Blades of Glory (PG-13, 2007)

common sense media says

Spandex, stereotypes, and Will Ferrell on ice.


parents & educators say

What parents need to know

Parents need to know that this Will Ferrell comedy has lots of verbal and sight jokes about sex, homosexuality, drinking, and drugs. There are goofy-but-sometimes-violent physical gags (like a decapitation that features obvious use of a mannequin and fake blood) and ads for sponsored products. Characters fight, get cut by skate blades, shoot harpoons (one hits a mascot in the head and scares screaming children), and do some painful-looking stunts on the ice (splits, falls, ice burns). Figure skating's foppish reputation is skewered repeatedly, with over-the-top spandex costumes, poofy hair, make-up, and histrionic ice dancing. It's especially evident when the two main characters team up to form a spandex-clad male-male pair who hold hands, perform lifts, and accidentally grab and kick each other's crotches. Language includes repeated uses of "sucks," "damn," "s--t," and "ass."

Positive messages: Sex jokes are homoerotic and homophobic; skaters are fierce, devious, and violent rivals ... then Chazz and Jimmy learn to be nice.
Violence: Awards ceremony fight leaves faces bloodied; another comic fight involves punching, kicking, and body-tossing; Jimmy's slide across the ice on his chest produces a visible burn; Jimmy is handcuffed to a toilet; a rival shoots at Chazz with a harppon, accidentally hitting the mascot in the head and frightening children.
Sex: Chazz's early "sex on ice" performances include choreographed crotch grabs and pelvic thrusts; he also licks a fan's face and intimidates Jimmy with sexual bravado (mouthing "I want you," etc.); references to "classic Euro-porn" and Chazz's Adult Film award; a woman wears a sexy corset to seduce a man; lots of crotch grabs and reaction shots to indicate discomfort or arousal; discussion of lyrics in the song "My Humps; Jimmy's stalker fan makes repeated bizarre sexual/romantic comments; discussion of Chazz's conquests includes him saying that he "tapped" Michelle Kwan.
Language: Repeated uses of "damn," "ass," "s--t," "bitch," and "hell" (Chazz says their new routine will go "straight up the ass" of figure skating), as well as other language ("turd," "balls," "wiener") and name-calling.
Consumerism: Products listed on the sides of the rink and otherwise visible include Verizon, 7/11, X-Box, Nationwide Insurance, Cup O' Noodles, Mane 'n' Tail shampoo, Foot Locker, Subway, and Fruit Loops.
Drinking, drugs, & smoking: Chazz is drunk during his performance in an ice show for kids (drinking, vomiting, slurring his words); mention of Quaaludes.

More on Blades of Glory

What to talk about

Talk to your kids
Families can talk about Will Ferrell's appeal. What makes something a "Will Ferrell comedy"? What do many of Ferrell's characters have in common? How are they different? What other kinds of characters has he played? Which do you like best? What age group do you think movies like this one are aimed at?

What's the story?

What's the story?
Cocky ice-skating superstar Chazz Michael Michaels Will Ferrell shocks the sports world when he teams up with pretty boy and acclaimed men's singles champion Jimmy (Napoleon Dynamite's Jon Heder) in BLADES OF GLORY, a veritable "Odd Couple On Ice." After Chazz butts heads with Jimmy, the two bitter rivals are banned from future competition. That is, until Jimmy's most dedicated stalker-fan (Nick Swardson) comes up with the bright idea that they re-enter the circuit as a pair. The idea is so preposterous and yet so obvious -- after all, figure skating has such a "gay" reputation -- that it makes everyone nervous, including fellow skaters who worry about their own hetero-masculine reps. And yet, the guys' coach (Craig T. Nelson) soon has them doing lifts and leaps that no mixed-sex pair can manage (including goofily immature homophobic/homoerotic gags like repeated crotch grabs and a doubled faces-in-crotches pose). Chazz and Jimmy's success ignites the ire of siblings/reigning champs Stranz and Fairchild Van Waldenberg, who scheme to ruin their rivals.

Is it any good?

Is it any good?
 
As pleased with itself as any other Will Ferrell comedy, BLADES OF GLORY targets buddy and sports movie conventions, and -- oh yes -- ponders the implied "gayness" of figure skating. Ferrell is loudly ridiculous and oversized, both figuratively and literally -- he gained weight for the part, with his eyes receding into his fleshy face and his belly stretching his spandex costumes. It's all meant to illustrate Chazz's prodigious ego and appetites. More a series of gags than a properly plotted story, Blades of Glory does offer a couple of very funny bits, including one in which a speedy chase on skates down a frozen river leads Chazz and Stranz to the shore. Their rage and fierceness are suddenly stymied, as they must walk -- legs bending and figures contorting as they wobble on their blades -- across a street, across a linoleum floor, and up an escalator.

