The post The Iron Claw first appeared on Worth it or Woke.

Lady Ballers

In an attempt to recapture past glory, an aging group of one-time high-school basketball champs don wigs and over-sized braziers so that they might once again dominate, and if they have to break a nail or two (or some actual women) to win, so be it.

In a recent interview, Jeremy Boring, best known as the CEO of The Daily Wire, told Ben Shapiro that when the idea to film Lady Ballers came to him, one of his biggest hurdles wasn’t the incredibly tight schedule that they would have to complete the project, nor was it budgetary. No, the most significant challenge was casting.

As it turns out, even those actors who were blacklisted in Hollywood and labeled as right-wing looneys, those who said that they would be willing to do anything for an opportunity to work with The Daily Wire, had their limits. As Meatloaf once lamented, “[they] would do anything for love, but [they] won’t do that.”

The “that,” in this case, is poking fun at the most ridiculous societal trend in recent memory, the mass hysteria that has huge swaths of the populace militantly indulging the mentally ill in the fantasy that a strong enough case of the feelsies can make a schwanson a hoo-ha.

So, with this massive barrier before him, Jeremy’s only choice was to cast himself in the lead role and draft the rest of The Daily Wire rogues gallery for active duty. With him being the film’s producer, director, co-writer, and star (a challenge that the most veteran of filmmakers would find nigh impossible), in addition to being nearly as inexperienced as the rest of the cast, Lady Ballers should make dumpster fires look like match sticks.

Yet, Jeremy and The Team traverse these obstacles with the grace and skill of a bottom-ranked man in the women’s 100m hurdles. That is to say that compared to the other comedic offerings that are out there, Lady Ballers takes the gold.

Not only is Lady Ballers not a disaster, it’s actually pretty friggin’ funny, which is the only thing that really matters when talking about a comedy. Sure, some of the actors lack the experience to maintain the emotional through-line for as long as a scene might require, looking momentarily uncomfortable as they wait for their turn to speak instead of internalizing what their counterparts are saying or doing. But, for every one of those brief inconsistencies, there’s a 200-pound man in a pink unitard choke slamming a woman half his size into goo or a heavy dose of schadenfreude as the group roasts legacy media.

Don’t get us wrong. We aren’t saying that the cast is bad; it isn’t. 95% of the time, they are present and on point. Further, in those few instances when the movie falters, be it in focus or missed opportunities, it seems more due to a sense of being rushed to complete the film and perhaps also an understandable lack of focus on Jeremy’s part (thanks to wearing so many hats at once) than it does a lack of talent.

The film does have two performances so perfect that they demand a road trip spinoff movie. Matt Walsh plays a stereotypical hippy-dippy liberal who meditates in the front yard while surrounded by rainbow platitudes and happy thoughts. In what might be Jeremy’s greatest accomplishment, Walsh’s signature drowsy and dour demeanor is magically transformed into that of an only marginally aware goober who is undoubtedly known by name at the local weed dispensary. #MoreWalsh

Then there is comedian Tyler Fischer. Fischer, who is best known for his stand-up and YouTube videos, had his feature-length film debut in last year’s Gina Carano-led Terror on The Prairie. In Lady Ballers, he plays a desperate wannabe who desires nothing more than to be one of the guys but whose small stature has long made him the butt of ridicule and derision, which seems to have driven him to the verge of insanity. Fischer easily gives the film’s most realistic performance, and in one of his stand-out moments, he lampoons everyone’s favorite rictus-smile-having lunatic Dylan Mulvaney to deep-gut-laughing inducement.

Final Thoughts on Lady Ballers

Lady Ballers is far from wart-free. It occasionally suffers from a lack of focus on both sides of the camera, and its plot lacks a level of depth that would have made the film’s conclusion that much sweeter. It’s also about 15 minutes too long. But, once it gets going, it will make you laugh… out loud… a lot. More than that, though, is that as ridiculous as it may sound, Lady Ballers is an important movie.

