In an Alternate Universe, George Bailey’s Brother Went Pro
Blades of Glory (2007)
directed by Josh Gordon and Will Speck
rating: 3 out of 5 cravats
on DVD from Netflix
There’s no need to make a mountain out of the molehill of box office gold that is Will Ferrell’s career. He seems like a weird guy who would overstay his welcome if he ran into fans at a bar (“Is he actually getting in the car with us?”), and in my experience, the random interjections that make a movie like Anchorman funny aren’t funny forever. But there’s a kind of half-assed genius to Ashley Schaeffer, and Blades of Glory seems like a nice little cross-stitch on the embroidered pillow that includes both The Foot Fist Way and Eastbound & Down.
Ditto Will Arnett, who rarely recaptures the insecurities that made Gob lovable in his walk-on roles as random privileged assholes. Compare his date with the wife on Parks and Recreation to her romance with Louis C. K.’s gentle cop; Arnett isn’t just a contrast, he’s stuck in a rut. Add to that the next in a long line of movies that exploit minor celebrities (fashion models, local newscasters, magicians) for laughs, and what do you get?
More laughs, if truth be told. Blades of Glory shouldn’t work, but does. Maybe because the onscreen team-up of Ferrell and Jon Heder embraces gay marriage by way of a straightforward pitch for an unconventional pairing. Or whatever. If some of the people can be part right some of the time, then I guess this is what you get when they click.
directed by Josh Gordon and Will Speck
rating: 3 out of 5 cravats
on DVD from Netflix
There’s no need to make a mountain out of the molehill of box office gold that is Will Ferrell’s career. He seems like a weird guy who would overstay his welcome if he ran into fans at a bar (“Is he actually getting in the car with us?”), and in my experience, the random interjections that make a movie like Anchorman funny aren’t funny forever. But there’s a kind of half-assed genius to Ashley Schaeffer, and Blades of Glory seems like a nice little cross-stitch on the embroidered pillow that includes both The Foot Fist Way and Eastbound & Down.
Ditto Will Arnett, who rarely recaptures the insecurities that made Gob lovable in his walk-on roles as random privileged assholes. Compare his date with the wife on Parks and Recreation to her romance with Louis C. K.’s gentle cop; Arnett isn’t just a contrast, he’s stuck in a rut. Add to that the next in a long line of movies that exploit minor celebrities (fashion models, local newscasters, magicians) for laughs, and what do you get?
More laughs, if truth be told. Blades of Glory shouldn’t work, but does. Maybe because the onscreen team-up of Ferrell and Jon Heder embraces gay marriage by way of a straightforward pitch for an unconventional pairing. Or whatever. If some of the people can be part right some of the time, then I guess this is what you get when they click.
posted by NPK at 1:36 PM
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