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MOVIE REVIEW

Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy

MPA Rating: PG-13-Rating (MPA) for sexual humor, language and comic violence.

Reviewed by: Jonathan Rodriguez
CONTRIBUTOR

Moral Rating: Offensive
Moviemaking Quality:
Primary Audience: Teens Adults
Genre: Comedy
Length: 1 hr. 34 min.
Year of Release: 2004
USA Release: July 8, 2004
DVD: December 28, 2004
Copyright, DreamWorks Pictures Copyright, DreamWorks Pictures Copyright, DreamWorks Pictures
Relevant Issues
Copyright, DreamWorks Pictures

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Featuring Will FerrellRon Burgundy
Christina ApplegateVeronica Corningstone
Paul RuddBrian Fantana
Steve CarellBrick Tamland
Seth RogenEager Cameraman
Danny TrejoBartender
Judd ApatowNews Station Employee
Ben StillerArturo Mendes
Luke WilsonFrank Vitchard
David Koechner … Champ Kind
Fred WillardEd Harken
Chris Parnell … Garth Holliday
See all »
Director Adam McKay
Producer DreamWorks SKG, Apatow Productions, Herzog-Cowen Entertainment, Judd Apatow, David Householter, Shauna Robertson, David O. Russell
Distributor Distributor: Dreamworks. Trademark logo.DreamWorks Pictures, aka DreamWorks Studios, a production label of Amblin Partners

“They bring you the news, so you don’t have to get it yourself.”

Sequel: “Anchorman: The Legend Continues” (2013)

“There are three things I am good at, fighting, screwing, and readin the news…” Veronica Corningstone (played by Christina Applegate)

If you are one of the millions of Will Ferrell fans out there, chances are you will think this movie is hilarious. As one of those fans, I laughed my way through most of this movie. He is a funny man, there are no two ways about it. However, the film also contains many elements most Christian parents would deem inappropriate.

The film tells the story of Ron Burgandy (Ferrell) a hugely popular San Diego news man, head anchor of the number one news station in the city, along with his coworkers: sports man Champ Kind (David Koechner), reporter Brian Fantana (Paul Rudd), and weather man Brick Tamland (played by the hilarious Steve Carell). The four men love their work and the station, until their boss Ed Harken (Fred Willard) shakes things up by bringing in a new female reporter, Veronica Corningstone (Christina Applegate).

All the men are instantly smitten, and make fools of themselves trying to win a date with her. Corningstone is seen as a sex symbol, and right away the men make crude jokes about her and her body. However, she is the only female character in this film, and sadly she is portrayed as a sex-crazed bimbo, even as we are being told to believe she is the smart one who will revolutionalize the news studio. Ron gets a chance to take her out on the town, and ends up sleeping with her, in a very odd scene involving animation.

The film is not appropriate for children, due to the language (including the f-word, and numerous God D*** uses), and to the abundance of sexual content. There is no nudity or real sex scenes, however, the jokes and comments made throughout the movie prove all the characters to be sex obsessed. At the beginning of the film, a number of female party guests are seen lounging around in their underwear; certainly not something parents need their kids seeing.

The film has its moments of humor (genuine non-sexual humor), but the crude content outweighs anything good. There is also a bizarre fight scene near the end that is rather violent considering the genre.

In my opinion, “Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgandy” ranks as a C+.

For anyone interested, a number of cameos are in this film, most rather funny, from SNL stars, as well as other former Ferrell movie cast members.

Violence: Moderate / Profanity: Heavy / Sex/Nudity: Heavy

Will Ferrell co-wrote the screenplay for “Anchorman” with Adam McKay, a former “Saturday Night Live” head writer and founder of the Upright Citizen’s Brigade comedy troupe. McKay is also making his directorial debut on “Anchorman”. Judd Apatow (“The Cable Guy” TV’s “Freaks and Geeks”) is producing the film, with Shauna Robertson (“Meet The Parents”, “Elf”), David O. Russell (“Three Kings”, “Flirting With Disaster”) and David Householter (“The Core”) co-producing.

