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Movies / On DVD / Semi-Pro
Semi-Pro

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Semi-Pro (2008)

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Reviews Counted:151

Fresh:31

Rotten:120

Average Rating:4.5/10

Consensus: Semi-Pro is an intermittently funny, half-hearted attempt at sports satire, and one of Will Ferrell's weaker cinematic efforts.

Rated: R

Runtime: 90 mins

Genre: Comedies

Theatrical Release:Feb 29, 2008 Wide

Box Office: $33,370,443

Synopsis: Over the course of a string of successful comedies that includes TALLADEGA NIGHTS and BLADES OF GLORY, Will Ferrel has perfected a type of swaggering, machismo-fueled character, heavy on ego and... Over the course of a string of successful comedies that includes TALLADEGA NIGHTS and BLADES OF GLORY, Will Ferrel has perfected a type of swaggering, machismo-fueled character, heavy on ego and severely lacking in intellect of any kind. Typically set in the world of sports, these movies have allowed Ferrel free range to both mock and celebrate idiot masculinity. SEMI-PRO, Ferrell's homage to the wild, afro-picked splendor of the short-lived American Basketball Association, continues this trend, and finds him embodying yet another larger-than-life hunk a burnin' love in the form of Jackie Moon, R&B singer-turned-owner/player/coach of the hapless Flint, Michigan Tropics. As sports movies go, SEMI-PRO's story should be more than familiar to even the most casual fan. The Tropics are a lackluster franchise that place good times and flash over winning. However, when the league announces that they will be merging with the NBA and only taking the top four teams along, the Tropics buckle down and give true ballin' a shot. SEMI-PRO follows the comedic formula of other Ferrell movies and contains an equal amount of satire (tame-but-effective ‘70s goofs), slapstick (on-court brawls, zany stunts), and surreal non-sequiturs (an improvised poker game provides one of the film's most deliciously bizarre scenes), but it's not exactly interchangeable with Ferrell's other movies. Though the actor cuts loose as Jackie Moon, the film is decidedly an ensemble picture, with Woody Harrelson providing the movie's true protagonist, in washed up former NBA player Monix, and Andre Benjamin offering a charming turn as flashy NBA wannabe Clarence "Coffee" Black. Perhaps most interestingly, however, is SEMI-PRO's surprising attention to detail, though the Flint Tropics are a fictional team, the real ABA was every bit as wacky, unhinged, and, yes, entertaining as SEMI-PRO itself. [More]

Starring: Will Ferrell, Woody Harrelson, Will Arnett, André Benjamin

Starring: Will Ferrell, Woody Harrelson, Will Arnett, André Benjamin, Rob Corddry, Maura Tierney, Josh Braaten, DeRay Davis, Jay Philips, Jackie Earle Haley, Andy Richter

Director: Kent Alterman

Director: Kent Alterman
Screenwriter: Scot Armstrong
Producer: Jimmy Miller
Composer: Theodore Shapiro
Studio: New Line Cinema

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Release:

Jun 3, 2008

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Reviews for Semi-Pro

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1 - 20 (sorted by date)
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Root-canal territory all the way

Full Review Source: CinePassion | comment Comment
08/27/09
Fernando F. Croce
Fernando F. Croce
CinePassion
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Boston Phoenix | comment Comment
04/23/09
Tom Meek
Tom Meek
Boston Phoenix

Will Ferrell's Semi-Pro is a dreadful comedy. It's lazy and slipshod.

Full Review Source: Fayetteville Free Weekly | comment Comment
02/02/09
Tony Macklin
Tony Macklin
Fayetteville Free Weekly

No amount or combination of shame, absurdity and unflattering outfits seem to dint Ferrell's fierce commitment to character.

Full Review Source: Screen International | comment Comment
10/18/08
Brent Simon
Brent Simon
Screen International
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: St. Louis Post-Dispatch | comment Comment
10/18/08
St. Louis Post-Dispatch

In the end it’s too simply all too familiar.

Full Review Source: Q Network Film Desk | comment Comment
10/18/08
James Kendrick
James Kendrick
Q Network Film Desk

It isn't a good enough sports movie to please sports fans and it's not an outright funny enough movie to please Ferrell's fans.

Full Review Source: Three Movie Buffs | comment Comment
10/18/08
Scott Nash
Scott Nash
Three Movie Buffs
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: NPR.org | comment Comment
10/18/08
Bob Mondello
Bob Mondello
NPR.org

You end up with a movie that is way too simple-minded for adults on an ABA nostalgia trip, and way too dirty for kids.

Full Review Source: Philadelphia Daily News | comment Comment
10/18/08
Gary Thompson
Gary Thompson
Philadelphia Daily News

Semi-Pro offers nothing new.

Full Review Source: 3BlackChicks Review | comment Comment
10/18/08
Kamal  'The Diva' Larsuel
Kamal 'The Diva' Larsuel
3BlackChicks Review

A lot of it is funny, but the problem is that it doesn’t amount to much.

Full Review Source: Entertainment Insiders | comment Comment
10/18/08
Jonathan W. Hickman
Jonathan W. Hickman
Entertainment Insiders

Unfortunately, the outrageousness lessens in the second half of the film, becoming your straight forward underdog movie.

Full Review Source: Hollywood.com | comment Comment
10/01/08
Kit Bowen
Kit Bowen
Hollywood.com

Coming from someone that didn't like Ferrell's last few comedies, I can say that this is an improvement.

Full Review Source: Sin Magazine | comment 1 Comment
07/22/08
Austin Kennedy
Austin Kennedy
Sin Magazine

we don't really need any more of these movies

Full Review Source: sbs.is | comment 1 Comment
07/05/08
Stefan Birgir Stefansson
Stefan Birgir Stefansson
sbs.is

Qualifies as a sort of cinematic comfort food: it's the mac and cheese of the cineplex.

Full Review Source: Groucho Reviews | comment Comment
07/01/08
Peter Canavese
Peter Canavese
Groucho Reviews

... a film that is bipolar in its intentions, at once trying to make us laugh at Jackie and care about the rest of the characters, but it's a losing battle on both sides.

Full Review Source: DVD Review | comment Comment
06/20/08
Felix Gonzalez Jr.
Felix Gonzalez Jr.
DVD Review

Aside from the 'fro and his sport of choice, Jackie Moon is really no different whatsoever from Ricky Bobby, or whatever Ferrell's character's name was in "Blades of Glory.

Full Review Source: The Trend | comment Comment
06/11/08
Stephen Silver
Stephen Silver
The Trend

Semi-Pro stays true to the formula, and it's a pretty funny, good-looking comedy.

Full Review Source: Combustible Celluloid | comment Comment
06/06/08
Jeffrey M. Anderson
Jeffrey M. Anderson
Combustible Celluloid

I have to admit that not much about this movie made me laugh much at all.

Full Review Source: JoBlo's Movie Emporium | comment Comment
06/06/08
JoBlo
JoBlo
JoBlo's Movie Emporium

Affectionate if foul-mouthed locker room method acting, with defensive moves on behalf of the mostly flabby-abs homeboy team concept. And counting all sorts of eccentric, nutty and deeply lovable players, before sports went commercial and big time.

Full Review Source: NewsBlaze | comment Comment
06/02/08
Prairie Miller
Prairie Miller
NewsBlaze
 
 
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Latest News for Semi-Pro

September 22, 2008: Ferrell Swears Off Sports Movies Opens in new window
Sick and tired of Will Ferrell sports movies? Good news: the actor has promised USA Today that he's done making them. More...

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