Rogue Pictures, Intrepid Pictures and Spyglass Entertainment present a PG-13 film with an approximate running time of ninety minutes directed by Ben Garant and starring Dan Fogler (Randy Daytona), Christopher Walken (Feng), George Lopez (Agent Ernie Rodriquez), Maggie Q (Maggie Wong), James Hong (Master Wong), Terry Crews (Freddy), Robert Patrick (Sgt. Pete Daytona), Diedrich Bader (Gary), Aisha Tyler (Mahogany), Thomas Lennon (Karl Wolfschtagg), Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa (Mysterious Asian Man), Brett DelBuono (Young Randy, age 12), Jason Scott Lee (Siu-Foo) with a vast supporting cast.
The story has been done before in more ways than one both comedic and dramatic but I must say walking in with low expectations I left actually surprisingly amused by the movie. During the 88 Olympic Games there was one ping pong player to beat, 12 year old Randy Daytona. In a match against German Wolfschtagg, Randy loses the game causing the death of his father and the next 19 years of ridicule, not to forget his aspirations of going to Disney Land.
After performing at dinner theatres in Reno, Nevada showing off his ping pong skills Randy eventually gets approached by Agent Rodriquez with the FBI. The story thickens and so does the farce as they along with blind ping pong teacher Master Wong seek out to find and destroy the evil Feng. But where would the story be without a beautiful girl, enter Maggie, Master Wong's martial arts, hottie, great ping pong player niece. Wong with the help of Maggie works diligently to get Randy back in shape to compete in the "Death Match" at Feng's hidden compound somewhere in Central America against other top ping pong players from across the globe.
The death of the lucky cricket, swat battles against bees and the ultimate match enter the Dragon are all training methods used by Master Wong. Upon arriving at Feng's compound Randy, Wong and Agent Rodriquez are out to uncover his illegal dealings and pin him for the death of Randy's father. Faced with male sex slaves, Mahogany, a want to be Grace Joans villainous character, a dead panda, and Feng himself trying to recruit Randy to the dark side, anything can happen. Randy discovers it's better to die like a tiger than live like a pussy. But when the competitions begin and body's fall, it is the true test of skill and courage that tells the tale of true love right down to an explosive James Bond versus Scare Face climatic ending.
You may want to say hello to my little friend, a huge comedy with tiny balls. The story concept of course has been seen before on the big screen and besides Walken there are no huge name stars to speak of but the film does deliver what it seeks to promote. Pay attention to the scene with Freddy, an actor also known for his role in "White Chicks" probably one of the funniest in the film as he prepares himself to compete against Randy. An action comedy filled with the sport of competition mixed with some good acting, hysterical writing and slapstick enjoyment that will leave you repeating a few catch phrases as you leave the theatre. Albeit it won't be receiving any major awards from the academy but it should definitely recoup its investment and even more so as it attracts an audience out for a bit over the top, hysterical decent crime story.
Reporting for Talkin' Pets, I'm Jon Patch.