For anyone who doesn't know the song, this film's title can be misleading. At first glance it seems like a comedy, given it's title and the fact that it stars Kevin James. The plot, though, is hardly comedic and the film starts out in an almost depressing way.
James stars as Scott Voss, a former college wrestling star turned apathetic high school biology teacher. He used to enjoy teaching, but life seems to have lost it's purpose and he leads a life of solitude. Voss doesn't care much for his students or the people there, except for his friend Marty (Henry Winkler), a kind and charming music teacher. Marty soon finds himself in trouble, though, faced with the prospect of losing his job with a baby on the way. Scott steps in and vows to raise the money needed to save his friend's job, but soon discovers that it won't be easy. Things get interesting, though, when he meets Hugo, a community college student who was once a mixed martial arts fighter. When Scott discovers the money that mixed martial arts fighters make, he decides to try his hand at it. Aided by Marty and training with Hugo, Scott enbarks on a quest to kick and punch his way to the top. His plan is simply to advance to raise the money they need by losing all the fights he can, but things don't quite go as planned. Along the way, though, Scott rediscovers his love of teaching and becomes something no one ever thought he could be; a role model.
This movie isn't quite the underdog triumph that Rocky is, but it still warms the heart and demonstrates the values of courage, friendship, and believing in oneself. I personally enjoyed it much more than I thought I would. Even though it's not a comedy, there are some laughs, particularly when Scott enters a fight with the arena speakers blasting "Holly Holy" by Neil Diamond. Here Comes the Boom won't rank among the other underdog sports movies, but if you enjoyed Rocky, it's worth a watch. Public school teachers especially should give it a try, although real mixed martial arts fighters may have a hard time taking it seriously. Definitely not a bad movie, though.
3.5 Stars
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