The Benchwarmers

"The Benchwarmers" is about 3 older guys named Gus (Rob Schnieder), Richie (David Spade) and Clark (Jon Heder) who start a baseball league against the bullies in the neighborhood. After a huge crowd comes out to support the team, the guys decide to enter a competition with the bullies. The winner will get a brand new stadium. Lots of immature laughs ensue…

After walking out of "The Benchwarmers" I realized one thing. That this movie is exactly like the trailer and television spots made it out to be. This means that if you didn't find the trailer funny or amusing avoid this film because the odds are you won't like it. I, however, did enjoy the film. It's not a great masterpiece or anything like that but more of an immature film that you can laugh at and remember what it is like being a kid.

I took three of my little brothers to see the film with me and all of them really enjoyed it. Just hearing them laugh and get such a kick out of it made the film just a tad better for me. This movie is childish by its very nature. All the characters in the film reminded me of watching little kids which in my opinion was amusing seeing grown men act this way. It was funny and amusing not to mention contained a whole slue of memorable quotes that people will be quoting for many days to come.

While I enjoyed most of the movie and I can appreciate it for what it is, a stupid fun comedy, I must admit some jokes were used too much. The fart jokes came by the truckload in this film and while a few were amusing, most of them weren't. Also the amount of gay sexual undertones in this movie was too much as well. When the film first tried a gay joke, it kind of worked but as the movie continued on, the gay jokes just got worse and worse and weren't funny.

Rob Schneider for once plays a different role here. While I have always been a fan of his cheesy and overly stupid roles, I am glad to see him play a different role. He played a more mature character and for once in his career, this role didn't involve him becoming something like a woman, an animal, or a male gigolo. I enjoy Schneider much more than I probably should admit and I am glad to see he expanded his role choice for once. David Spade is really starting to grow on me. After seeing him alongside Chris Farley in "Tommy Boy" and "Black Sheep" I thought he was someone who I was going to enjoy for many years to come. But then "8 Heads in a Duffle Bag" and "Lost & Found" came out and I lost interest in him. It wasn't until 2003 when I began to like David Spade again after seeing "Dickie Roberts" and ever since then he has been growing on me again. I think it's is whole sarcastic sense of humor that I enjoy. Like his quote from the movie," I didn't know athlete had three syllables, that's AAMAAZZINNG". I kind of feel bad for Jon Heder because I like the guy but after "Napoleon Dynamite" I feel he will be playing the same role for the rest of his life. He plays a more talkative "Napoleon" in "Benchwarmers" and is a lot of fun. He is still amusing and most of his jokes work but I just wonder after a few more films will audiences be tired of him?

"The Benchwarmers" is a must for those who are fans of Schneider, Spade, or Heder. If you hate these guys or hate stupid immature comedies then avoid this movie. There is a specific target audience of adults this is geared towards and is a film that you will either enjoy (notice I didn't say love) or hate with a passion. Also it's a pretty safe film that many kids between the ages of 7 and 18 will probably enjoy more than anyone else. Every once in a while, I enjoy seeing a stupid childish comedy like "Benchwarmers" but I know what to expect when I go into it and I got just what I expected. Movies like this aren't screened to critics because studios know they will not like it. They are not the target audience. But for myself, I can still like art films and enjoy silly comedies that have no substance. If critics loosened up a bit or maybe had kids and took them to see some of these movies with them, they would realize how fun some of these films really are. "The Benchwarmers" is a fun hour and a half for those who can appreciate this film for what it is.

MovieManMenzel's final rating for "The Benchwarmers" is a 7/10.

Entertaining feel-good faire about a landscaper (Rob Schneider) and his two nerd best friends (Jon Heder and David Spade) who take on the bullies of their state in a winner-take-all baseball tournament. The hook is that all the bullies are 12 years old or under. You pretty much get what you expect: stereotypical good guys vs bad guys , fart jokes, large breasted women WAY too hot to be interested in the likes of the downtrodden three, a good 80's-90's Adam Sandler-esquire soundtrack and numerous sight gags that make you squirm in your seat. What was unusual was the movie was actually pretty good. All the actors played their parts reasonably well and Heder was hilarious. (Although I half expected that there was some sort of product placement for a tanning system in this movie as everyone but Heder appeared to be way too healthy looking.) Definitely worth the price of a ticket.

Gus, Richie, and Clark are three of life's wallflowers. Richie, for example, still works in a video store and has never kissed a girl while Clark has a paper route and thrills to macaroni and cheese dinners from mother. When they spot a baseball team full of bullies doing their thing on a group of sweet nerds, they hatch a plan. The three of them will take on any little league team that has swelled heads and cold hearts. Nevermind that only Gus can hit and pitch, the trio do quite well and create havoc for the bad news bears everywhere. They even get a sponsor who promises a lovely new baseball field to the winner of the benchwarmers vs. bullies season. But, are there secrets that will destroy the benchwarmers noble ideals? This is a funny movie, without a doubt. The three stars, Schneider, Spade, and Heder, are a winning and wacky combination, to say the least. The gentleman who plays Richie's agoraphobic brother is a scene-stealing guffaw machine as well. The movie has top notch production values in costuming, scenery, script and more. The only problem, in-your-face throughout the film, is the bathroom humor that goes too far. Parents should be cautioned about this gross-out material before the family sits down to watch the movie together. Nevertheless, Benchwarmers has some good messages and giggles galore. It should be a hit with older children and fun-loving adults everywhere.

This movie was oddly delightful. I found it to be very entertaining, I certainly didn't find myself bored with the movie in any way. Although some of the side characters are contrived and somewhat monotonous in their weirdness factor, overall it does a very good job.

David Spade stole the show however, he did a very good job and needless to say his character was the real barrel of laughs within the film. My biggest complaint would have to be Jon Hedder (Napolean Dynamite guy). I must say he seemed to play the EXACT same character from Napolean Dynamite. All the complaints aside, this movie was entertaining and harmless fun.

I absolutely love this whacky comedy/nerdy movie maybe cause I have autism I connect with it differently! Denis Dugan has made a bunch of silly comedies this is one of the most ridiculous out there not appreciated much and it's understandable. I love the humor so much and how it flows; I never get tired of it maybe cause I respect quirky beings. Benchwarmers is wonderfully fun for what it is!