Not only does it come at a time when we need more laughter in our lives to keep from going insane, but, like comedies of old, it holds up a mirror to the logical incongruities of a very serious problem within the current culture. Self-evident truths and immutable characteristics can only be trampled upon by a society for so long before it crumbles. Documentaries like Matt Walsh’s “What is A Woman,” certainly have their place, but the only chance that we have of saving society is by capturing hearts and minds, and nothing does that better than good comedy.

Minor weaknesses notwithstanding, the core cast has a lot of chemistry, and it’s clear that they had as much fun making Lady Ballers as you’ll have watching it.

WOKE ELEMENTS

Lady Ballers is a 100-kiloton anti-woke bunker-buster.

The post Lady Ballers first appeared on Worth it or Woke.

BIG GEORGE FOREMAN

Big George Foreman follows Geroge from 1960s Houston, Texas’s poverty-stricken Fifth Ward all the way to his triumphant return to greatness in 1994. If you were to watch a recent interview with George Foreman, you wouldn’t recognize the gentle, smiling behemoth as the rage-filled youth who used to mug people and who used anger to pummel his way to Olympic gold and then become one of the youngest Heavyweight Champs in the history of boxing. This movie shows us why.

While there are several strong performances, particularly those given by Forest Whitaker, who plays the man who discovered and trained Foreman, Doc Broadus, this isn’t a film about performances. This is good because Davis, who plays Foreman, often suffers under the weight of a too-accurate impersonation of the boxing champ. You see, while the impersonation is excellent, Foreman’s rather placid persona doesn’t lend itself to the theatrics necessary to convey things like uncontrollable rage. Fortunately, once Foreman is washed clean in The Blood, the smiling and pleasant George Foreman that most of us know and love shines through.

Even though this is a boxing movie, the true star of the film is Jesus’s role in transforming Foreman’s life. Moreover, Foreman’s willingness to listen to God’s Will and the spiritual rewards that come with it is unarguably the most poignant and electrifying through-line of the film. However, none of this would have the impact that it does were it not for the historical drama that was Foreman’s rise to fame and fortune.

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That Big George Foreman is a good and entertaining movie, not despite its Christianity but largely because of it, is a testament unto itself. Whereas movies like Jesus Revolution, despite its surprising quality, mostly serve to entertain and uplift those who already believe, Big George Foreman can more easily touch the hearts of the nonbeliever because Jesus rope-a-dopes you throughout only to surprise you with a holy right cross in the second half.

You see, Big George Foreman is a really good boxing movie in which Jesus happens to play a key role. Any red-blooded man not suffering from low-T will be able to immediately identify with Foreman’s early struggles, especially those who know what it is to be truly hungry. Additionally, anyone who knows anything about Foreman’s boxing history will absolutely love watching the behind-the-scenes moments leading up to and especially after The Rumble in The Jungle.

Even so, in a 2h 13m movie, the lead-up to one of the most famous boxing matches could have been given more time to build. Instead, in its rush to get to Foreman’s conversion, there’s very little time given for the audience’s anticipation to build. Concordantly, Foreman’s tale is such a big one spanning so many decades that I suspect there is an extended edition lying on the editing room floor that would do even more justice to his story, and what we get in the theaters can sometimes feel rushed.

When the bell has rung, and the judges’ scores are tallied, Big George Foreman is a surprise knockout that fans of boxing and/or Jesus will love, and those who need Jesus in their lives should see. We are thrilled to mark it as Worth it.

WOKE ELEMENTS

None

The post Big George Foreman: The Miraculous Story of the Once and Future Heavyweight Champion of the World first appeared on Worth it or Woke.

Creed III

Creed III tries very hard to deliver emotional body blows throughout but lands none of them. Instead, the story slowly meanders from one attempt to another with no thought of furthering the narrative. Rather, each set piece is a standalone effort to evoke an emotional response from the audience. In one scene, Creed experiences a deep personal loss and, while it’s sad and well-shot and acted, it has nothing to do with the story. He gains and learns nothing from the loss. It’s just a sad moment. In another, he goes to the grave of his father…and that’s pretty much it. He gains and learns nothing from the visit. It’s just a sad moment. Are you seeing a pattern?

