Synopsis
The superbly obnoxious Ben Stiller plans to have his Globo Gym take over and destroy the building that houses the apathetic Vince Vaughn’s Average Joe’s. Unless Vaughn and his friends raise $50,000.00 before the end of the month, all will be lost. Their only hope is to win a dodgeball championship. They’re no damn good, but help comes in the form of psychotic ex-dodgeball champ Rip Torn and Christine Taylor as an accountant with a killer throw.
The premise is ludicrous enough to be…high concept, and it works. Stiller is hilariously megalomaniacal, constantly spouting off absurd aphorisms, and Justin Long reveals himself to be a fabulous physical comedian, taking all kinds of blows to the head for the sidesplitting benefit of the audience.
Audio
The sound is distortion-free, and while the music might have just a touch more power to its bass, the overall effect is superb. The left-right separation and placement are particularly good (so, for example, when the educational dodgeball film plays, the sounds of the projector are isolated in the rear speakers).
Video
Great picture. The colours are very bright, the contrasts are strong, and the blacks are deep. There is no visible grain or edge enhancement, and the image is perfectly sharp. This is a transfer one might want to slow down and savour, if only one wasn’t laughing so hard.
Special Features
A lot of these extras have already appeared on the previous release. This version of the film is “unrated,” but the only noticeable difference is that some dialogue is a bit more rude. The commentary (by writer/director Rawson Marshall Thurber, Stiller and Vaughn) is a parody of the form, with Vaughn playing himself as obnoxious as Stiller’s character in the film, munching chips on mike, refusing to let the stuttering Thurber to get a word in, while Stiller is berated for coming in late. The four featurettes are largely parodic too (despite having a clear promotional function as well), and so is the phony alternate ending. We leave the silliness long enough for Thurber to comment on 9 deleted and alternate scenes, and then we’re back at it with the gag reel and more footage of the Dodgeball Dancers. There are two trailers, plus ones for Garden State and There’s Something About Mary, and the DVD-ROM feature is the screenplay. The menu is, for the most part, fully animated and scored.
Closing Thoughts
If you already own this film, there isn’t enough here to make the second purchase worth it. But if you don’t, by all means pick it up.
Special Features List
- Audio Commentary
- 4 Making-of Featurettes
- Alternate Ending with Optional Commentary
- Gag Reel
- Dodgeball Dancers Footage
- Trailers
- Screenplay
