Another year, another vehicle for the madness of Will Ferrell. Blades Of Glory has some priceless moments sprinkled throughout, but as a parody of professional Ice Skating it never really crystallizes. Instead, the film presents itself as a satire of sport movies. As a comedic premise, the irony of satirizing a genre dominated by "Jock-Flicks" with a comedy about a sport dominated by women, is brilliant.
What Blades lacks, however, is the supporting cast around Ferrell to create comedy when he is not in the scene. Now, if you've read my review of School for Scoundrels then you know how I feel about the comedic ability of John Heder. Now I know every good comedy team needs a straight man. And when you're partnered up with Will Ferrell, one of the funniest men on the planet, you know you're going to be it. But what is so aggravating about Heder is his awkwardness in every situation. He is so gloriously unfunny that he somehow becomes funny. Its a paradox I would rather not delve into, so let's just sit back and daydream about how much funnier this movie would have been if Jack Black were in it instead of Heder. The rest of the supporting cast does their job well, but let's face it...nobody is going to Blades of Glory to see Amy Poehler or Craig T. Nelson.
There really aren't any funny lines in this movie. The majority of the comedy comes from Ferrell's exaggerations and hilarious physical deliveries. That's great and all, but it doesn't do much when he's not on screen. The inability of this cast to keep the film funny without Ferrell is the downfall of Blades of Glory. There is no Paul Rudd, no Fred Willard, no Steve Carell and no Jack Black to help supply the laughs here. Instead, there is John Heder and Jenna Fischer. For that reason alone, it is improper and cruel to compare Blades of Glory to Anchorman, or even Talladega Nights, which had John C. Reily and Sasha Baron Cohen to help Ferrell carry the load. Instead, I would compare the film to Dodgeball. Both are produced by Ben Stiller, and the films follow relatively the same arc. Both have laughs and lots of them, but lack the ingenuity and the dynamic cast to really become something great.
In the end, Blades of Glory is a very satisfying comedy. If you're a fan of Will Ferrell, you will adore it just as you adored Talladega Nights, but you won't be quoting every single line for years to come like Anchorman. Your voice won't be hoarse and your back won't be drenched with sweat from laughing, but you will find the movie entertaining. Unless, of course, you like figure skating.
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