See list of Relevant Issues—questions-and-answers.


Viewer CommentsSend your comments
Positive
Positive—Anchor man is extremely amusing and full to the brim with wit. It is appropriately rated for ages 13 and up. I enjoyed the fact that there is less of the foul things you see in movies these days. I recommend this one!
My Ratings: [Better than Average/4]
Mary Hodgenson, age 41
Positive—I loved this film so much, that me and my 15 year old son have seen it thrice… If you liked Monty Python, you will love this more… Funny funny stuff.
My Ratings: [Average/4½]
Chris, age 42
Positive—First off, let me start by saying this is a VERY funny movie. It starts off a little slow, but overall it’s a riot. There was some crude humor, stuff you might not want your kids repeating, but hopefully older kids will know better. The Lord’s name was taken in vain once, which of course I didn’t like, but that’s relatively minimal compared to most other films out there right now. There was a somewhat violent fight scene, but it was SO ridiculous and phoney that I doubt anyone would take it seriously (it obviously wasn’t meant to be taken that way).

The only part I would really be concerned about is when a man is shown kicking a dog over a bridge. This was more than a little upsetting, and will most definitely upset younger kids (the dog of course is shown to be OK, but not until much later in the movie.) This movie is probably not the best choice for kids under 12 (maturity levels vary of course), but the rest of the family will have a good time (I saw it with my parents, and we all found it enjoyable overall). See all »
My Ratings: [Average/3½]
Kat, age 18
Positive—I am an 18 year old teen living with 2 very uptight christian parents. I must say I have NEVER seen my Christian Reformed Dutch upbrought father laugh so much in my entire life. The jokes may be “suggestive” but give me a movie (a good movie) that doesn’t!!! We can’t watch Walt Disney films our whole lives. Christians or not, this movie is right for any age. Why go through life shielding yourself from society?? If you are so dead set against this film, then WHY WATCH IT?? YOU KNEW IT WOULD CONTAIN suggestive and crude humor!…
My Ratings: [Better than Average/5]
Seth Brunsting, age 18
Negative
Negative—Dribble. Predictable. Weak humor. Not something even for the adults to see let alone the kids. We are called not to have a hint of sexual immorality in our lives, (Ephesians 5:3), viewing this movie brings us over the top! It not only demeans women but also demeans and undermines men. There is nothing funny about animal abuse either. I highly recommend you do something different tonight so as to be a good stewdard of your time and of your money.
My Ratings: [Very Offensive/2]
Kathy Ortiz, age 43
Negative—The film has less offensive language and sex than most films out today, but the plot and humor is juvenile and stupid. I considered leaving halfway through, not because it was offensive, but because it was so bad. The film is geared for a 10 year old and not a bright one at that.
My Ratings: [Better than Average/1]
Chris, age 45
Negative—This movie is based on a realistic time when women found it hard to break into male dominated careers. The underlying story of breaking of traditional boundaries is good. But the movie is not. It was funny, and I laughed aloud on occasion, but most of the movie has pointless (even boring) events. Uses of the G*d-word were present in this movie as in most contemporary movies (an unfortunate trend). Most of the gags were “potty humor” variety. I think the star of the show said it best himself during the bloopers at the end of the movie when he said, “this is the most ridiculous thing.”
My Ratings: [Very Offensive/4]
Jeremy, age 31
Negative2 HOURS of MY LIFE I could never get back! I must admit I normally find Will Ferrel and his sense of humor amusing.The reviews I have read in secular papers paint this as a funny and enjoyable movie. However, I found this movie to be one of THE unfunniest movies I have EVER seen. The “jokes” were each about 5 minutes too long. The dialogue was stupid (not in a funny way) and each character spoke in the same manner in which you could not tell one from the other. From a christian perspective I have seen more offensive comedies in content, but due to movie making quality and content (including a bizzare cartoon for the sex scene) I would never recommend this movie to anyone. Do not waste your money.
My Ratings: [Average/1]
Laura, age 29
Negative—The movie, “Anchorman” was silly. There were a few funny spots, but overall very silly. I was offended by the use of G*D—twice. I was amazed that they thought they needed to use this word. It is always offensive and pointless. They used the word “poop” versus some other terms they could have used, but did use G*D. I was not amused.
My Ratings: [Very Offensive/1½]
Karen, age 46
Negative—The reason why I went to see this film was because it featured my hometown of San Diego, CA. There were great shots of the Coronado Bridge but that seemed about it. I happen to like Will Ferrell because of his work with “Saturday Night Live.” I admit to laughing at some of the sexual humor in the film, however, once Ron Burgundy (Will Ferrell) dropped the F-bomb, I almost walked out of the theater.

