A Nutshell Review: Run Fatboy Run

Rating: 8/10 (13 April 2008)

I've only recently been converted to a Simon Pegg fan after the riotously funny Hot Fuzz, and can't wait for him to be in the upcoming JJ Abrams reboot of the Star Trek franchise. While squeezing time out to devour Shaun of the Dead, here comes David Schwimmer's Run Fatboy Run, where he piles on the kilos to play an unfit security guard Denny, who does the despicable because of self-doubt and unceremoniously dumps the pregnant love of his life, Libby (Thandie Newton), at the altar.
So fast forward to today, his routine of fetching his son to and from Libby's home gets interrupted by the arrival of her new boyfriend Whit (Hank Azaria), the corporate type who has everything going for him, and of course we're off to a show of one-upmanship between the two men, and the marathon being their arena of battle, for the love of both the woman and the kid.
The laughs come courtesy of the usual training sessions that Denny has to whip himself into shape given three weeks, thanks to good friend and Libby's cousin Gordon (Dylan Moran) and his landlord Mr Goshdashtidar (Harish Patel). Visual gags are plentiful, as are the conversational ones, but there weren't any that could elicit tears from joy from me, which is usually my personal gauge as to whether the comedy is effective, or not. It's a simple tale of rising against the odds, believing in oneself, and being the man who's always there for his kid.
Run Fatboy Run fortunately doesn't trod the conventional finale for a sports related movie, and though cheesy as expected and can be, still has its moments. Goes to show that every underdog has its day, if only they possess the never say die attitude. And speaking of which, I'm piling on the kilos, and need to run too!