Blame Adam Sandler. The funnyman’s production company, Happy Madison, has transformed likeable The King Of Queens star Kevin James into a name synonymous with some of the worst “comedies” of the decade. I Now Pronounce You Chuck & Larry. Grown Ups. Zookeeper.
So although this may be the best Happy Madison film in years, and the most charming James has been in since Hitch, understand that this is the faintest of faint praise.
In an odd nod to Warrior and Mr. Holland’s Opus, James plays a slacker high-school teacher devastated when budget cuts threaten the job of adorably enthusiastic music instructor Henry Winkler. In a desperate attempt to raise funds, James stumbles into a mixed martial arts competition, and, thus, the underdog story begins. It’s served with a side-order sub-plot of wacky immigrants trying to get citizenship, while Salma Hayek is the cherry-on-top love interest.
James is easy-going and likeable, and, while Hayek’s character is sketchily drawn, the actors share the comfortable chemistry of friends who have worked together before. Winkler travels his usual gamut of daft, wacky and huggable. Cameos from UFC stars Joe Rogan and Bas Rutten will appease MMA lovers.
Painfully average.