Vintage

Al Pacino is cool as hell when portraying crazed killers in movies.  We have to look no further than his Tony Montana role in Scarface (1983). However, I can't buy him as a football coach.  Pacino has seem to lost a bit of his trademark edge he once had playing cold-blooded fools like Tony Montana in Scarface; an outspoken and hot-headed defense attorney in And Justice For All (1979), and the role he is lionized for, Michael Corleone, the heir apparent mafiosi, inThe Godfather (1972). Okay, the man is older.  He is slowing down.  It happens to the best.  I just don't buy Al as Tony D'Amato, the head coach of the Miami Sharks.

Pacino seems tired in this role.  Maybe that is okay.  After all, the Sharks suck.  Still, in the obligatory coach speech locker room scene, we have a chance for Pacino to deliver a "Win one for the Gipper" speech.  It fell flat.

To focus on football for a moment.  The movie is like Stone's JFK version of the NFL.  Players are all butt-hammering neanderthals (to paraphrase an actual line James Woods delivered as the team doc).  Jaimie Foxx as "Steamin" Willie Beamen (who keeps the "bitches creamin" - at least in his rap video), is the suddenly superstar quarterback of the Sharks, who both hates the exploitative system of Pro football, yet as a result, feels entitled to exploit it for the benefit of his egocentric stardom. Foxx was quite effective portraying a pro athlete; that certain arrogance, which many athletes do have. 

The tackles, passes, catches, and on field theatrics, is okay.  I wasn't wowed. The camera was very jittery.  Some of the long passes were filmed nicely.  I also wish they could have used the banner of criticism to really say this is the NFL.  I guess the NFL would have sued the hell out of Oliver Stone.  But, if you are making a critical film, isn't that right protected?

This movie was afraid to call a spade a spade. I mean, hell, in Jerry Maguire (1996), the real NFL was actually portrayed.  However, it was more or less portrayed in a very favorable light.  So, does the NFL control if they can be portrayed in a film? Wouldn't this be like Stone making a movie about a made up President who whose nameis "John F. Keely" and was shot in Dallas?  You see what I am getting at friend?

Cameron Diaz as the team owner sucked.  She is better used in funny roles.  I just don't like her as a bitch. James Woods as the team doctor was over the top.  He basically acted exactly just like the sleazeball character he played in Casino (1995).  He does those parts well.  But, I don't know, the team doctor was out of control in this film.  I'm still not sure why the doc would go totally out of his way to switch players' injury results?

Any Given Sunday is a conspiracy theorists version of Pro football.  In Oliver Stone's world, all football players are assholes.  The white players are heavy metal, steroid abusing, head-banging bikers.  The black guys are hood thugs, pimpin' with money.  The owners only care about the bottom line.  Everybody is a whore.  Even the fans are too. Is that the way the NFL really is? Don't I mention Al Pacino looked tired?

All in all, Any Given Sunday is not a bad film.  If you like football and you find yourself wondering what the hell to watch on the tube one night, and you happen across this flick, you could do much worse for a sports flick. The problem is that on "Any Given Sunday" there is probably something better to watch.