Balls of Fury is Campy Fun
A Comedy as Absurd as Christopher Walken Playing an Asian Villain.
A review of the movie Balls of Fury, starring Christopher Walken, George Lopez, Maggie Q, James Hong, and Dan Fogler.
Critics will argue that Balls of Fury is a stupid movie – and it is indeed absolutely stupid. But what else could you possibly expect when you combine Ping-Pong, kung-fu, James Hong and Christopher Walken?
There are times in the film that Walken is the punch line; just hearing him say the word “Ping-Pong” draws a laugh. In fact, those who do flock to their local theatre to watch the furious balls fly will likely be there just to watch Walken play the wacko Asian villain. But the weird, campy and over-the-top humour more than compensate for the fact that his character, Feng, doesn't show up until half-way through the film.
Spoof of Bruce Lee’s Enter the Dragon – Sort of
Even the story doesn't make sense, though they rarely do in films like these. Dan Fogler plays Randy Daytona, a washed-up table tennis player and former Olympian and child phenomenon; his loss to the terrifying German Karl Wolfschtagg (Thomas Lennon of Reno 911) at the start of the movie is the most tragic and hilarious way for a child to have their innocence shattered, in front of the entire world no less.
Daytona disappears after his loss and resurfaces years later playing lounge shows in Vegas for unappreciative audiences. Enter Agent Ernie Rodriguez (George Lopez) who must enlist Daytona on a secret mission for the FBI; they must crack into Feng's deadly Ping-Pong tournament.
After years of being inactive, though, Daytona is obviously rusty. Rodriguez brings him to Master Wong's (James Hong) training grounds, where he must complete his arduous training.
Random twists: Wong is blind, Feng was his finest pupil (before going to the dark side) and his daughter Maggie is played by the gorgeous Maggie Q, who inexplicably falls in love with our Jack Black look-alike of a hero.
Campy, Quirky Nonsense
The jokes, like the characters, are fairly pre-packaged, like the stereotypical, delusional and perverted Master Wong and his butt-kicking beautiful daughter, but it’s the random quirks that make it work.
Take your pick - Daytona’s obsession with Def Leppard, the ambiguously gay sex slaves or the cute, Dora the Explorer backpack-wearing, crotch-kicking, tantrum-throwing six-year-old little girl known in the Asian Ping-Pong underground as Dragon – it’s all nonsense.
Ping-Pong = Laughs
Even if the jokes don’t deliver, though, the premise of the movie alone is enough to warrant a few good laughs, because like so many of the punch lines, the table tennis action is completely exaggerated.
Watch as Daytona assaults an audience member at his Vegas show by bouncing the ball off the man’s body, giving the man a stroke in the process, or look on in awe as he battles Feng to the death on a bridge. Even Maggie Wong takes on five guys simultaneously. It may not make sense, but it’s fun to watch. It’s brainless humour of the best quality.
