"Semi-Pro"" is a Movie Worth Revisiting

I enjoy most sports movies. When the movies focus on sports I watch and play, that makes it an even better viewing experience for me. Over the weekend I revisited one such sports movie from the recent past that I like quite a bit. Let’s discuss.

After I run on Sunday mornings, and get cleaned up, I usually take a rest on the couch. Sometimes I doze off, other times I just want to chill and watch something on the tv. So, yesterday I searched on Max for something to pass the time. Eventually I came across the ABA movie, "Semi-Pro". This movie stars Will Ferrell, and it is about a fictional ABA team, the Flint Tropics. This was when Will Ferrell had a ton of heat on him. He had a blank check and he could do whatever he wanted. I feel like he was given this because of fans like me. I enjoy pretty much every Will Ferrell movie. Even in the adjectively bad movies, I find something to cling to and find myself laughing and laughing. Now, "Semi-Pro" is not a bad movie, far from it. I think it is very funny, the actors totally buy in and they all seem to be having a good time. They also get to cast all of their friends, the basketball is not that bad and the wardrobe is second to none.

For those that may not know, the ABA was a small rival to the NBA. The ABA was more fun, there were more fights, they introduced the 3 point line and dunk contest and the league was full of dysfunction and a form of thievery. "Semi-Pro" has it all, but they imagine a world where it wasn't a foregone conclusion that the Nets, Pacers, Nuggets and Spurs were always going to be the teams that the NBA inherited. In "Semi-Pro", the Kentucky Colonels, Spirits of Saint Louis and the Flint Tropics have a shot to be chosen by the NBA. All they have to do is finish in the top four of the league. This is the baseline story of the movie, but all the while there are jokes flying, solid basketball being played, silly arguments, dope funk music and Will Ferrell and his buddies having a great time on set.

First off, Ferrell plays Jackie Moon, the coach, owner and starting forward of the Tropics. He has a humongous curly afro and has "written" a hit song. He is hilarious. Patti LaBelle plays his mom too. It was so funny when she showed up in the movie. Alongside Ferrell, we have Andre 3000, Woody Harrellson and some other comedy buddies, all having the time of their lives. The point guard for the team has some of the best, most understated jokes in the whole movie. Andy Daly and Will Arnett are the announcers. Their back and forth is tremendous. Andy Ricther and Tim Meadows work with Ferrell and for the Tropics. The whole "jive turkey" scene is one of the most nonsensical and hilarious scenes in movie history for me. Kristen Wiig plays an animal tamer. Paul Rust and Jason Sudeikis are lifetime fans of the Tropics. Jackie Earl Haley, coming off an Oscar nomination, plays a hippy who happens to also be a fan. Rob Cordry is married to Maura Tierney, and he happens to be obsessed with Woody Harrellson's character. David Koechner is the commissioner of the NBA. Matt Walsh is a priest who moonlights as an ABA ref. I mean, the list of comedic names in this movie is truly staggering and makes it all the more funny. For that reason alone, this movie is worth the watch. But, as I said before, the basketball is very well filmed in this movie. Andre 3000 has some skills. When they show them figuring out how to do an alley oop, not only is it funny, but it also looks great. Harrellson obviously has skills due to his time in "White Men Can't Jump". It is no secret that Will Ferrell enjoys basketball. The actors in this movie have enough skills to make it look realistic. Finally, for me, the music in the movie is rad. It is all 70's funk, which I adore. The bass is thumping, the guitars are groovy and the singing makes me yearn to listen to more Parliament. When Ferrell is driving to the club after the first scene in the movie, he is listening to an old school funk song and I find myself singing along with every rewatch of this movie.

"Semi-Pro" is an underrated gem from the late 2000's. It is much better than the critics gave it credit for, and better than you probably remember it being if you have only seen it once. Yesterday was probably the 5th or 6th time I have seen it, and I cannot wait to watch it again. "Semi-Pro" has a special place for me. It is pretty wonderful. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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It is Time for Will Ferrell and Adam McCay to Make Up and Make Great Entertainment Again

Over the past couple of weeks, and months for that matter, my wife and I have been watching Adam McKay and Will Ferrell movies. We love these movies. They are so funny, they fit what I adore about comedy, they are very niche and they are good, despite what the critics say.

We watched "Anchorman" 1 and 2, "The Good Guys", "Talladega Nights", and most recently, "Semi Pro". We had our date night this past Saturday, it was my turn to pick the movie and I wanted a funny sports movie. "Semi Pro" more than fits the bill. I loved this movie when it came out. I saw it in the theaters with a group of friends when I still did that. My wife came with me, except we were only dating back then. That's right, "Semi Pro" came out fourteen years ago, which blew my mind. The critics were tough on this movie, but, to me, it is the quintessential Ferrell and McKay movie. It is goofy, well made, has a ton of great comedic actors and they got to base it on basketball, a sport both of them love. All the other movies I mentioned are great, but "Semi Pro" is the best thing those two ever did.

After watching the movie my wife and I got to talking about how much of a bummer it is that they do not work together anymore. I know that Ferrell wanted to do his own thing and that McKay wanted to make more serious movies. But I was holding out hope that they would get together every now and then to do a silly movie. But the more we talked about their split, the more bummed I got at how minuscule it truly seemed. As I said, they each wanted to do their own thing.

More news has come out recently, with McKay even commenting on record why they actually split. McKay has a new basketball show coming out soon on premium cable, and I cannot wait to watch. I am not a Laker fan at all, but this show looks amazing. And when I saw the casting I was pumped. There are a good amount of unknowns, but there are some big name people in it as well. McKay has gotten to a level where he is a guy that actors want to work with. He has some pull now. And when they showed John C Reilly as Jerry Buss, I was stoked. But this seems to be where most of the trouble with McKay and Ferrell bubbled over. I guess they had someone else in mind for Buss, but when that actor pulled out, McKay gave the role to Reilly. Seems simple enough. Well, according to McKay, Ferrell was really upset that McKay didn't even ask him to play Buss. Ferrell is a lifetime Laker fan, and it seemed like he was destined for this role, especially considering McKay was making the show. Well I guess McKay never asked him, just gave the role to Reilly, and this pushed Ferrell over the edge.

That stinks. I get it. Ferrell probably dreamed of this role, probably assumed he had it, and then it was given to a good friend of his by another former friend of his. But I also feel like it is a bit juvenile to end a friendship and a partnership over something so trivial. I am not there either. I am not in the room, I have no idea what may have gone down with the two of them behind closed doors, maybe they have some bigger beef that they aren't releasing, I don't know. But it kind of bums me out, as a fan, that they simply refuse to work together anymore. This means no more silly, goofy and great comedy movies from two brilliant comedic minds. They have both done great stuff since they split, but nothing that holds the weight of "Anchorman" or "Talladega Nights" or "The Good Guys" or, especially "Semi Pro" for me. I hope they can get together and figure this all out sooner rather than later because the fan in me would love to see them work together again. They were so great as a duo, made some great movies and great content for Funny or Die, and I just really miss their style of comedy. They were unmatched as a team. They were my generation's great comedy team. But now it is just gone.

Again, that stinks. Hopefully, it will change. Hopefully they reconcile. My fingers will be crossed until then.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

Come and support Ty and the podcast on Patreon.

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SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.