Not all movies are made for snobby film critics who think La Strada is the be-all, end-all of filmmaking. And there is little doubt that Will Ferrell vehicles are not aimed at the critics at all.

Ferrell’s cinematic star has faded. The good will he built up in Anchorman, Old School and Zoolander—not to mention his legendary sketches on Saturday Night Live—has been wiped away by mindless and stupendously unfunny flops like Talladega Nights and Blades of Glory. There are actually people who refuse to see anything Ferrell is in, but in doing so, they’re missing out on his newest film, Semi-Pro. The movie has something that sets it apart from the last handful of films he appeared in: it is actually funny.

Semi-Pro centers on Jackie Moon, who takes the profits from his hit song and buys the Flint, Michigan Tropics, a struggling American Basketball Association team. Moon does little to help the team, despite taking on the responsibilities of owner, head coach and power forward.

When news comes that the National Basketball Association will take four teams from the ABA, Moon does everything he can to make the Tropics one of those four, including trading the team washing machine for a washed-up guard named Ed Monix, played by Woody Harrelson.

Monix uses his NBA experience to coach the team and leads them from the league cellar to fifth place, helped by the play of Clarence Coffee Black (Andre Benjamin), the only player with a legitimate shot at the NBA.

Like the majority of comedy films, the story starts to fall apart after about 50 minutes, but it still remains funny. Sure, the comedy is crude, and it definitely benefits from a more than generous sprinkling of profanity throughout.

Perhaps it’s the low expectations set by his last two movies that make this one stand out, but the fact remains that with a few beers and a few friends, Semi-Pro is a perfectly serviceable flick.

By Greg Jones

Greg Jones is managing editor of Casino Connection Nevada, as well as associate editor of Global Gaming Business magazine.

Please login to post your comments.