A bunch of A-listers have teamed up for “Balls Up,” a brand new raunchy comedy that is now streaming on Amazon Prime Video. Directed by Peter Farrelly, one half of the previous Farrelly Brothers directing duo that introduced us classics corresponding to “Dumb and Dumber” and “Kingpin,” the film takes on the world {of professional} soccer (aka worldwide soccer), particularly in the course of the World Cup. It additionally options two big-name actors hamming it up on your viewing pleasure.
“Balls Up” stars Mark Wahlberg (“The Family Plan”) and Paul Walter Hauser (“Cruella”) in what’s described by Amazon as a “raunchy, over-the-top comedy.” And whereas Farrelly did helm the Best Picture Oscar-winning “Green Book” (one of most shocking Oscars upsets ever), that is extra within the director’s wheelhouse, historically talking. He’s been making raunchy comedies for 30 years. Why cease now? As for his newest effort, the synopsis for the movie reads as follows:
Marketing executives Brad (Mark Wahlberg) and Elijah (Paul Walter Hauser) go “balls out” and pitch a daring full‑protection condom sponsorship with the World Cup. After their drunken celebration in Brazil sparks a worldwide scandal, they have to outrun livid followers, criminals, and power-hungry officers to salvage their careers and make it residence alive.
Adding much more star energy to the combo, this one was scripted by Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick of “Deadpool” fame. The duo’s different writing credit embody the “Zombieland” films, Michael Bay’s “6 Underground,” and each “Deadpool 2” and “Deadpool & Wolverine,” so, once more, comedy is on the coronary heart of loads of what they do. Meanwhile, the film’s supporting solid contains Benjamin Bratt (“Andor”), Daniela Melchior (“Anaconda”), Molly Shannon (“Divorce”), Sacha Baron Cohen (“Borat”), and Eric André (“The Eric Andre Show”).
Overall, then, there’s loads of expertise concerned right here. But what are critics saying?
Ball’s Up may scratch an itch for the precise viewer
Of the 5 critiques of “Balls Up” posted on Rotten Tomatoes on the time of writing, just one is optimistic. In his one-star review for RogerEbert.com, Matt Zoller Seitz writes that the movie is “as tedious as it sounds, on top of making Brazil seem as dangerous as that area of Mogadishu where the U.S. Marines in ‘Black Hawk Down’ got slaughtered by furious locals.” So, not nice.
To that very same finish, the film’s handful of critiques on Letterboxd aren’t precisely flattering, however they’re considerably higher. A two-star evaluate, as an example, merely describes the movie as “Stupid.” Elsewhere, although, a distinct and extra optimistic three-star evaluate states, “If you just embrace it for what it is, it has its funny moments” earlier than including, “It gets the job done.”
For the precise viewer, then, this may scratch an itch. It is, in spite of everything, a return to comedy for Mark Wahlberg, which he is performed once in a while and performed very nicely at instances. His team-up with Will Ferrell in “The Other Guys” is buddy cop comedy at its absolute finest, for one. Wahlberg’s additionally received films like “Daddy’s Home” and “Ted” to his identify. Meanwhile, Paul Walter Hauser is a rattling positive character with comedic chops, which he proved but once more in 2025’s “The Naked Gun.” They’re an unlikely duo, which might make for good comedy.
As for Peter Farrelly, he is coming off cementing John Cena as one of the best beefcake comedy stars around with his film “Ricky Stanicky.”. That film may be very a lot a throwback to comedies of a bygone period and was additionally made for Prime Video. Evidently, the service likes being within the Peter Farrelly comedy enterprise.
“Balls Up” is streaming now on Prime Video.
