The server is still down. Rob says he won't know if it's really broken until Wednesday when he has a day off. Until then, we will merrily continue tromping through the B's.
Rival figure skaters Jimmy MacElroy (Jon Heder) and Chazz Michael Michaels (Will Ferrell) find themselves banned for life in their division after an on-podium brawl. Jimmy's stalker, Hector (Nick Swardson), discovers that they are still able to compete in the pairs division with no penalties. Reigning champions Stranz (Will Arnett) and Fairchild von Waldenburg (Amy Poehler) are furious at the development and send their browbeaten sister Katie (Jenna Fischer) to spy on the unlikely duo. Katie and Jimmy promptly fall for one another. Fairchild uses this to set Jimmy and Chazz at odds, breaking up their partnership on the eve of the championship.
I didn't hate this movie as much as I was expecting I would. Probably because this is the one sport I have ever enjoyed on its own merit. I watch the figure skating events at the Olympics religiously and I recognize how ripe for comedy they are. The costumes, the rules, the terminology are begging for parody.
Even though the story is as original as a prefab house, it was nice to see the cameos of actual figure skaters. Dorothy Hamill, Brian Boitano, and Nancy Kerrigan all make appearances, as some of the most famous.
I know it would defeat the purpose of a Will Ferrell movie, but I really wish they had cast someone else as Chazz. Ferrell's portrayal of a dim-bulb sex addict who pulled himself up by his laces to overcome a lifetime of poverty would have seemed more natural on a younger actor, one closer in age to Heder. I know that it's supposed to be funny that, instead, you have this clearly middle-aged schlubby guy but that's not comedy to me. That's just bad casting.
I'm sure it's one of those films that other people find hysterical and can quote endlessly, like most of Ferrell's filmography. I found some of the more subtle gags aimed at the sport amusing but I can't say that I liked the film overall. The best I can do is "I didn't actively hate it."
Oh, and just to warn you guys, the next couple of weekends might be a little light on content. I'm driving home to Alabama to visit family this Saturday (the 7th). I'll do my best but it might not be possible to get stuff posted. Bear with me.
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