| |
Blades of Glory, Dreamworks Pictures (DVD Release)
aussieSKATES: Figure Skating Downunder, Spring 2007
Having played everything from a sports-crazy soccer dad in Kicking and Screaming, an airhead stock car driver in Talledega Nights, and an inept baseball player in The Benchwarmers, it was inevitable.
Together, Will Ferrell and Jon Heder take on the sequinned, high drama, cheese-tastic world of competitive figure skating.
In Blades of Glory, Ferrell is Chaz Michael Michaels, a beer guzzling, womanising slob who happens to be a world class figure skater. His arch rival and artistic antithesis, Jimmy McElroy (played by Heder) was discovered as a child prodigy, then groomed by a team of experts to
be the best.
When both skaters tie for first at the world championships, a punch-up on the podium merits both a lifetime ban from the sport.
This is where the nuttiness begins.
Triggered by an obsessed fan’s push to see Jimmy return to the sport, McElroy and his former coach stumble upon a loophole. He may not be able to compete as a men’s singles skater, but that doesn’t mean Jimmy can’t compete in pairs. How they decide on teaming him with the arrogant, burned-out Chaz has hilarious consequences.
Surprisingly, they work well together, making it back to the world championships. But, like any comedy, there is a catch to their success.
The brother and sister coupling of Stranz and Fairchild Van Waldenberg (played by real life husband and wife, Will Arnett from Arrested Development, and Amy Poehler from Mean Girls) go to great lengths to stop Jimmy and Chaz from taking their title.
If that weren’t enough, with sly reference to the 1992 film, The Cutting Edge, will McElroy and Michaels consider using the dangerous Iron Lotus in their quest for victory?
Blades of Glory doesn’t pretend to be anything but pure entertainment. Where it stands out from previous films with figure skating as a central theme, is its hilarious attention to detail.
If you love skating, you’ll appreciate the many in-jokes (and guest appearances by real life skaters) scattered throughout this film. As a bonus, the DVD includes deleted scenes and outtakes.
So get it and as the tagline declares, Kick Some Ice! |
| |
back to menu |
|
 |
|
|
|
|
