The Hammer

I really wasn't that surprised that The Hammer turned out as good as it did. I know some of the criticism that's been laid out is that Carolla just plays himself. I'm not gonna disagree with that fact on the whole. He's basically taken a number of facts and times from his personal life and experiences to build this character. That doesn't make the story any less interesting or fun. A lot of writers do that so the critique is essentially pointless .I love the story of a man who at one point in his younger years was an up and coming amateur boxer with tons of talent. Could have been great if not for injuries and other curve balls life threw at him. It's a very amusing and heart warming tale to see him get back into the higher end of enjoying life and realizing some dreams of a better existence. All the while with a backstabbing manager and woman troubles on the side. I think Carolla really put together a very solid story that's very entertaining. No there aren't a ton of out loud riotous laughs, mostly some really good chuckles and a few laugh out loud moments. Whoever declared it law though that comedy couldn't be fulfilling while being more subtle and subdued? It's a genuine tale inspired by a lot of his experiences so the comedies in the reality. Watch it and decide for yourself. You might just really enjoy it.

Great story, executed well. The characters in this little gem are fully fleshed out and realized in a way that makes you fall in love with their struggle to find purpose in the later years of a young man's game. The material is mature and handled with utter grace but Adam Carolla, who if you consider his body of work, delivers a performance worthy of recognition. It's subtle, nuanced and self deprecating in a way that makes you want to root for the underdog. I've recommended this to all my friends because it's a a great little film that should have seen a wider theatrical release. If this is the kind of material that Adam has been looking to do his entire career I believe he's better suited for it. If you're thinking it's going to be an outlandish comedy based on "crank yankers", "the man show" or "drawn together" you're going to be disappointed, this is a solid romantic comedy and the first performance from Adam that not only represents his true maturity level but honors his abilities as a dramatic and comedic actor at the same time. It's a must buy from me.PS- the R rating was completely unwarrented. Children of about 10 would be able to enjoy this movie with no problem.

This is a very likeable, root-for-the-underdog, feel-good movie that everyone can like. One could mistakenly think that was a description of "The Karate Kid," but it applies equally well to "The Hammer."In fact, there are many parallels between "Karate Kid" and "The Hammer." They both have underdog fighters as their protagonists, they both have boy-meets-girl love stories, they both have wisecracking older fighters mentoring a younger fighter, and they both culminate in fight tournament, feel-good climaxes. And while neither movie is high art, they are both lighthearted, humor-filled romps that stand up to repeated viewings.The protagonist, Jerry Ferro, is played by Adam Carolla, and is loosely based upon his own experiences as a carpenter/boxing instructor before he broke into the entertainment industry on "Loveline" and "The Man Show." Imagine Karate Kid's Daniel-san becoming a 40-year old, sharing all his Miyagi-taught wisdom with a younger fighter, while simultaneously training for a comeback fight tournament, and you have a basic template for Ferro.Thanks to his real life boxing background, Carolla brings a great sense of realism to the boxing, and especially the rope skipping scenes. His dramatic skills aren't as impressive, though one could argue that Ferro is intentionally written to emulate Carolla's real life, semi-stiff affect. If that was the intent, then I'd have to concede that Carolla's performance is spot-on perfect (since it wouldn't be an act at all). In any case, half of Ferro's lines are Carolla-isms delivered in his real life comedian style, so this slightly weak link is generally not noticeable.In "The Karate Kid," the weakest link is probably the boy-girl love story. "The Hammer," on the other hand, has a pretty compelling love story thanks to great writing, and a strong performance by the love interest played by Heather Juergensen. And it's really hard to not admire "the candle scene" (I won't make this a spoiler by saying any more than that).That being said, the movie's greatest strength is its humor. You rarely have to go more than a minute or two between laughs. A movie that sends you on your way with a belly full of laughs, and a warm fuzzy feeling about underdogs catching a break is a can't-miss combo. Like I said earlier, this is not high art, so I'm giving it 4-stars instead of 5. But don't let that deter you from seeing this -- Karate Kid is also only 4-stars, and you sure wouldn't want to have missed that one, right?

I just watched this movie for the first time!. The humor was on point. The emotions were also on point. This is a really really great movie and I don’t know why it’s not more widely known!

This movie is amazing, and you probably haven’t seen it because Hollywood has hated Adam forever. This is 10x better than anything Hollywood has produced since 2007 when this movie came out and they shunned it.Good story and message, along with amazing production quality for a low budget film.

An excellent independent film by one of the most interesting personalities in radio and television and now on the big screen. Being a follower of the Adam Carolla radio show and his new podcast, this film has been so over-hyped by the man himself that I was expecting not only (admittedly low budget) comic gold but cinematic genius as well.The good news is, he certainly didn't disappoint. It was a well-written and believable story filled with interesting characters and clever plot lines. Adam's ad-libbing was even better than expected and his love interest, played by Heather Jeurgensen, is cute, funny and poignant in all the right places. The cherry picking of quirks and pet peeves from the real life Adam Carolla really fleshed out the Ferro character and the use of Adam's personal handyman, Oswaldo Castillo, made for laughs throughout.