I went to see Balls of Fury tonight with Olie. I had read the script and seen lots of footage at my internship, so I pretty much knew what to expect - a mostly not-so-funny movie with a few touches of genius from Christopher Walken. Dan Fogler tries to be Jack Black and isn't, and George Lopez just isn't funny. Walken's over-the-top-ness saves the film from complete and total suckitude, but doesn't quite completely redeem it.
The disappointing thing about Balls of Fury is that it was written by Tom Lennon and Ben Garant, they of Reno: 911 and The State fame. I think The State is absolutely brilliant, and its spawn Reno: 911 and Stella (the comedy troupe as well as the eponymous Comedy Central show) are about equally as brilliant. But when these guys try to translate their culty weirdness into mainstream film, it just doesn't seem to work. Just take a look at Lennon or Garant's IMDB writing resume (they work as a team) - from the wild subversiveness of The State to... The Pacifier, A Night at the Museum (confession: I thought A Night at the Museum was cute, mostly because of Owen Wilson), and the disaster that was Let's Go to Prison? I'm not begrudging the guys a well-paying gig - god knows a semester in the heart of the industry changed this jaded indie film geek's perspective on what it is to be a working filmmaker/writer/actor - but it would at least be nice to see a little bit of the weirdness that made The State so awesome in the rather bland and not tremendously funny comedies that the guys are writing these days.
There has been, however, talk of a State reunion (outside the fact that all the State members appeared in Reno: 911! Miami and The Ten). If this is true, I'll be content to believe that they've been saving up all their subversiveness for that. And I hope it delivers in spades.
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