Will Ferrell must be getting into great shape because the next two movies he is in are sport’s themed flicks. This one is called Semi Pro, and he has another in the works called Blades of Glory. The folks over at monstersandcritics.com give us this:
Will Ferrell is lacing up his high-tops for “Semi-Pro,“ a basketball comedy from New Line Cinema. New Line executive Kent Alterman will be stepping down from company duties to make his directorial debut on the picture, which will co-star Woody Harrelson.
Written by Scot Armstrong, who worked with Ferrell on “Old School,“ the fictional story is set in the last year of the now-defunct world of the American Basketball Assn. and follows Jackie Moon, the owner-coach-player of the fictional Flint Michigan Tropics. Moon must lead his team on a desperate attempt to make it to the big leagues.
I smell something rotten, like a hack premise. So basically the story is about an underdog sports team that must work hard to make it to the big time. Sounds like.. .A league of Their Own, Dodgeball, The Bad News Bears and many more.
Hey, we all know that Will Ferrell is a great comedic actor and I’m dying to see Woody Harrelson in something but this story just leaves me numb inside.
It’s not that Scot Armstrong , hasn’t done good work, he’s written winners like Road Trip, Old School and School for Scoundrels, all very funny movies. However, usually Armstrong writes with his writer/director buddy Todd Phillips. I wonder if it was the premise that kept Phillips away from this one.
I can see the reasoning behind Ken Alterman choosing this movie for his directorial debut. A nice light comedy, a resonably high budget and experienced, reliable actors. I can even see him likeing the story because really when it is a paint by numbers plot the editing room is far less daunting. But it certainly doesn’t float my boat as an audience.
Semi Pro seems to have a lot going for it, a good writer, great cast and a new director with a lot of experience and enthusiasm with films. But I can’t help feeling that this movie is going to flop harder than a chubby man flying face first into a pool.
