REVIEWED - DODGEBALL: A TRUE UNDERDOG STORY: IT CAN'T be denied that the makers of this latest addition to the genre of modestly offensive, mildly moronic comedy pioneered by such films as Old School and Zoolander have greatly over-estimated the number of laughs to be derived from throwing objects directly at their actors' faces, writes Donald Clarke.
Aside from that, there is not much wrong with Dodgeball. Nobody is likely to mistake it for the work of Antonioni, but it is consistently funny throughout and that is really the most we could expect from a film with such a title.
Vince Vaughn, who seems to have abandoned all attempts to become a grown-up actor, stars as the owner of a rundown gym that faces foreclosure and takeover by oily fitness guru White Goodman (Ben Stiller). Desperate for funds, Vince and his shabby crew of one-joke clients - nerd, pirate, nerd, lady lawyer, nerd - set out to win a lucrative Las Vegas dodgeball tournament. (Dodgeball is a team game, popular with less athletic American kids, which involves little more than flinging big balls at your opponent.) To the surprise of nobody, Goodman also enters a team and slapstick ensues.
The inescapable Stiller (when does this man sleep?) might be tempted to sue himself for basing so much of his performance on Derek Zoolander. No matter, he still manages to find a few new and amusing things to do with vanity and stupidity. As he puts it to Vaughn, "Oh I don't think that I'm a lot dumber than I think you thought I once was, before." Fans of the great Rip Torn should also enjoy his turn as an ageing Dodgeball master who trains the team by flinging spanners at them.
The funniest bit comes in the form of a 30-second cameo by cyclist Lance Armstrong. We will say no more, to avoid spoiling the gag.
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