There's simply no doubt that Peter Farrelly is one of the better fellows in Hollywood, especially for those of us creatives with disabilities. A passionate and committed supporter of disabled creatives, Farrelly is one of those filmmakers whose films I look forward to even if a solid 50% of the time I find myself disappointed. 

Consider me mega-disappointed with the Prime Video release Balls Up, a haphazard rauncher reminiscent of some of Farrelly's early work with almost none of the free-spirited goofiness or actual laughs. 

It's easy to forget that Farrelly directed an Oscar Best Picture, Green Book, even if most with a critical opinion do regard that as one of the weaker Best Picture winners in recent years. Since then, Farrelly has had a few misses, though last year's The Man Who Saves the World? was a solid producing effort. 

It's easy to expect that Balls Up would have worked considering it's penned by Deadpool and Zombieland scribes Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick. The basic narrative sounds like a blast. Elijah (Paul Walter Hauser) develops a groundbreaking idea for a condom that covers both balls and shaft. I mean, let's be real, that is actually a cool idea. Working for a Molly Shannon-led company, Elijah's plan is for the semi-failing company to win the World Cup contract because footballers are horny bastards. 

We quickly catch on that while Elijah is brilliant, he isn't exactly a salesman. Into the picture walks Mark Wahlberg's Brad. 

The plan works. Until it doesn't. 

I'm not sure I'd ever have expected Benjamin Bratt to be a raunchfest highlight, but so be it. He's a blast as Senhor Santos, who at first awards the company the World Cup Contract only to have an alcohol/drug free-for-all ruin his family and career. There's more and Bratt's definitely giving it his all here. 

The other highlight is the man of a million accents, Sacha Baron Cohen. As Pavio Curto, Cohen hits every gangsta cliche in the book with increasingly gibberish accents, wild ass death threats, and a cartel crew of absurdity. 

Hauser and Wahlberg, on the other hand, are just plain mismatched. Since they're the two co-stars, that's an awful lot of screentime that simply doesn't work. Wahlberg's outside his range here, while Hauser simply can't salvage the ineptness going on. 

There's so much potential here. It's actually kind of devastating to watch it all completely derail. Not even the always dependable Molly Shannon can make things happen, though I'll at least acknowledge that my Molly Shannon crush remains intact. 

I still love Farrelly. I always will. However, Balls Up is a film that derails quickly and never gets back on track. 

Written by Richard Propes
The Independent Critic