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Balls of Fury (2007)

Rating: 1 Star (out of 4)

Ping Wrong

By Jeffrey M. Anderson

Buy Balls of Fury on DVD

Similar to Blades of Glory, but not as funny, this stagnant, uninspired comedy lazily references Enter the Dragon (1973) and dozens of other sports and action movies, while lead actor Dan Fogler borrows his shtick from Sam Kinison and Jack Black. A once-promising Ping Pong contender, Randy Daytona (Fogler), infiltrates a high stakes tournament in the hopes of bringing down its evil host, Feng (Christopher Walken). Director and co-writer Robert Ben Garant ("Reno 911!") can't deliver a single joke without forecasting it. George Lopez as an FBI agent and James Hong as the blind master essentially repeat their own one-note gags throughout, while Maggie Q plays a poorly written love interest. Only Walken manages to depart from the monotony with his now-trademark loopy line deliveries.

AskMen.com: Balls of Fury

Starring: Dan Fogler, Christopher Walken, George Lopez, Maggie Q, James Hong, Terry Crews, Robert Patrick, Diedrich Bader, Aisha Tyler, Thomas Lennon, Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa, Brett DelBuono, Jason Scott Lee, David Koechner
Written by: Robert Ben Garant, Thomas Lennon
Directed by: Robert Ben Garant
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for crude and sex-related humor, and for language
Running Time: 90 minutes
Date: August 31, 2007