It’s written by Judd Apatow and Steven Brill, produced
by Apatow, and directed by Brill.
In “Heavyweights,” Ben Stiller plays a fitness
instructor (and not just any, but he is completely fit). Here, he plays Tony
Perkis, a physical fitness fanatic who turns a fun camp for fat boys run by a
nice couple, played by Stiller’s real-life parents, Jerry Stiller and Anne
Meara, into an intense weight-loss boot camp. His motivation? Plath mentioned, “He’s
shooting footage of everything, hoping to use it in an informercial for a
weight-loss method he thinks will make him ridiculously rich. So he replaces
all the easy-going staffers with a bunch of neo-Nazis in black spandex—one of
whom (Tom Hodges) actually speaks with an exaggerated German accent.”
Plath continued, “Stiller doesn’t just flex his way
through the sequences—he climbs, he does flips, he does sit-ups and push-ups,
he contorts, he runs, he leaps over tall buildings, and I’m sure he has some
assistance from a stunt man. But he’s still in the best shape of his
professional life—like Derek Zoolander on steroids, and with an attitude.”
What begins as a point-of-view narrative focusing on a
first-time camper quickly becomes an ensemble film, with the boy taken in by the
camp, the campers, and the idea that result when the owners announce they’ve
been bought out and forced to retire. At some time one of the counselors, Pat
Finley, played by Tom McGowan, breaks out as a second crucial point, with new
nurse Leah Lail as his possible love interest, but it stays, really, one big
ensemble. The campers include current SNL guy Kenan Thompson, David Goldman,
Joseph Wayne Miller, Cody Burger, and Allen Covert.
After a fast set-up to make paradise before the fall,
it feels like a two-act screenplay, with the first act like “Stripes” basic
training for the boys, and the second act their revenge. However, that might be
too strong of a word for a film like this, and Judd Apatow fans will be
surprised at how relatively good the screenplay is, how lacking it is in foul
language and bodily function humor. Plath said, “Still, I can’t imagine gross-out
humor adding a whole lot. The premise is what it is, and it’s mildly
entertaining and equally mildly humorous. As I said, the fun for most people
will be to watch Stiller and a young Thompson work through it.”
Plath ended his review by saying, “Though the bonus
features say “Heavyweights” has become a cult classic, I’m not sure how big
that cult is. But I will say that if I were locked in a room and forced to
watch one kids-at-camp film over and over again, I’d pick “Heavyweights” over
“Meatballs” quicker than you can say “infomercial.” There are more laughs, and
the characters are low-maintenance—the kind I’d like to have a beer with, when
they grow up. I’m just surprised that Apatow couldn’t convince Disney to
release this in two versions, theatrical and director’s cut, given all of the fun
stuff that didn’t make the final print.”
I don’t think this movie is for everyone. Maybe if you
had little kids, you could play this on Disney+ for them and just walk out of
the room because I don’t think adults will get into this. I never went to camp
as a kid, so I can’t say I can relate to the stuff kids did in the film. There
is an audience for this film, but I wasn’t one of them. I can definitely say I
didn’t enjoy this film, but that’s because I might not be the right age group for
this film. There might be some funny moments, but those are few and far
between. Everything else is just makes you want to turn to the person next to
you and talk about something else while this film is playing. Like I said, you
can put this on for your little kids and see what they think, but for everyone
else, you can give this a safe pass.
Tomorrow I will be looking at a novel adaptation that I
wasn’t really impressed with in “Disney Month 2025.”
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