Netflix Instant Queue Diaries: Knucklehead

While the WWE’s newest straight to DVD release, “Knucklehead” is far from the type of comedy that most audiences will go crazy for, it’s proof that the company is trying to do more than simply throw their superstars into feature films.

With a supporting cast of television and big screen veterans such as Wendie Malick, Will Patton, Dennis Farina and Rebecca Creskoff, this film certainly has enough talent on the screen. Co-stars Melora Hardin and Mark Feuerstein have floated around the big screen and television for over 20 years and do a solid job in this film as well.

And no, the wrestler in the film doesn’t spoil the fun either. If anything, his presence helps more than anything or anyone else.

In the end, it’s the weak writing, which relies often on theatrical stereotypes than providing the audience with anything original that does the film in. Hardin is the cute and concerned orphanage worker with a shady past, while Feuerstein is the former fighter with a past of his own to hide. Bringing them together is Walter, played by the lovable Paul Wight, aka The Big Show, who must, for the first time in his life, be the tough guy and hero he was always supposed to be.

Now how many times has this story been told before? Like “Rain Man” without the OCDed card-counter, “Every Which Way But Loose” without the orangutan and “Karate Kid” without Mr. Miyagi, “Knucklehead” brings nothing new to the table.

That’s the ultimate reason why “Knucklehead” seems like your average B comedy.

In spite of a good cast and Wight’s own surprising ability on the screen, the plot and development of this film is paper-thin. We know all of these characters have something to hide, but nothing is ever fully developed. The same thing goes for the wild cast of characters the trio meets on their way to the tournament Walter needs to fight in to save his orphanage and Feuerstein’s character’s life. Had it slowed down and explain itself and give you an opportunity to fall for its characters, this film could have been a sleeper hit.

And that’s only the plot. The same thing happens with the majority of the comedy, which is either too campy or corny to be fully appreciated. Wight does a good job throughout the film, but director Michael W. Watkins does little to bring out the type of comedy a clumsy man that is nearly seven and a half feet tall should be able to. For example, the scene where Wight has to take a crap in the tiny bathroom on the bus was cute and even a bit saddening, but it should have been hilarious.

Throughout the film, it’s almost as if every moment that can be the one to take the film past the mediocre ends up missing the mark somehow. As a result, you have a film that never establishes any type of comedic rhythm or environment that can foster laughter.

While it won’t go down as a true stinker and should serve as a good taste of what Wight can do on the big screen, “Knucklehead” suffers from far too many ailments to be taken seriously and is served best as a rental with a few friends who could care less about plot development and cinematic precision.

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About Patrick Hickey Jr. 14230 Articles
Patrick Hickey Jr. is a full-time Assistant Professor of Communication & Performing Arts and Director of the Journalism program at Kingsborough Community College and is the chairman of the City University of New York Journalism Council. He is the Founder and Editor-In-Chief of ReviewFix.com. He's also a former News Editor at NBC Local Integrated Media and National Video Games Writer at Examiner.com where his work was mentioned in National Ad campaigns by Disney, Nintendo and EA Sports. Hickey was also the Editor-In-Chief of two College Newspapers before he received his BA in Journalism from Brooklyn College. Hickey's work has been published in The New York Daily News, The New York Times, Complex, The Hockey Writers, Yahoo!, Broadway World, Examiner, NYSportScene Magazine, ProHockeyNews.com, GothamBaseball.com, The Syracuse Post-Standard, Scout.com and the official sites of the Brooklyn Aces and New York Islanders. His first book, The Minds Behind the Games: Interviews With Cult And Classic Video Game Developers was released in April 2018 and is chock full of interviews with legendary developers. His second book in the series, The Minds Behind Adventures Games, was released in December 2019. His third book, The Minds Behind Sports Games, was released in September 2020. His fourth book, The Minds Behind Shooter Games, was released in March 2021. The Minds Behind Sega Genesis Games and The Minds Behind PlayStation Games were released in 2022 and The Minds Behind PlayStation 2 was published in January 2023. Hickey is also a contracted comic book writer, currently penning his original series, "Condrey," as well as "The Job," "Brooklyn Bleeds" "Dem Gulls" and "KROOM" for Legacy Comix, where he serves as founder, owner and Editor-in-Chief. Hickey Jr. is also a voice actor, having starred in the 2018 indie hit and 2019 Switch, PS4 and Xbox One release, The Padre (also serving as English language Story Editor), from Shotgun With Glitters. The sequel, The Padre: One Shell Straight to Hell was released in February 2021- Hickey also served as a Story Editor and Lead Voiceover performer. He has also done narration and trailers for several other titles including The Kaiju Offensive, Relentless Rex and Roniu’s Tale. Hickey is also the lead voiceover performer on Mega Cat Studios’ upcoming title WrestleQuest, responsible for nearly 90 characters in the game, as well as Skybound's Renfield: Bring Your Own Blood, where he voices both Dracula and Renfield, as well as several other characters. He also stars in Ziggurat Interactive’s World Championship Boxing Manager 2, where he performs the VO of nearly every male character in the game. He also worked on the Atari VCS’s BPM Boy.

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