Amazon.co.uk Review
Take two male figure skaters, throw in a preposterous storyline, and you've got
Blades of Glory, a surprisingly funny film that almost makes you forgive Will Ferrell for his back-to-back 2005 clunkers
Kicking & Screaming and
Bewitched. This time around, Ferrell eats the scenery in his role as a sex-addicted, cocky skating champ named Chazz Michael Michaels. When he gets into an on-podium fight with his nemesis and co-gold medallist Jimmy MacElroy (Jon Heder,
Napoleon Dynamite), both skaters are banned from competing in men's figure-skating events. Forever.
Their fall from grace is brutal. Chazz is forced to work for a D-list skating show, while pampered Jimmy is disowned by his wealthy and cold-hearted adoptive father (excellently played by William Fichtner), who only wants to be around winners. When Jimmy points out that he tied for gold, his dad cruelly says, "If I wanted to share, I would've bought you a brother." Flash forward 3-1/2 years and Jimmy's No. 1 stalker Hector (Nick Swardson) says he's found a loophole. Jimmy's been banned from men's singles events, but there's nothing that says he can't compete in pairs skating. After a chance meeting with Chazz, mayhem ensues as the two rivals team up to go against the brother-and-sister team of Stranz and Fairchild Van Waldenberg (played by Will Arnett and his real-life wife, Amy Poehler of Saturday Night Live and Mean Girls fame). The Van Waldenbergs will stop at nothing to beat the competition, even if that means literally beating up the competition. They have no qualms manipulating their sweet little sister (Jenna Fischer, The Office USA) to seduce both men to try to break up the team.
The finale will be no surprise to moviegoers who know that comedies like this aren't set up to make its leading men losers. But there is one brief skating sequence set in North Korea that will surprise (and shock) many viewers because of its brutality. Ferrell and Heder make a great comedy team. Though he has been accused of playing the same role since his breakthrough performance in Napoleon Dynamite and, to a certain extent, plays a similar type of role here, Heder is spot-on as Jimmy. He manages to convey innocence, bitterness, and longing--all within the span of a few seconds and while wearing a peacock unitard (You can understand why Hector is so enthralled with him). Look for guest appearances by real-life skating champs Scott Hamilton, Brian Boitano, Peggy Fleming, Dorothy Hamill, Nancy Kerrigan, and Sasha Cohen, who gets to sniff Chazz's jockstrap. --Jae-Ha Kim
Synopsis
Two comedic heavy hitters, Will Ferrell (ANCHORMAN - THE LEGEND OF RON BURGUNDY) and Jon Heder (NAPOLEON DYNAMITE), join forces to push the boundaries of slapstick with their ice-skating farce, BLADES OF GLORY. Rival skaters Chazz Michael Michaels (Ferrell) and Jimmy MacElroy (Heder) begrudgingly set out to attempt a historical comeback in the pair-skating programme after being banned in the men’s figure skating category after an unsportsmanlike scuffle. MacElroy’s former coach (Craig T. Nelson) provides them with the tough-love coaching they so desperately need. Despite their absurdity, the duo aren’t previous award winners for nothing, and their combined talent threatens the position of fellow American skating champions--brother and sister pair-skating team Stranz and Fairchild Van Waldenberg, who are played by real-life husband and wife Will Arnett (ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT) and Amy Poehler (SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE). But while Stranz and Fairchild Van Waldenberg may turn on the charm for their adoring public, they reveal their true colours as they connive to sabotage Michaels and MacElroy in their efforts to regain the championship. Ferrell's turn as the loud-talking, ego-swelling, hard-partying sex-addict skater is an abrasive and shrilling contrast to Heder’s innocent, cherub-faced prodigal son. Poehler and Arnett are splendid as the biting antagonists, and demonstrate a masterful understanding of how to portray characters full of spite and self-indulgence. BLADES OF GLORY is full of gut-busting wisecracks and painfully funny imagery, and will undoubtedly leave fans hoping that Ferrell and Heder will team up again for more hilarity and outlandish entertainment.
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