Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story

written and directed by Rawson Marshall Thurber

         Destined to make more of its money through DVDs purchased by American stoner youth, Dodgeball is yet another deliberate cult film with hilarity bound for more appreciation from repeat viewing. The feature debut of writer-director Rawson Marshall Thurber, though not set in a college nor featuring an appropriately aged cast, figures in with the class of movie-makers including Todd Phillips (Road Trip; Old School), Walt Becker (Van Wilder) and Danny Leiner (Dude Where’s My Car?; the upcoming Harold and Kumar Go To White Castle) that often rely on absurdity more than and as supplement to gross-out gags.
        The cast, hand-picked by someone obviously familiar with cult comedies, showcases prior collaborators from Starsky & Hutch (Vince Vaugh, Ben Stiller, Jason Bateman), Office Space (Gary Cole, Stephen Root), The Brady Bunch Movie (Cole, Christine Taylor), Zoolander (Stiller, Taylor), Galaxy Quest (Justin Long, Missi Pyle) and Along Came Polly (Stiller, Hank Azaria). Some of them are much funnier in previous roles and Root’s character was better as played by Rick Moranis in Ghostbusters, but Justin Long surprises with the film’s most natural hilarity and Alan Tudyk, as a man who thinks he’s a legitimate pirate, delights with ridiculous contrivance.