I think the key to finding enjoyment in a Will Ferrell movie nowadays means you have to skip a few of his films in between. After Talladega Nights I was ready to completely write Ferrell off as a one-note comedian, and while that opinion of him really hasn’t changed I was at least able to find some laughs inside Semi-Pro even though it never really amounted to anything more than I truly expected.
Looking back at Ferrell’s most recent films I have to go all the way back to Elf in 2003 to find one of his starring vehicles that I truly enjoyed. I really disliked Anchorman, skipped Kicking and Screaming, Bewitched was awful and even his cameo in Wedding Crashers ended up being the worst part of an otherwise fantastic movie. As I said, I didn’t like Talladega Nights, which resulted in me skipping Blades of Glory, but I decided to give Semi-Pro a chance even though it looked like just another film in which Ferrell dresses up as a weird character and uses the fact that he has an overweight (and hairy) physique as a tool for comedy. This is all true, but there is a kicker, this is a truly R-rated film (for language alone) and it allows for another side of Will’s comedy to show, the side his video website FunnyorDie.com has very much embraced.
The story is straight-forward. It’s the ’70s, the ABA is being absorbed by the NBA and four teams get to go. Ferrell plays Jackie Moon, owner/coach/player for the Tropics out of Flint, Michigan, and they are far from the best team in the league. Initially intended to be scrapped along with several other teams Jackie manages to talk the suits into taking the four best teams in the league instead of cherry-picking, and the film becomes a race for fourth place.
The gimmicks you see in the trailer, such as Jackie fighting a bear, are actually a little more comical than you may expect, but it really does feel like a bunch of SNL skits tossed inside an otherwise funny story. A love story on the side involving Woody Harrelson’s character and Maura Tierney is a little cliche, but its treatment is a little out of the norm, which saves it for the most part.
This film also proves Will Arnett’s greatest talent is a supporting character. In Semi-Pro he plays the Tropics’ color man during broadcasts and it truly plays to his talents as an actor. Arnett came to our attention primarily thanks to “Arrested Development” where he was also a supporting character and attempts to make him a leading man have failed, however, like the great Jason Bateman, his comedic timing is perfect for supporting roles and his presence is always an added bonus on that front.
If you are a Ferrell fan you are sure to enjoy Semi-Pro, I guarantee it. I also believe fans of the latest Judd Apatow vulgar laden comedies will also find this film up to par, after all, that is the audience this flick is playing toward. I am just surprised they didn’t use the R-rated angle to a much larger extent online, it certainly would have aided in potential viral campaigns.
Overall, you will get some laughs, but it doesn’t really add up to much more than what all of Ferrell’s films amount to.
