Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story

Dodgeball is an often quite funny but also crude comedy about a scruffy and slightly too nice guy, Peter La Fleur, whose gym, Average Joe's, cannot keep up with its hip competitor Globo Gym. Peter is in fact on the verge of bankruptcy, but even so he is not keen on selling the sinking ship to Globo Gym. This is not only because of Globo Gym's insufferably smug figurehead White Goodman, but also because Peter feels responsible for his few loyal customers, who would be lost without a sanctuary like Average Joe's.

One of Peter's gym-goers, the nerdy Gordon, comes up with the idea that they should save Average Joe's by winning the prize money in the national dodgeball championship, held in Las Vegas. At first it sounds like a desperate scheme, but with the help of former champion Patches O'Houlihan and the lawyer Kate, who can do more than just add up figures, victory suddenly feels within reach. However, team spirit and the will to win must be mustered if the Average Joe's team is to stand a chance. For one of the fearsome opponents is the team from Globo Gym.

Despite its many unnecessary crudities, Dodgeball is a rather sweet and well-functioning David and Goliath story, in which the underdog team, thanks to their quick wits and willingness to sacrifice themselves for one another and the group, still stands a chance against the superior force.