo master who's bubble has burst! Stiller continues to instill laughter in movies with the best of them. Back to Peter! In order to come up with the $50k cashola, Peter and his Average Joe entourage gym members decide to enter a Dodgeball contest in Las Vegas. The problem is that the only thing these guys have ever dodged in their lives are punches from the bullies who have harassed them their entire lives. Justin Long, Stephen Root, Joel Moore, Chris Williams, and Vaughn himself executed better than average performances as the Average Joes! Rip Torn was also mesmerizing as Patches O' Houlihan, an old-timer Dodgeball legend who coaches the Joes. Christine Taylor, Stiller's real life wife, was watching as Kate Veatch; the lawyer representing Goodwin who decides to become an Average Joe dodgeballer herself. "Dodgeball: The True Underdog Story" is the funniest film I saw in 2004! Hats off to Writer-Director Rawson Marshall Thurber! His marshall comedic plan was filled with raw laughs! It's a doggoned or should I say underdog classic! ***** EXCELLENT