"Big Bully" has a fairly amusing comedy premise in which newly published author David Leary (Rick Moranis) receives an offer to teach creative writing at his old Midwest middle school. Little does he know that he will once again encounter Ross "Fang" Bigger (played as an adult by Tom Arnold), the bully who made his life miserable as a child. Ross, whose life went way downhill in the interim, is coldly determined to pick up where he left off. In fact, he does add some spark back to his life, taking a savage joy in tormenting David.
Ultimately, "Big Bully" was mildly entertaining for this viewer, with its lively performances and oodles of lowbrow slapstick. For me, the reason why it worked to any degree at all was because of the actors. This movie is VERY well cast, although it doesn't give the radiant Julianne Phillips (as Davids' love interest) or comedy legend Don Knotts that much to do; in fact, Phillips IS largely absent from the movies' second half. Other familiar faces (Curtis Armstrong, Jeffrey Tambor, Carol Kane, Tony Pierce, Stuart Pankin, etc.) are a help.
Written by Mark Steven Johnson, who'd previously had success with his Midwest-set "Grumpy / Grumpier Old Men" comedies, this works in a supposedly clever ironic twist in which Davids' loutish son (Blake Bashoff) is a bully, and Ross' son (Cody McMains) is his victim. What WAS effective was that the resolution of their relationship is what motivates David & Ross to finally bury the hatchet. That final plot twist was awfully predictable, however.
Six out of 10.
Ultimately, "Big Bully" was mildly entertaining for this viewer, with its lively performances and oodles of lowbrow slapstick. For me, the reason why it worked to any degree at all was because of the actors. This movie is VERY well cast, although it doesn't give the radiant Julianne Phillips (as Davids' love interest) or comedy legend Don Knotts that much to do; in fact, Phillips IS largely absent from the movies' second half. Other familiar faces (Curtis Armstrong, Jeffrey Tambor, Carol Kane, Tony Pierce, Stuart Pankin, etc.) are a help.
Written by Mark Steven Johnson, who'd previously had success with his Midwest-set "Grumpy / Grumpier Old Men" comedies, this works in a supposedly clever ironic twist in which Davids' loutish son (Blake Bashoff) is a bully, and Ross' son (Cody McMains) is his victim. What WAS effective was that the resolution of their relationship is what motivates David & Ross to finally bury the hatchet. That final plot twist was awfully predictable, however.
Six out of 10.