But as clever as such physical business can be, the film's overwhelming focus is the sexuality anxiety signified by figure skating. While the movie does give Jimmy the requisite heterosexualizing girlfriend (The Office's Jenna Fischer), all that really matters is the pair. Will they make it? You get one guess.

Movie themes & details

Movie Details
Studio: DreamWorks
Director: Will Speck
Cast: Jon Heder, Will Arnett, Will Ferrell
Genre: Comedy
Run time: 93 minutes
Theatrical release: March 29, 2007
DVD release: August 28, 2007
MPAA Rating: PG-13
MPAA explanation: crude and sexual humor, language, a comic violent image and some drug references.
Watch our review

This review was written by Cynthia Fuchs
 
 

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What parents & educators say

13

Most useful reviews by all members

kiwibird
teen, 15 years old
 
Good for tweens and above
Best Movie Ever

bananalover
teen, 16 years old
 
i love this movie
ha ha i love this movie but there is so sexuality and cursing and some drinking but your laughing every second that you don't really notice at all

movieelover
teen, 18 years old
 
Awesome movie.

uhya
teen, 13 years old
 
so funny but not for little kids

ohya
parent of 14 year old
 
funny

Hedgypus47
kid, 12 years old
 
Great funny skating movie
It's hilarious! Love it. It shows in the craziest way how two skaters, who hate eachother to the point of violence, can become friends and overcome being kicked out of single skating. Just don't show it to little kids because they'll repeat stuff that no one wants to hear little kids say.

super dude
teen, 13 years old
 
I cant belive my dad let me watch this when i was 10!!!

BestPicture1996
teen, 16 years old
 
Sooo stupid yet sooo funny
Such a silly movie but it'll make you laugh your butt off again and again even with its crude and semi-graphic jokes. Definitely not appropriate for 11 and under, but tweens and above will love its rudeness.

ilovecookiez
teen, 14 years old
 
Hiliarious
I love this movie! Okay it's a bit innapropiate but it's so funny! CSM, Take a chill pill. The movie's fine.

pepsi929
kid, 13 years old
 

Peachy Butt Purple
kid, 11 years old
 
PERFECT FOR TWEENS TO ADULTS
I PRACTICALLY DIED FROM LAUGHING!!!!!!! IT IS SO FUNNY

myfriendsrock99
teen, 14 years old
 
Best movie ever my 3 year old loves it!

candy00123
kid, 12 years old
 
Great movie, just have to be mature about content.
I have this movie recorded on TV and I've watched it seven times this week. You have to be mature about the content really. I just wish that the one scene where Jimmy slides on his chest was a little less... bloody.

njn
adult
 

cheesydude
kid, 12 years old
 
for pre teens
Great movie but Chazz drinks so much! He gets drunk all the time. But otherwise it was hillarious.

Neil13
teen, 14 years old
 
It was very good

Jenoi
parent of 12 year old
 
Hilarious, by far Will Farrell's best movie
This movie had some crude humour, that may not be appropriate for younger viewers, but it was a hilarious movie. I usually find Will Ferrell movies to be a disappointment, but this one was definitely funny. Will Arnett and Amy Poehler as skating's golden couple are the best part.

zackaback
teen, 17 years old
 
Loved It!

thejokerspencil
parent of and 3 , 11 , 12 , 17 year old
 
Funny
14- 16 if your that age watch it

Moviefan101
teen, 17 years old
 
Funny ice skating movie that will leave you laughing
Blades of Glory is a movie that will keep you laughing every time you see it. Will Ferrell and Jon Heder play rival ice skaters Jimmy Macelroy (Jon Heder) and Chazz Michael Michaels (Will Ferrell) who are competing in the mens singles competition in stockholm. when they get tied scores on their routines they have a brawl fight on the podium leaving both of them being stripped of their medals and banned from mens singles for the remiander of their lives. but the only way that they can come back into skating is to become a male-male pairs team. This movie is funny but has a lot of sexual innuendo and humor. this movie will make you laugh till you cry your eyes out

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ON: Content is appropriate for kids this age.
PAUSE: Know your child, some content may not be right for some kids
OFF: Not age appropriate for kids this age