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Movie Review - The Ringer (2005)
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(What this rating means)
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| Director: |
Barry W. Blaustein |
| Starring: |
Johnny Knoxville, Katherine Heigl, Brian Cox, and Jed Rees |
| Rated: |
PG-13 (for crude and sexual humor, language and some drug references) |
| Length: |
94 minutes |
| Genre: |
Comedy |
| Tagline: |
Special has been redefined. |
| Studio: |
Fox Searchlight |
| Website: |
The Ringer |
| Release: |
December 23, 2005 |
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PLOT
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Johnny Knoxville and his uncle Brian Cox find themselves in need of quite a bit of money - for
different reasons. Knoxville needs to raise money to help a friend who can't afford an
important surgery while Cox owes a few gambling debts. Since the filmmakers have made it
abundantly clear that Cox is the jerk here, he suggests that Johnny pose as a
contestant in the Special Olympics. That way, Cox can make a huge bet that Jimmy, the
reigning Special Olympics champion, will lose and they can get the money they need.
A movie that's nowhere near as offensive as you might expect ensues.
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JOHNNY'S TAKE
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"Son, there are two types of people in this world - those who think quotes like 'I can count to
potato' are funny, and those who don't."
OK, so maybe those weren't the exact words of wisdom my grandfather once shared with me, but the
meaning is the same. Some people just don't laugh at stupidity, and if you fall in this group
then The Ringer probably isn't your wisest choice of investment this Christmas season.
That's not to say that The Ringer is nothing more than a stupid comedy. There are a handful
of genuine laugh-out-loud moments, and surprisingly, there's a whole lot of sentiment. Unfortunately,
and I hate to say this, but that's ultimately what drags it down.
Think about it. Johnny Knoxville rigs the Special Olympics in order to make some money. The Farrelly
Brothers are producers. The screenplay is written by Ricky Blitt, one of the writers on Family
Guy. Should be knock-down, drag-out, envelope-pushing political incorrectness that dares to
offend anybody who is brave enough to buy a ticket and watch it, right? Wrong. In fact, the movie
goes out of its way to make sure the audience knows Johnny Knoxville is a good guy.
You see, he needs the money to help a guy have surgery who he couldn't bear to fire at work in the
first place. And of course, he's reluctant to go along with his uncle's plan. And you know he's
going to become best friends with all of the other Special Olympians. Knoxville spends so much of
his time performing knightly actions that the movie essentially becomes a 90-minute infomercial for
the real Special Olympics.
That is certainly something I don't want to knock because it does make the film likable. Many moviegoers
will have their hearts warmed over the relationships Knoxville develops with the Special Olympians (even
though the majority are portrayed by real actors with no real disabilities). Knoxville's soft heart leads
to something that I thought was kind of weird - the movie is designed for you to actually root for him
to win, despite the fact that he's a fraud.
The reason is reigning champion, Jimmy, is a jerk who you'll feel no sympathy for. Like my
grandfather used to say, "Just because you're handicapped doesn't give you the right to be a jerk." He
offered this nugget of wisdom once when a guy in a handicap parking spot flipped us off because we were
walking too slowly behind his car.
So as an after school special this works well. But as a comedy? Well, it just wasn't as funny as I
wanted it to be. Oh, I laughed, and I smiled, and I drooled over Katherine Heigl, but I never had to
catch my breath or tend to a busted gut, nor did I ever miss dialogue because of overwhelming audience laughter.
So is it worth your hard-earned money? I honestly can't see a necessity to pay to see it on the
big screen. Besides, it won't make a ton of money at the box office, so it'll be on DVD soon. Wait
and make it a rental. It's not the comedy it should have been, but it has good intentions. And like
granddad always said, "You can't always be the best at everything you do, but you can always be
likable. It's not as easy for people to be hard on you when they see that your heart's in the right
place."
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ODDS & ENDS
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- Received the endorsement of the Special Olympics.
- Katherine Heigl was in Descendant with Jeremy London who was in Gods and Generals
with Mira Sorvino who was in Mimic with Josh Brolin who was in Hollow Man with Kevin
Bacon.
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MAMA'S APPROVAL
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There is a moderate amount of profanity (a few "s" words, one "f" bomb) and some crude, sexual humor.
It won't overly offend most people, but there's enough here for me to recommend that you leave the
pre-teens at home.
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TRAILER COMPARISON
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Not quite as edgy as the trailer would lead you to believe.
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THE GIST
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The Ringer provides a few healthy laughs, likable characters, a sexy Katherine Heigl, and a
story laden with good intentions. But it gets too caught up in its own niceness to ever reach its
full comedic potential. Save it for a rental when you can supplement its short runtime with what
I hope to be a load of special features. I demand a Johnny Knoxville blooper reel!
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