…sexual references abound as well as cussing and a general disrespect for women. The story’s moral could not save this film from getting a negative opinion from me.
My Ratings: [Very Offensive/3]
Negative—I’m a huge Will Ferrell fan; however, this movie was both offensive AND stupid. Sure, I laughed a few times. But the chuckles were far outnumbered by the times I wondered if a 6th grader wrote the script. Tim Robbins rears his ugly head, and so does an anti-(W)Bush joke… surprise, surprise! In short, DON’T WASTE YOUR MONEY!
My Ratings: [Extremely Offensive/1½]
Michael Angelovic, age 36
Comments from young people
Negative—WOW!! This movie has TONS of sexual innuendo. I can’t believe I thought that this movie would be funny. I couldn’t believe that it was only rated PG-13. PLEASE DON’T WASTE YOUR TIME AND MONEY ON WATCHING THIS. There were a few funny parts, but I wouldn’t pay to see those again. I was VERY offended when they criticized our President in this. TERRIBLE MOVIE!
My Ratings: [Very Offensive/1½]
Emily Reynolds, age 15
Negative—Wow, I went to see this movie with a bunch of friends and although it had its funny “SNL” moments, it was very offensive. Personally, I prefer “SNL” comedy on “SNL” because its short… not almost 2 hours long. Sure, we had our laughs, but I was pretty much anticipating the end of the movie. There was a character in the movie that was a self-proclaimed “retard” and made random “stupid” comments all throughout the movie. Sex was taken very lightly in this movie. I wouldn’t recommend this movie to anybody… and if you feel that you need to see it… please wait to rent it and do not waste $ at the movie theater.
My Ratings: [Very Offensive/3½]
Lauren, age 16
Positive—This movie, Anchorman, was hilarious! Me and my friend laughed throughout most of the movie. It had a great cast with a very funny weatherman, Brick Taylor. It wasn’t very offensive to me. There is one scene where Jack Black’s character kicked Baxtor the dog off the bridge and everyone broke out in shock-laughter, as in some laughed, others gasped. Sure, there is some badness towards the women in the movie, but you have to remember that the movie took place in the 70s. The movie had a very unnecessary fight, but it just added to the laughter. There was also swearing, but that’s why its rated PG-13, so no one under 13 would see it. We live in a time where swearing is everywhere, on TV, on the radio, in movies, people are just gonna have to get used to it. Summary: See it, it is a very good movie. 2 thumbs up… and one big toe.
My Ratings: [Better than Average/5]
Michael, age 15
Positive—I think that it was a very funny movie…
My Ratings: [Average/4½]
Jorge, age 15
Movie Critics
…cute, silly, likable movie without much weight or intensity, but it’s also pretty funny…
Michael Wilmington, Chicago Tribune
…Like an SNL skit lasting 90 minutes too long…
Annabelle Robertson, Crosswalk
…a surreally dopey comedy that is refreshingly ribald without resorting to gross-out humor…
James Verniere, The Boston Herald
…merely the latest in a long string of hugely disappointing films from funnymen who would serve their young fans better if they pulled their minds and their scripts out of the gutter.
Adam Holz, Plugged In
…long string of heavy-footed sight and sound gags that must have seemed a stitch at the drawing board, but made me squirm in my seat…
Ella Taylor, LA Weekly
…goes nowhere. Sure, it’s got a minor plot and even a dose of historical relevance, but it never really gets into gear…
Philip Wuntch, The Dallas Morning News