Independents Day 1: The Foot Fist Way

This year's summer blockbuster season has provided a few hits, but only one movie (Iron Man) that I would say was worth all of the hype. So, you can understand why I was happy to see my first independent movie of the season.

I had heard a lot about The Foot Fist Way. Truth be told Salt & I saw the red band trailer on funnyordie.com about a month and a half ago and since then have been quoting it to each other. And we're not alone, for as the trailer tells you Will Ferrell and his writing partner Adam McKay have been doing the same thing for the last year and they made it their mission to help The Foot Fist Way find a larger audience.

At first glance, The Foot Fist Way has everything going for it: a comedy superstar as a fan, the star of the movie had a surreal appearance on Conan O'Brien that created great Internet buzz. And did I mention that awesome red band trailer than popped up on funnyordie?



You can see why I was looking forward to this movie, so I jumped in the Murano and made the 15 minute drive from my house in Durham to Chapel Hill. The Varsity on Franklin Street is the only theatre in the Triangle currently showing The Foot Fist Way.

The Foot Fist Way tells the story of Fred Simmons (played perfectly by newcomer Danny McBride), a North Carolina Tae Kwon Do instructor who isn't lacking in self-confidence, but then again most of his admirers are pre-teens. His wife doesn't seem to like him all that much. He doesn't seem to have any friends outside of his dojo and he has trouble dealing with his clients.

The problem with The Foot Fist Way is outside of Fred's 12-year-old assistant Julio (Spencer Moreno) and his best friend Mike McAllister (played by director and North Carolina native Jody Hill) there really aren't any performances on par with McBride's. He's left without anyone to really play off of.

Like most comedies involving Will Ferrell, most of the best material is in the trailer. In fact, the red band trailer is so addictive, that if you plan on seeing the movie I would recommend not checking out the trailer. One viewing is just not enough, and this movie can't afford to give up any laughs.

There is a great scene about mid way through the movie when Fred and Mike take Julio and another student to meet their hero Chuck "the Truck" Wallace (Ben Best, who you might recognize from the party scene of Superbad). It involves some Tae Kwon Do and 12-year-old Julio eating cocaine. I realize that if you're a parent the thought of a 12-year-old on coke doesn't seem funny, but trust me, this movie pulls it off. Twenty minutes later there is a great confrontation between Fred and his wife Suzie (Mary Jane Bostic). I laughed only once in the time between the two scenes.

I hate to report it, but The Foot Fist Way is probably the most disappointing thing I've seen all summer. Yes, more disappointing than Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. Not worse mind you, just more disappointing. The cast and crew is already getting their next big shot. Will Ferrell has signed on to produce East Bound and Down, a movie about a burned out major league pitcher that returns to his hometown to teach junior high P.E. written by Best and Hill and starring McBride. That actually makes me happy, because The Foot Fist Way showed some promise. The funny moments were laugh out loud hilarious. I just wish there were more than six of them in the whole movie.

The Greek gives it a C+.