Directed by: Josh Greenbaum
Written by: Sean aClements
Starring: Jake Johnson, Mary Steenburgen, Ed Harris, Aaron Chen, Patton Oswalt, Cleo King, Lynne Marie Stewart, Wayne Wilderson, Christine Taylor, Ben Stiller, and Andy Roddick
Runtime: 96 minutes
‘The Dink’ is a sports comedy worth serving up
Before Dusty Boyd (Jake Johnson) graduated high school, he became a pro tennis player! His nickname was The Hammer, and Dusty’s dad, Chuck Boyd (Ed Harris), supported his son’s aspirations of nailing a top-notch professional sports career.
However, Dusty’s dreams were shattered when he broke his wrist in the 2000 Vero Beach Classic. It’s 26 years later. He never went back to the pro tour, and The Hammer has been trying to piece his life back together with duct tape ever since. In his 40s now, he teaches tennis lessons for his dad at the Mountain Crest Tennis Club, a shell of his former confident teenage self.
Director Josh Greenbaum’s “The Dink” is a sports comedy in which a not-so-lovable “loser” attempts a shot at redemption. Greenbaum’s (“Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar” (2021) and “Will & Harper” (2024)) movie shares some shades of “Caddyshack” (1980) due to the snooty country club setting and an impressive cast, and “Kingpin” (1996) with a down-and-out protagonist hoping to rekindle past glory.
Now, “The Dink” isn’t in the same league with those all-time comedy classics. Greenbaum and writer Sean Clements’ flick doesn’t volley with heaps of bouncing belly-laughs. However, the filmmakers, Johnson, and company offer an engaging hook with Dusty’s down-on-his-luck story, and “The Dink” delivers lots of breezy, amusing moments, along with some heart, that play from the movie’s first serve all the way to its match point.
For Chuck, he hopes to end the increasingly popular pickleball presence at Mountain Crest. So, he finds a statute in the club’s charter to design a duel on the court, and if his chosen player wins, Chuck can pull pickleball from his club. Boo! To be frank, the whole duel setup feels forced and convoluted, and Chuck doesn’t exactly flesh out his idea for his organization’s top members or the audience, but they and we acquiesce anyway.
Naturally, Dusty wishes his dad will choose him to “save” the club, but Chuck sees him as completely unreliable. Look, The Hammer proudly sports a clear case of arrested development. He frequently relives his yesterdecade glory days, and his automobile of choice - a 1999 Buick LeSabre with “less than 200,000 miles” and a license plate that reads DA-HAMMR - did not originate from this century either. Thank goodness his best friend, PJ (Aaron Chen), is frequently by Dusty’s side and boosting his ego. (Chen has lots of terrific one-liners, by the way.)
Johnson gives a convincing portrayal of Dusty as a somewhat-out-of-shape, loudmouthed braggart. Still, he simultaneously gathers audience empathy with his fall-from-grace teenage story and his inabilities to both move on from the past and please his father.
He eventually decides to rehabilitate his tender right wrist on the pickleball court – a place where he discovers a dink shot - in preparation for this hopeful tennis encounter with the club’s reputation on the line. This is where he meets Candace (Mary Steenburgen), a divorcee about 30 years older than him. With her recent step into singledom, Candace feels vulnerable, like facing LOVE-40 without a racket, and after some initial (and then extended) teasing between the two, they become friends.
During the second act, the movie shifts from a sports comedy into rom-com spaces, as Greenbaum explores a potential relationship between Dusty and Candace. Certainly, a 30-year age gap for possible romance isn’t unheard of in the movies, but Dusty and Candace do call it out as a roadblock. Their courtship, however, is handled with lovely grace. Steenburgen, with a delightful performance in “Step Brothers” (2008), can flex her comedic muscles when needed. Although, she isn’t given lots of chances to serve comical gems here, Mary has her spots to shine, including standing up for Candace’s favorite brand of music. More so, Steenburgen successfully balances Dusty’s unrefined ways with Candace’s polish and poise.
Speaking of poise, outside of a pair of scenes with Dusty’s doctor, Dr. Stone (Ben Stiller), who expresses his appreciation for a certain off-color website and calls out a shady reason for Dusty’s ongoing wrist injury, “The Dink” can be considered a family film, one that avoids the (admittedly hilarious) gross-out humor of the aforementioned “Kingpin”.
What “The Dink” lacks in luxurious art direction, gorgeous cinematography, and intricate plot devices, it makes up for with charm, absolute dedication to seeing through the results (good or bad) of Dusty’s arc, and a wonderful extended cast.
Stiller (who is also a producer), Cleo King, Lynne Marie Stewart, and Patton Oswalt make memorable appearances, and former tennis star Andy Roddick finds his groove as a villain. Another all-time tennis champ delivers an entertaining color commentary, like Fred Willard in “Best in Show” (2000) and Jason Bateman in “Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story” (2004), but don’t look up who he is on IMDb. He’s an illustrious surprise.
Jeff’s ranking
2.5 / 4 stars
