Dodgeball

Sports movies can often become boring for the uninitiated, and people who do not like the sport can often be turned off by the film. Dodgeball is not as big in the United Kingdom as it is in the U.S., so I did not know what to expect when I bought the film.
One word: fantastic.
Easily one of the best sports movies I have seen, and it is quite clever that it is mostly about the relationships between the various team members, and to a certain extent, puts the dodgeball related action on the backburner.
Fleshed out characters are rife int his movie, and the group of misfits that encompasses the Average Joe's Gym membership are people that you can root for. Steve the Pirate is my particular favourite, although I'm sure everybody has their own.
The plot for Dodgeball is fairly simple, and therefore gives a straightforward indication of what has to happen in order for the protagonists to achieve their goal. When scripts go too complicated in quite niche films such as this one, it can either pay off really well, or go disastrously wrong.
Peter LaFleur (Vince Vaughn) owns Average Joe's, and things aren't looking too good on the financial scale. However, the closest rival, Globogym, owned by White Goodman (Ben Stiller), are booming and are set to buy out Average Joe's in order to build a car park for the gym, unless Joe's can raise $50,000 to keep them afloat. All seems lost until they find out that a dodgeball tournament, held in Las Vegas, gives prize money of $50,000. Therefore they have to learn how to play dodgeball. They meet a famous ex player, who is determined to turn them from losers into champions, albeit in a weird way, and have them find their own self-respect in the meantime.
Ben Stiller in this movie is playing an unusual role for him, as he is usually the hero of the movie but in this one he is a villain in all senses of the word and he lives up to this fantastically. I would say this would be on his top 5 films list, as it showcases his talents as an actor so much more than one of his typical films.
For me, the highlights of Stiller's character are his hilarious comebacks. They just don't make any sense, but he pulls them off so it makes the audience feel like they are good comebacks.
For the actual tournament itself that acts as the pivot of the plot, it could have easily become boring and uninteresting, but funny opponents and plot twists within the movie change that. Also, the commentary is extremely funny, as "Pepper Brooks" seems like your typical dumb broadcaster, and this is shown even more when he is pitted up against his colleague, who is a much better commentator.
Some of the best scenes are when the quote is mentioned "That's a souvenir for a lucky fan", when talking about a team forfeiting, Pepper saying that it is "A bold strategy, let's hope it pays off for them", and "even a rabid mongoose wouldn't have a chance now!".
Spoilers Alert!!
There is quite a large plot twist at the end that I did not expect with LaFleur signing away his gym, and adds depth to the story that could have been the bare bones rags to riches story. It also gives LaFleur a sense of humanity and vulnerability. Also, the plot builds up to a climax where Average Joe's do not have enough players to play the game.
I would give this film a high 8.5/10 just for its humour and craftmanship, as you can totally believe what is going on, most of the time!
Poll result review coming next!!