Lady Ballers (2023 film)

Category: Sport comedy/satire

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From the same scallywags that brought you "What Is A Woman?" comes another cinematic masterpiece - Lady Ballers.

Let's get the politics out of the way first - being a Daily Wire production, I have no doubt that people who have a particular political or social ideology would instantly decry this movie as "offensive" prior to even pressing play simply because it's a Daily Wire production, but in all reality, Lady Ballers' purpose isn't offence - it's satire. And while Lady Ballers does indeed satirise certain ideas really well, one thing we need to keep in mind is that satire is one of the pillars of comedy, nay, of western society. Sure, be offended at the satirisation of men in women's sports and of gender ideology, but if you're not likewise offended at the satirisation of the 43rd President of the USA in the series "That's My Bush!" or of the satirisation of corporate culture in the The Office, you're really just picking and choosing what to be offended by.

Matter of fact, it's actually not gender ideology that loses the most in this film - it's journalism. You'll see what I mean if you watch.

Now, the name (and logo) of the movie essentially reflect the plot - a group of washed-up male basketballers enter a female athletics competition at the behest of their washed-up coach trying to relive his former glory, under the guise of all the men being transgender - meaning no-one can question the idea of men participating in women's sports - and hilarity ensues as they dominate the competition.

Alongisde this major plot is the coach's relationship with his daughter, his ex-wife and her boyfriend, alongside his sexual manipulation by a journalist and the various personal struggles each of the men face.

As a movie, I didn't mind it - Lady Ballers is essentially a sports comedy. And I will say that The Daily Wire do have good production values in their movies, so it's not unwatchable.

The last major scene in the movie was particularly funny and heartwarming, and Andrew Klavan's line about women with penises is a standout!

Also, being a Daily Wire production, there are numerous cameos from DW staff - Ben Shapiro as a basketball referee, Matt Walsh as the coach's ex-wife's new boyfriend, Brett Cooper and Michael Knowles providing sports commentary - the most hilarious of which is Knowles' character dressing as a Native American - and an interest post-credits scene with Jordan Peterson.

Last words - it's decent. Not brilliant, but decent. It got laughs. If you like low-brow sports comedies, this will be right up your alley.

STAR RATING: 3.5/5