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Football Hits and Misses—Hollywood Style
Ah, springtime. That special time of year that can mean only one thing to all of you inveterate sports fans out there in movieland… Football season? Okay, so maybe spring is usually reserved for a sport of a more bucolic and placid nature, but so what? We here at MM rarely conform to the demands of the calendar—and neither does George Clooney, whose latest directorial effort, Leatherheads, hits theaters today. In honor of this latest entry into the football movie genre, we’re revisiting some of the genre’s hits, misses and fumbles.
HITS
Brian’s Song (1971)
Brian’s Song is comparable to David Anspaugh’s Rudy (see below) in that they are both unmitigated tearjerkers. It is also comparable to Rudy in that they are both true stories. And that they both deal with not just football, but disappointment, friendship, overcoming obstacles and courage. But Brian’s Song is different in that it does not have a happy ending. It’s the story of the bond that formed between Chicago Bears teammates Brian Piccolo and the legendary Gale Sayers. When Piccolo is diagnosed with terminal cancer, Sayers helps him through it until the end. If one does not cry watching this movie, or listening to it (one of the saddest movie scores ever by composer Michel Legrand) then one does not have a pulse.
The Longest Yard (1974)
The Longest Yard was shot during the golden age of the football movie—the 1970s, an era which still produced an original idea every now and then. The story of an ex-pro quarterback (Burt Reynolds) who leads a group of prison inmates in a game against the prison guards, it features one-dimensional characters, but characters you care about and root for nonetheless. This is not to be confused with the Adam Sandler remake of the same name, as there are several differences between the two movies: First, on his best day, Sandler couldn’t carry Reynolds’ jock as an on-screen personality—or athlete. Second, the opening scene of Robert Aldrich’s original movie features a domestic violence sequence that would make Ike Turner grimace—one you couldn’t get away with today. Also, throughout the movie, besides his trademark charm and dry sense of humor, Reynolds displays most of his real hair.
Heaven Can Wait (1978)
Based on Harry Segall’s play of the same name—which has been remade on numerous occasions—this New Hollywood classics, co-directed by Buck Henry and star Warren Beatty, is virtually nothing like the Ernst Lubitsch version that preceded it in 1943. Because this is a football movie. A perfectly written, acted and directed football movie. When quarterback Joe Pendleton is taken to heaven prematurely prior to his team going to the Super Bowl, he must do everything in his power—and heaven’s—to procure a new body, convince his old coach of who he really is, buy his old football team and insert himself as its star quarterback. Yikes! It’s not nearly as convoluted as it sounds—and is hands down the best football movie of all time.
North Dallas Forty (1979)
Another quality football movie from the golden age, North Dallas Forty s the semi-fictional account of a pro football team (based on the Dallas Cowboys teams of the early 1970s). It is brash, loud and irreverent and gives a completely unrelenting look at the mostly unglamorous life of a professional football player.
The Best of Times (1986)
This is an often-overlooked gem of a football movie. You will watch it and then ask yourself, “Why did I like that so much?” The answer is, because it was written by Ron Shelton (Bull Durham, Tin Cup), and Ron Shelton can turn out a whale of a sports movie. Doesn’t mater what sport it is. This one happens to be about football and is perfectly cast with Kurt Russell as the strapping yet aging ex-high school quarterback with an attitude problem and Robin Williams (at his understated and mellowed-out best) as the nerdly ex-high school receiver with a chance to redeem himself for the pass he didn’t catch.
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Kodak at Cannes
Since 1987 Kodak has been the official partner of the Cannes Film Festival, sponsoring the Camera d’Or prize that is awarded yearly to the best feature film by a first-time director. The tradition continues in 2008 when, for the fifth consecutive year, the festival will also hand out the Kodak Discovery Prize for Best Short Film.
“Cannes draws a huge number of filmmakers from all over the world every year, which gives Kodak a great opportunity to host our customers and show them how committed we are to the industry and to motion picture innovation,” says Kim Snyder, Kodak’s president and general manager of the Entertainment Imaging Division.
Posted 05.8.08 | News/Commentary | No comments yet...
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