PE lessons may qualify as a fresh subject for movie treatment, but in this film staleness reigns as first-time writer-director Rawson Marshall Thurber relies on tired, comedy standbys, such as gays, fat girls and racial caricatures.

In pitting the fortunes of slacker neighborhood-gym owner Vince Vaughn's band of losers against fitness mogul Ben Stiller's hyped-up exercise thugs, Thurber forgoes biting gym-culture sports satire, or even Farrelly-style gross-out comedy.

For a while, Vaughn's slobbo guy charm and Stiller's creepy Flash Gordon aesthetic are amusing, but it isn't long before Vaughn looks like a Bill Murray disciple trapped among circus freaks, and Stiller runs out of weirdo tricks. By the end, the crummy 'humour' of balls slamming into the anatomy makes one a bit weary of the whole shenanigans.

ROD FRASER