If the movie has an overarching theme, it’s that you should try to forgive yourself for old wrongs and move on. This, of course, is B.S. if you’ve actually wronged someone and did little to nothing to make up for it, which is exactly what Creed did. It’s not until the very end that he even apologizes for it. Nonetheless, throughout the entire movie, someone, be it his wife or his mother, is telling Adonis that he’s a good person and he should accept that and move on. Unfortunately, the audience is never shown that he’s a particularly good person. In fact, there’s a scene in which a fighter that Creed has sponsored is severely hurt by another fighter in a match that Creed orchestrated. The scene is played out as though it’s Creed’s fault that the boxer was injured (it’s not) and Creed seems to feel responsible (he’s not) but when the injured boxer is sent to the hospital, it’s the last we hear of him. Creed doesn’t try to visit him, or his mother. He doesn’t even send flowers. It’s a perfect opportunity to show that Creed has the ability to feel something for someone other than Creed and to set up the rest of the movie’s emotional through-line to be that of Creed fighting for someone other than himself. Instead, the movie blows it and Creed is, once again fighting for his own aggrandizement.

None of this resonates. Sure, in the first Rocky, The Italian Stallion was fighting for himself, but he was the underdog who’d been beaten down by life. Then, when he was given an unbelievable opportunity to forever change the trajectory of his life, he grasped it with both hands and worked his @$$ off to be the best that he could be and overcome the seemingly insurmountable odds before him. The first Creed movie was much the same. That’s a universal theme that everyone can get on board with. However, in Creed III, Adonis is already at the top. He’s achieved everything he’d ever wanted to achieve. He’s the world heavyweight champion, considered to be one of the best of all time. He’s wealthy beyond imagining. He has a wonderful, supportive, and loving family. He’s mentoring the next generation of boxers. He hasn’t even become some elitist a-hole who has to find himself. No, everything is perfect in Adonis Creed’s life, so when he fights for himself against a man whom he wronged and shows no remorse for having done so, it rings hollow.

There are also some strange casting choices. By the time of Creed II, Michael B. Jordan had thickened up enough that his character had to be upgraded to a heavyweight. That means that he was a minimum of 201 lbs. In Creed III, the main antagonist is played by a ripped Jonathan Majors (Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania) who weighs at least 215 lbs., and at one point he has a heavyweight fight against an actor who is a 160 welterweight boxer in real life. Even when he’s not standing toe to toe with Majors, he looks scrawny, and it’s jarring. Why they wouldn’t have cast someone who looked more the part is a real mystery.

Since we’re talking about performances, let’s talk about Michael B. Jordan. In Creed III, Jordan plays the same character he’s been playing since 2012’s Chronicle. Don’t get me wrong, he does it well, and sometimes he’s an angrier version of him (Killmonger), but it’s still the same smooth and cocky guy.

Then there’s the block of wood that everyone knows as Tessa Thompson (Thor: Love and Thunder). She’s not given enough to do in this film to be distracting, but I’ll never know how the single expression that she’s capable of making keeps getting cast in movies.

Finally, there is Jonathan Majors, who plays “Diamond” Dave Anderson. This is the second movie that I’ve seen with him, the first being the aforementioned Ant-Man sequel. This is also, the second time that I’ve seen him completely wasted. He has a wonderful intensity about him and is completely invested in Anderson. Unfortunately, he’s not given much of anything to work with.

When it’s all said and done, Creed III is a stylishly filmed movie that had me checking my watch multiple times throughout its viewing. If you’re hoping for a fight movie, this is not it, as there are few fights and they are very very far between. If you’re hoping for a Rocky movie, you’re going to be disappointed, since Rocky is never once mentioned. There’s not even a photograph of him anywhere. If you’re hoping for two hours of escapism, you won’t find it here.

