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Adam Carolla delivers a winning combination of humor and heart. 

You may recognize Adam Carolla (co-writer/co-producer) from his expansive radio work where he’s offended people from Ann Coulter to the entire Hawaiian archipelago or as co-host of the chauvinistically entertaining “Man Show” or even more obscurely as the voice of “crass internet download” Spanky Ham on the vulgar reality cartoon “Drawn Together”. 

Based on Carolla’s reputation you’d expect his independent film The Hammer, to be full of crude one-liners, physical humor, and sexist undertones. 

Not at all. From the film’s opening lines, The Hammer is a story about dreams: the ones we hold on to much longer than we should, the ones we give up for reasons unknown and the ones that grow and change with us as we do. 

Adam Carolla is the perfect underdog. He delivers a winning combination of humor and heart as Jerry Ferro, an average guy and former Golden Gloves amateur who splits his working life between freelance carpentry and teaching boxing classes at a local gym. As Jerry’s 40th birthday descends upon him, he and his best friend Ozzie (hilariously played by Carolla’s friend and fellow carpenter Oswaldo Castillo) lose their jobs and then some.  Jerry picks up some extra hours teaching boxing classes and meets the charming, diligent, but un-athletic Lindsay (Heather Juergensen) with whom he becomes smitten. 

Along with this budding romance, his extra time spent hitting the bags at the gym presents Jerry with another opportunity: to train with fellow boxers Robert (Harold House Moore) and Victor (Jonathan Hernandez) under the legendary Coach Bell (Tom Quinn) and to compete to become a member of the U.S. Olympic boxing team. Against all odds and despite Robert’s constant skepticism, Jerry manages to get down to his target weight, with a little help from Ozzie, putting the two fighters in the same weight class.

Of course when all goes well, there’s trouble coming for our hero.  As Jerry starts winning at the regional trials thanks not so much to his athleticism, but more to his powerful left hand, Jerry learns of coach Bell’s true intentions with Robert and Jerry. At the same time, a lucrative job offer tempts Lindsay to move far away and Jerry must do whatever he can to convince her to stay. With all of his hard work seemingly slipping through his fingers, Jerry must decide whether to give up his dreams or fight for them. 

This film is thoroughly enjoyable from start to finish. Though its technical achievements were unremarkable, the story is filled with sharp, engaging, multi-dimensional characters, each of whom have a clear and motivating goal and each of whom are transformed by the plot and the relationships that grow.  Jerry especially, finds himself through the events of the story and the relationships he builds with Robert and Victor are truly organic and fun to watch. 

Adding to the wonderful development of the characters and the relationships is the dialogue. Carolla’s script is full of quick, witty (if not laugh-out-loud funny) and realistic dialogue. 

If you’re the type of movie fan to explore DVDs for extras, be sure to investigate what The Hammer has to offer. The commentary by the writers offers great insight into the making of the film, but it is just as entertaining as it is informative. There are also deleted scenes, bloopers, an interview with Oswaldo Castillo and Adam Carolla and some additional dialogue recording sessions between the to actors that are sure to give the viewer an extra laugh. 

It is worth mentioning that though The Hammer was given an R rating by the Motion Picture Association of America, it did not contain most of the elements the MPAA usually deems appropriate for that rating. For those unfamiliar, an R rating is generally given to films that use harsh language frequently in a expletive context and/or use harsh language in a sexual context, no matter how infrequently.  In addition, R rated films contain strong and/or pervasive violence, sexual content, drug use and general adult themes.  While The Hammer may use a few choice words, they are rare and expletive in context.  And, of course a film about boxing will have a few heavy hits, but the fights are, on the whole, without blood and gore. In this reviewer’s opinion, the R rating given to “The Hammer” may be a bit heavy-handed. 

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