Balls Out: Gary the Tennis Coach (2009)

Randy Quaid, and Sean William Scott what a pairing they need to be in more movies together,, they just play so well off of each other.. there are so many laughs in this movie, i'm lucky I wasn't at the theater because I would have snorted my soda and choked on my popcorn. the story is pretty straight forward, the Tennis Coach, Randy Quaid, needs an assistant and Stiffler is chosen to help, in part because he used to play tennis,, he helps out the coach, and eventually inherits the team when the coach has a heart attack,, next up is the state finals for the tennis championship, he has to teach a bunch of losers how to play good tennis,, and learn how to compete as a team... very funny movie with a lot of serious adult humor, no child under 16 should see this,, for crude sexual innuendo.

Being a fan of Seann William Scott, I decided to check this film out to see if many of the positive user reviews were accurate, but after watching this film I disagree on many accounts. I think Scott (Gay Houseman) does a decent job as the lead but the film lacks good humour and a decent script. It's basically about a former tennis star whom gets transfered to become a janitor then ultimately ends up coaching a senior tennis team to victory. It's another one of those underdog sports films, and having seen many of them, this film is pretty much no different. (as in predictable). It first starts with the team being a horrible team- never winning anything then once Houseman comes along, he trains them and in the end, the team wins the ultimate trophy.I really didn't find the humour all that funny at all. It was more crude humour with a lot of F-words muttered by Houseman about everything other word, and I think the jokes fell a little flat. Some of the jokes include a little girl cursing a lot (one instance at the very end when a player is down, and she uses it as motivation), continuity jokes with a foreign Filipino student acting strange, an Asian grandpa laughing moronically, a few instances with midgets, and a lot of other gags and jokes involving the dialogue.For this film, I also found that there were many subplots involving Gary Houseman. (Him liking the Spanish teacher, involving himself with the Coach's daughter, the foreign student gags, training the star player on the team- though this becomes the main plot to the end). Seann William Scott was in about every scene of this film so he had to carry the load but was let down by bad directing and a bad script. The film was just too predictable and clichéd. It also went a little deep with a religious type line from Gary towards the final 20 mins of the film. He was speaking to Mike (one of his players), and he says "If God didn't exist, you would invent him" (at 1:10:40). From that moment this film shifts a little from crude humour and becomes more sports oriented. He works on training Mike to win the trophy for the school.This film is probably best for fans of SWS, fans of tennis, or those that like this crude type of humour. I tried liking the films humour but I just didn't find it funny. I think that Seann William Scott was a little desperate for cash at the time, or was doing this for a favour for the director (same director who made Dude, Where's my Car?). This film is basically a tennis version of "Eastbound and Down", with Danny McBride. Both have a lot of similarities, similar type humour, both lead characters act alike except Houseman seems to be more sincere and care more about his players than himself- was less selfish. All in all, this film wasn't that great, it was somewhat entertaining and could have been better. But I can see why this didn't get a theatrical release. Anyway judge for yourself!

Gary (Sean William Scott) is a failed tennis player, who did some semi-pro circuits in Mexico before getting thrown out. Penniless with his dreams in tatters in ends up in a small Nebraska town, where he decides to drop tennis and focus on different goals. Like being a school janitor. Fate has a funny way of punching you in the balls and push comes to shove when Gary ends up training the school's loser tennis team.Sean William Scott is an immensely talented comedian with so many areas he could explore with his comedic feel. Unfortunately most of his career paths involve eating turds, defecating and/or barfing. This movie is no exception to the rule with fart jokes coupled with some midget humour being the norm and slightly more congenial jokes coming sparse, if at all. That said some of the especially absurd humour really made me laugh.The movie really doesn't build too well and tends to bore a bit with no real story building apart from the stereotypical losers turning into winners. All in all this is Sean William Scott running the show and if you have disliked all the stuff he has done in the past just pass on this movie. For the rest - nothing special, but if you have a couple of beers, spare time and no great expectations why not...

When I first read a review of this movie, I wasn't sure I'd even bother watching it. But, since I'm a major fan of Seann William Scott, I just had to. And I'm happy I did! There's no doubt that the humor is aimed for a specific audience, and if you're looking for mature jokes, at least decent acting and/or a great storyline, you may as well go find another movie, 'cause you won't get any of those things here.However, if you, like myself, enjoy stupid jokes, immaturity on a high level, and acting that doesn't need to be great, as long as it's funny, you've got a winner right here. From little girls who apparently use the internet too much, to china men laughing their balls off, over to Indonesian table tennis players who don't speak a lick of English, this flick just kicks you in the nuts at every turn, and that in a good way, I might add.Whenever I rate a movie, I don't look at individual acting, sets, lighting, directing or any other kind of technical pestilence. I aim directly at entertainment value on a personal level. And this movie entertained me all the way through, hence I give it an 8 out of 10. I advise everyone with a deep-in-the-dirt sense of humor to watch this, and hopefully you'll enjoy it as much as I did.Thanks to the makers.