Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story
2/4
poster

Details & Information from IMDB

Genre Comedy
Year 2004
Duration 92 min
Rating 6.6 out of 10
Description: Peter LaFleur is a charismatic underachiever and proprietor of a rundown gym called Average Joe's. The facility's ecclectic clientele of decidedly less-than-average Joes is comprised of: a self-styled pirate; a scrawny nerd who dreams of impressing an unattainable cheerleader; an obsessive aficionado of obscure sports; a dim-witted young man; and a cocky know-it-all who, of course, really knows nothing. Peter's humble gym catches the eye of White Goodman, the power-mullet-sporting, Fu-Manchu-d, egomaniacal owner of Globo Gym, a gleaming monolith of fitness. White intends to take over Average Joe's, and Peter's non-existent bookkeeping is making it all too easy for him. A foreclosing bank has stationed attorney Kate Veatch inside Average Joe's to finalize Globo's takeover of the gym. But Peter's boyish charms win her over and Kate joins his team of social rejects to beat the odds--and their own ineptitude--to try to save Average Joe's. How? A showdown dodgeball competition against Globo Gym.
Comments: Dodgeball (subtitled, A True Underdog Story) is better than I thought it would be. Peter La Fleur (Vince Vaughn) is the owner of Average Joe's, a gym directly across the street from Globo Gym, which is run by one White Goodman (Ben Stiller, consistently hilarious). Goodman is quite the character and has plans to buy Average Joe's to make a parking lot for Globo Gym's patrons. All this leads up to a Dodgeball tournament in Las Vegas, with $50,000 being the main prize. The film has more than its share of clichés, but they can be forgiven because this film is funny. Very funny. Stiller plays it really over the top, and it's his performance that left me in stitches. Also, there are inspired cameos by Chuck Norris and David Hasselhoff.

Rating: *** (out of ****)