2008 Woodie Awards
"Scoundrels" Swindle Movie Audiences
Thorten and Heder avoid type-casting vut viewers might not care.
Eric Barocio
Issue date: 10/4/06 Section: Entertainment
Occasionally breathing deep like Napoleon from the drama-comedy hit "Napoleon Dynamite," Jon Heder occupies the role of socially-unaccepted traffic officer Roger Wadell. Like Heder's character, this film will have a hard time convincing viewers that it is better than 'middle-of-the-road' typical movie fare.
Wadell is a young man whose luck seems to be headed for the worst. Wadell finds difficulty first at work, and then at home, and his passion for children dwindles. He then discovers a top-secret class that is offered only to those who are referred by previous students privately.
Desperate for a means of obtaining happiness, Wadell collects the sufficient funds and gutsy courage to participate in a class that was referenced as "life-changing." On the first day, Wadell meets the harsh, upfront, and unmerciful Dr. P, played by Billy Bob Thornton. Dr. P is an unsympathetic character that attempts to create "lions out of women."
Dr. P arranges a series of tests for the class, and Wadell seems to excel at them. Wadell not only has to compete with his innate determination to accomplish something to obtain acceptance, but he must fight against a powerhouse of a man for the woman of his dreams. Heder has the acting skill needed to play this diverse role convincingly.
This film displays rare role-play chemistry between Jon Heder and Billy Bob Thornton. Their personalities clash, and it makes for fairly entertaining cinema. These two characters support the entire plot. The casting was correct, in the sense that the meek, ignorant Wadell, and the harsh, up front Dr. P created an interesting interaction that kept the audience guessing. Billy Bob had the ability to portray the successful, socially sufficient elder that Heder's character continuously strived to perfect. Yet, all the while, perfection lied in Heder's character and created a side to Jon Heder that audiences have never seen. Audiences should expect more serious roles from Jon Heder.
Wadell is a young man whose luck seems to be headed for the worst. Wadell finds difficulty first at work, and then at home, and his passion for children dwindles. He then discovers a top-secret class that is offered only to those who are referred by previous students privately.
Desperate for a means of obtaining happiness, Wadell collects the sufficient funds and gutsy courage to participate in a class that was referenced as "life-changing." On the first day, Wadell meets the harsh, upfront, and unmerciful Dr. P, played by Billy Bob Thornton. Dr. P is an unsympathetic character that attempts to create "lions out of women."
Dr. P arranges a series of tests for the class, and Wadell seems to excel at them. Wadell not only has to compete with his innate determination to accomplish something to obtain acceptance, but he must fight against a powerhouse of a man for the woman of his dreams. Heder has the acting skill needed to play this diverse role convincingly.
This film displays rare role-play chemistry between Jon Heder and Billy Bob Thornton. Their personalities clash, and it makes for fairly entertaining cinema. These two characters support the entire plot. The casting was correct, in the sense that the meek, ignorant Wadell, and the harsh, up front Dr. P created an interesting interaction that kept the audience guessing. Billy Bob had the ability to portray the successful, socially sufficient elder that Heder's character continuously strived to perfect. Yet, all the while, perfection lied in Heder's character and created a side to Jon Heder that audiences have never seen. Audiences should expect more serious roles from Jon Heder.
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