Customer Reviews

Slam Dunk Ernest

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

I found the magic sneeakers plot very stupid. I'm sorry Jim (may you rest in peace), but this one was one I looked forward too and it was a let down. But I'l still watch it, just because it's an Ernest movie. Sorry Mr./Mrs. barb@favorites.com, but in case you haven't heard, Jim Varney died earlier this year. I know it's sad, I'm still mourning over it. Maybe the people who made the Ernest movies will come to their senses and rerelease the Ernest movies in his memory. Or maybe he finished Ernest the Pirate before he died and release that.

I'm a bona-fide Ernest fan. But if I had seen this movie first, I probably would never have seen another Ernest movie. It's just not funny. Jim Varney's talents are wasted, and nobody else in this movie had any talent to begin with.

For those looking for great Ernest, check out "Ernest Rides Again", "Ernest Goes to Camp" or "Ernest Goes to Jail."

Indeed, this is not the best Ernest film that has ever been created, but it is still an Ernest film. Once again, Jim Varney plays Ernest, the clumsey man who has all the good intentions in the world and saves the day in the end. It's funny, you never picture Ernest as a basketball player and this movie proved that he isn't lol! The movie, as in his previous films, has good heart. If you are a fan of Ernest, you should at least check this film out. I'm not recommending that you buy it just yet. Compared to some of his other movies, the movie doesn't compare to greats such as Ernest Goes to Jail. Still, I can't help but feel a little sad now that Jim has passed and we no longer have Ernest to save the day. It was a great legacy, and the character is portrayed very weil in this film. The story is sadly just not much to work with.

"Slam Dunk Ernest" is a tour de force comic performance from Jim Varney as his alter ego, Ernest P. Worrell, who has always dreamed of playing on a basketball team. Can your heart stand the pathos? Can your ribs stand the comedy? The film will fare well with young boys and dedicated Varney fans; also with Martians, single-celled organisms, fans of the Charlotte Hornets, and fans of mid-1990s Canadian cinema. Of course the plot is an excuse for Varney physical humor, and features extensive clumsiness and facial gestures (You know what I mean?) among the subplots about the temptations of money, fame, and women. Please don't miss Ernest's conversations with a mop, and (shudder) especially his own private fashion show. (This must be seen to be believed.)

Because Ernest is inherently inept at sports, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar enters as the Archangel of Basketball in a role you will not soon forget. His presence made the film not exactly worthwhile, but somehow vastly more amusing for reasons I can't completely understand. Kareem gives Ernest magic shoes, but warns Ernest not to use the shoes for evil...but does Ernest listen? Take a gander at his entry into the game versus the Hornets in a carriage fit for Louis XVI and you'll have your answer. (An aside: I'm not a sports fan, but is a ping pong paddle legal in regulation basketball play? Just checking.) In the end Ernest learns valuable lessons about teamwork and friendship, and allows team captain Barry (Cylk Cozart, the best actor present by a long shot) to go to the NBA instead of him in a selfless act: don't miss the triumphant final nail-biting shot of the game. Bet you can't guess who wins.

It turns out that Kareem was locked in a duel for the soul of both basketball and Ernest (the theology is a bit puzzling, I admit) all along, not that the limousine ride foreshadowed that at all.... I won't tell you who wins the karmic struggle, but I will tell you that if you watch the credits very closely you will notice that the On Set Dresser was Herb Noseworthy, and that three chefs were on the crew. All in all the credits were a pretty entertaining part of the film.

This is a perfectly adequate if undistinguished Varney vehicle, and will please his fans and kids who are the obvious target audience. It does attempt to instill the concepts of good values and sportsmanship, despite being tediously stupid. It's worth two stars, mostly for Abdul-Jabbar and Cozart, unless you are a Varney fan and then it's probably average at three.

Definitely the worst ernest movie i've ever seen- Very dissappionting- my family loves ernest movies- but this one is really bad. It doesn't reflect on or do justice to the earlier movies and the actors are terrible.

Definitely watch "Rides Again", "Goes to Jail", Saves Christmas", "Goes to Camp"

Slam Dunk Ernest isn't that good, it's a total disapointment compared the Ernest Saves Christmas and Ernest Goes to Jail (my favorite Ernest movie). But it does have some funny parts but the bad parts are when Ernest's girlfriend doesn't turn out the way she seems and when the basketball players are mean to Ernest. Only recommended to diehard Ernest fans.

This is the most moralistic of Ernest's films. In this film, Ernest is a night janitor at a shopping mall, who wants to join the basketball team that his fellow janitors play on. Naturally, given Ernest's uncommon ineptitude, the other fellows don't want him anywhere near the court, never mind letting him join the team. But a heavenly basketball angel (Kareem Abdul-Jabbar) drops by with some shoes that give Ernest the edge. Success quickly goes to Ernest's head. He finally gets his girl, but she doesn't quite turn out to be the sweetheart that he had in mind. To save the day this time, Ernest has to make up his mind about what is really important in life.

This movie focuses relentlessly on how decisions affect the lives of the characters. Each of the main characters, Ernest, his girl friend, his buddy on the team, and the buddy's five-year-old son are forced to face the consequences of the decisions that they make. There aren't many super-hilarious scenes in this movie, but I still find it great to have around the house. My 85 year-old grandmother loves it because of its religious themes as well as the lack of sex, violence, or bad language. And my 4 year-old niece loves it, too.

Why this movie was never nominated for an Academy Award, I haven't a clue. I watched this movie last night, and couldn't move afterward. The cinematography, the writing, the acting. It all came together like a Broadway produced ballet. I am definitely a better person for watching "Slam Dunk Ernest."

This movie plot isn't like some of the others he has made. Also, if you want family friendly stuff, there is too much immodesty in this one.

This is not one of the best "Ernest" movies, but worth watching if you are a Jim Varney fan. Which I am.