WOKE ELEMENTS

• There’s a scene in which a classmate of Adonis’s 9-year-old daughter bullies her and Creed’s daughter gives her the old one-two. This is followed by both parents discussing it and coming to the conclusion that “violence is never the answer.” They then proceed to take their 9-year-old to not one, but two professional boxing matches. In one, a man is brutalized to the point of needing to be sent to the ER. In the next, she watches her father fight. In both cases, she is close enough to the ring that, were she not deaf, she’d be able to hear the fighters’ sweat hit the mat. Furthermore, the movie clearly makes the case that violence is sometimes the answer. After all, it’s how the film’s resolution comes about.
  • The only conclusion that I can reasonably come to is that some snowflake producer mandated that the ridiculous concept be given lip service. It’s in a random scene that had no build up and nothing came of it. It was almost literally someone standing on a soapbox scolding the audience.
• The film’s entire theme is that of self-forgiveness through inaction. No one has the power to forgive themselves for things that they’ve done to others. People can ask for forgiveness, and if you’re a Christian, Jesus will grant you forgiveness if you truly and sincerely ask for it. However, in most of the major world faiths and virtually every culture, atonement is a key player in the granting of forgiveness. Even in Christianity, in which someone needs only ask for it to have it granted, atonement is considered a key tool in allowing one to move on with oneself. Creed III espouses that just moving on is a virtue unto itself, and only after you’ve fed your vanity can you then atone.
  • There are very few concepts in modern culture that are more subtle, seductive, and pernicious than this. Since it is the movie’s entire premise, I dinged it pretty hard for wokeness. After all, it’s the reason that the movie fails to connect.

The post Creed III first appeared on Worth it or Woke.

Based on the true story of a group of elderly widowers from New England, 80 for Brady tells the tale of four friends and NE Patriot fans, played by Jane Fonda, Lily Tomlin, Sally Field, and Rita Moreno, who want to share one last big adventure with one another.

80 For Brady

One day, four aging New England friends stumble upon the Patriots playing on the TV while one of the friends is recovering from chemotherapy. The next thing you know, they are hooked. They spend the next 15 years religiously following the Pats when one day they decide that they must go to the Super Bowl and root them on in person.

The performances of its four leads aren’t groundbreaking, but they deserve all kinds of laurels nonetheless. Beneath several pounds of makeup and botox, and despite enough plastic surgery (Sally Field notwithstanding) to make Madonna tell them to “slow it down,” these four old gals exude more spunk than many people half their ages. Rita Moreno is 91 years old! The fact that she’s doing anything other than drooling into a cup and sharing a bowl of pudding with President Biden is amazing, but she’s downright vibrant in 80 for Brady, as are the three other leads.

The movie’s comedy is pretty much what you’d expect. There are a number of sex jokes. Sometimes the sex jokes are old people intentionally saying gross things and sometimes they are innocently saying things that they don’t know are gross…because they are old. 80 for Brady isn’t a one-trick pony though. The ladies get high too. In any other movie, these rather pedestrian offerings would fail but, the leads, the music, and the director manage to squeeze out enough charm and bubbly effervescence that you can’t help but smile throughout the entire film.

The contrivances that move the story along are telegraphed so hard that I wonder if the filmmakers didn’t pull a muscle. Nevertheless, again, it’s so d@mn charming that you mostly don’t care. Everyone knows that Sally Field is going to lose the Super Bowl tickets the moment that she’s handed them. It’s clear that the old birds will find some silly way to get into the game the second after the tickets are lost. But none of it matters. Lilly Tomlin’s always been cute and fun. 83-year-old Lilly Tomlin is grandma cute and fun. It just works.

My one true criticism about the film is the completely unnecessary inclusion of Tom Brady yelling an F-bomb. It was jarring and didn’t fit the moment, nor did it land comedically.

80 For Brady isn’t innovative, or particularly insightful or inspiring, but it is darn cute, and a light and breezy way to spend an hour and thirty-eight minutes.

WOKE ELEMENTS

The irony that I don’t have much to put in this section when talking about a film that features both Sally Field and Hanoi Jane, is not lost on me. However, I don’t.

I really only have two observations.

• Billy Porter is in it just to have a flamboyantly gay character in the film for the sake of having a flamboyantly gay character in the film. But he’s in it for such a small amount of time and his character has so little bearing on the film that it hardly matters.
• Sally Fields’s character’s husband is a disgusting beta male. But at least she doesn’t spend the movie belittling him. Instead, she actually helps him be a better man with love and out of love.

The post 80 For Brady first appeared on Worth it or Woke.