What kind of summer would it be without an ugly-duckling epic, this time swan-blossoming into an international ping-pong champion? Thanks to the help of FBI Agent Ernie Rodriguez (George Lopez) and table tennis guru Master Wong (James Hong), protagonist Randy Daytona (Dan Fogler) becomes just that. “”Balls of Fury,”” directed by Ben Garant of “”Reno 911,”” is a classic underdog story with an avenge-my-father’s-killer twist – think Inigo Montoya of “”The Princess Bride”” in Vince Vaughn’s spandex dodgeball shorts.

Lopez enlists ping-pong has-been Fogler to hone his rusty talent under Hong’s instruction in preparation for an undercover infiltration of crime-lord Feng’s (Christopher Walken) international table tennis tournament. Sure, we’ve seen this all before; but if it was great then, it’s next-level amazing now. And with what looks to be golden performances from Walken and co-writer Thomas Lennon (also of “”Reno 911″”), “”Balls”” is all geared up and ready to dominate the courts through the hottest months of the year. Aug 31.