Blades of Glory

Directed by: Josh Gordon and Will Speck

Starring: Will Ferrell, Jon Heder, Will Arnett, Amy Poehler, Jenna Fischer, William Fichtner, Craig T. Nelson

Running Time: 1h 37min

Like "Sex on Ice"! Well, hilarious, wet your pants and get tears in your eyes sex on ice. Will Ferrell continues his amazing run of ridiculously funny send ups of eras and cultures that deserve to be skewered through the improv mastery of he and his friends.

Figure skating, though filled with talented athletes, is quite silly to behold, second only to other Olympic sports skeleton and speed skating. And that's for the costumes alone. Watching Blades of Glory would be funny as a silent film, just to give you an indication of how brilliant the wardrobe department is for this film. In fact, i found myself watching it out of the corner of my eye while watching two other films that i paid for at the drive in, and laughing each time i glanced at the screen. i went to see it a day later.

The good news is that it's even funnier with sound. Ferrell and Heder work well together, giving us just enough familiarity (a little Ron Burgandy and Napolean Dynamite line delivery) but creating an oddly believable partnership as two former Men's figure skating champions who get banned from competition, only to return as a pairs entry due to a rules technicality/loophole.

The film wastes no time producing decent belly laughs, by introducing the two characters in Olympic TV coverage fashion, using 2 minute bios with hilarious voice over narration, and equally funny still photos and flashback video. By playing it close to the actual competition and sport, the film gets even funnier once the leads are able to improv their way to joke after joke after joke within a serious sports movie cliche premise.

The physical comedy is blended nicely with one-liners and sight gags, and the supporting players keep the humour coming when Ferrell and Heder aren't on screen. The only setback is when a reoccuring stalker character takes the screen, as the inital joke wasn't that funny, and turning it into a running gag makes it even less funny. At least it lets the viewer take a breather and wipe their eyes dry.

i was impressed at how the film approached the concept or premise without opting for the easy, Brokeback Mountain gag, or nasty homophobic comment. Instead, the brotherly love becomes a center piece of the storyline, allowing the comedy to rotate around it. There are a lot of similarities between how this film and Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story and Ferrell's other films balanced their romance and drama, which makes the comedy much more relevant and funny.

Molded in the same manner as Anchorman and Talladega Nights, though not as consistently funny as those two films, Blades of Glory is instantly quotable and gives the audience those moments of hilarity that make you laugh out loud to yourself even when you recall them three days later. i can't wait to purchase the DVD so i can watch the pair's first competition skate over and over to "Capture the Dream!". i know i will never look at figure skating the same way again.

Grade: A-