Here Comes the Boom

I have to admit I am a sucker for Kevin James, ever since King of Queens was broadcast in the UK I have loved the persona he plays as the 'average joe' he typifies what most of us guys do in life or would like to do and that is to act like a kid, never grow up and do as little as possible!! His transposition to the big screen has not been without troubles and whilst this is a bit kitsch, borrows from other movies, I still will forgive his choices as he is, like Simon Pegg, so likable that watching him gives a warm feeling like a mug of cocoa on a rainy day. Not an Oscar winner but an above average afternoon movie that is easily watchable

Whether you find him funny or not, Kevin James has been racking up the hits since focusing on movies. While not all were hit with the critics, he has managed to garner a following. The trailer for his latest Here Comes The Boom looked like a mix of the same old fair that he normally delivers, but does it have any chance of working to deliver a funny comedy or will it end up being just another forced goofy addition to his resume.

Here Comes The Boom follows a biology teacher who is determine to save the music program from being cut in their school by becoming a mixed-martial arts fighter. While the premise is a bit out there and some of the scenarios are a bit far-fetched this movie works surprisingly well. There are plenty of laughs here that work on numerous levels, but depending on how big a fan of James you are will determine how funny they are. The real surprise here was the fact that there was so much more here than just a stupid comedy. The story is a typical underdog tale with comedy, but enough heart to keep you rooting for James throughout the whole film. Gone is the usual over the top bumbling funny fat guy, in its place was a cooler everyman that works perfectly for this story. James steps up to really deliver more than he has to date. He shows not only a good range with some different emotions, but is pretty impressive with his ability to carry the fight scenes. It was nice to see that while this was a comedy, they still took the fighting side of it seriously to deliver something not only believable but entertaining and will suck you right into the action. The rest of the cast do a great job of bringing everything together, with the real highlights being Henry Winkler who is a spitting image of the band teacher in the Simpsons and former MMA legend Bas Rutten. Both of these guys never take themselves seriously and deliver some funny memorable and likable characters.

This movie was a real surprise on almost every level. It delivers an almost Rocky like underdog tale with some over the top funny moments to create something completely unexpected. Kevin James really knocked it out of the park here and hope he sticks to these kinds of roles and continues to stretch his acting range.

I had low expectations for this given the plot (which you can't take seriously) and figured the best parts were shown in the trailers. I must say I was pleasantly surprised.

The plot is all very predictable but really who cares for this type of movie. The dialog is not that sharp (Seven Psychopaths it is not) and while some parts are a little corny, the film is light hearted, does not take itself too seriously and is excellent entertainment if you want to switch off your brain at the end of the week.

This film moves at a good pace, is funny throughout, with some real laugh out loud moments, and leaves you with a good feeling at the end.

High art this is not but anyone that expects high level stuff from a movie with this premise is not watching it with the right frame of mind. It's a good old fashion feel good film with a message. Dare I say Capraesque? I wouldn't even classify this as a comedy. It's a fantasy of goodwill film that induces plenty of smiles and packs heart. Kevin James is perfect in the lead and his common man qualities play extremely well here. They lean on the Rocky formula a lot but that's not necessarily a bad thing. One thing is for sure, Salma Hayek is the hottest "Adrian" type love interest to ever play in this type of film. She's amazing throughout. A warm shout out to Henry Winkler who is also perfectly cast as the somewhat eccentric music teacher with the heart of gold.

A wonderful surprise that I enjoyed very much.

"Here Comes the Boom" is part pedagogical movie, part sports movie, and all about dedication and commitment.

Scott Voss (Kevin James) was a lazy tenured biology teacher at a Boston high school who had long given up on trying to teach. The only thing he gave a half effort towards was asking out Bella Flores (Salma Hayek), the school nurse. Fortunately, Bella wasn't offended by his come-ons, because his advances could've been viewed as sexual harrassment.

Scott would have a cause to fight for, literally and figuratively, when Principal Betcher (Greg Germann) notified the staff that they would be dropping the music program due to budget cuts. Marty Streb (Henry Winkler) was the music teacher, he was passionate about it, and he had a baby on the way. If Scott, Bella, and Marty could come up with $48,000 they could save the music program.

Nothing they could think of was going to generate the needed money fast enough until Scott saw an opportunity to make good money fast doing MMA (mixed martial arts). He hooked up with an MMA trainer, Niko (Bas Rutten), and got to work. It wasn't pretty, but it certainly was funny.

I remember when this movie came out Kevin James was sporting a slimmer look. He was still on the hefty side, but a lot healthier looking. "Here Comes the Boom" combined two themes that I fancy: teacher reformations and David v. Goliath in sports.

As for the teaching aspect of the movie, usually it's a very motivated teacher inspiring the kids. In this case it was an unmotivated teacher finding some inspiration which he then imparted upon the kids.

As for the sports aspect, it followed the sports movie script, which I like. Sports movies are all about overcoming obstacles and nine times out of ten it's about an underdog becoming victorious. "Here Comes the Boom" was victorious. It was funny, clean, entertaining, and inspirational. I mean, if Kevin James can drop seventy pounds how can you not be inspired?

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