Football Movie Marathon #9: Any Given Sunday (1999)

The next movie in our marathon is Any Given Sunday, by director Oliver Stone (Platoon, JFK, Wall Street). The film features an all star cast: Al Pacino as the old school coach, Cameron Diaz as the recently installed team owner, Dennis Quaid as the grizzled-veteran quarterback, and Jaimee Foxx as the star backup quarterback. After these principal figures the supporting cast is absolutely stacked as well, featuring James Woods, Matthew Modine, Aaron Eckhart, Charlton Heston, Elisabeth Berkley*, John C McGinely, Bill Bellamy, Lauren Holly and LL Cool J. Then after THAT you get a whos who of football players: Jim Brown, Dick Butkus, the real LT, TO, Ricky Watters, Johnny Unitas, and Warren Moon. Good Lord. I probably know the names of more people in this freaking movie than any other I've ever seen.

So with all these actors and fun older players floating around what is the actual result? In my opinion, its somewhere between the most flawed masterpiece film has ever seen and a big guilty pleasure. Watching this movie is such a befuddling experience that it is difficult to put into words.

So to begin, the bad and ugly stuff. The gameplay scenes in the movie leave a whole lot to be desired. First off, the editing resembles a music video or something, leaving you no real orientation as to what is ever going on in the game. This was really offputting to me for the most part. You know how in some of the fights in The Bourne Ultimatium it seems like they just put a camera on Matt Damon's belt buckle or something and had him kick ass? It is a lot like that, only handled with a lot less skill and care. The camera is always shaking all over the place as if the person is trying to shoot the scene while running on a treadmill or something. Second, the lack of an NFL license is incredibly annoying. The uniforms and appearance of the game in general are ridiculous. Its also kind of off putting how they seem to transplant NFL history into their own leauge: "You'll NEVAHHH be Joe Montana!". I suppose that if asked to defend the style of the movie Stone would likely say that since the drama in the movie is so heightened above what is more or less reality, the action and the appearance should be too. I guess that I can buy that. One of the problems with that Playmakers show ESPN did a few years back was that they couldn't balance the overall craziness against a realistic backdrop ("I'm the best player on this team; I'm also gay")**. Any Given Sunday balances itself well, even if said balancing act gets tiresome and seems like it has had too much caffiene occasionally.

There are several really great dramatic scenes in the movie though that are really where it takes off. Pacino watching TV sadly as he is skewered by a Jim Rome type TV show host. Foxx's personal life falling off the tracks while his public persona soars (highlighted by a hilarious music video "My Name is Willie". Quaid's horribly tense scenes where he mulls retirement while his wife presses him toward staying in the game (wonder what goes on in the Favre and Warner households?). The subplot with LT's character is really interesting too. Essentially, he is playing and get an insentive based million dollar bonus and risking his life to do so, while team doctors argue over the ethics of letting him continue. The movie really breathes through these characters, and is only really slowed down for Diaz and LL, who are significantly less interesting in my opinion. The centerpiece of the movie is a giant Pacino speech before the big game, perhaps my favorite moment of his as an actor that isn't from a 70s movie.

I remember somewhat disliking this movie when I caught it in the theatres 10 years ago. Perhaps it was the fact I was with my parents and it was much more inappropriate then advertised (nudity from both genders...). Honestly, the awkwardness of seeing something you probably shouldn't be seeing with a parental figure can really hurt your opinion of a movie (Why are you doing this to me!?), and this was the second worst of these occasions in my life***. There was also a bit more purity to sports then, at least in my mind. Maybe I just wasn't ready to see a behind the scenes depiction in such an embellished and blunt fashion. I don't know. Watching the movie recently however, I really gained a new appreciation for the whole thing. I'm putting the movie at number 1 for now. Hopefully the 3 of you that read this aren't going to flip out over that.

Football Movie Marathon Rankings:

1) Any Given Sunday (1999)

2) Brian's Song (1971)

3) Knute Rockne: All American (1940)

4) Varsity Blues (1999)

5) Small Potatoes: Who Killed the USFL? (2009)

6) The Waterboy (1998) up a few spots by popular demand and a rewatch

7) The Band That Wouldn't Die (2009)

8) Invincible (2006)

9) Two For the Money (2005)

*For all the Showgirls fans out there

** For a terrific reinactment of this scene in any scenario, whether it makes sense or not, talk to Kyle Stinson. btw, I love that the actor they have playing the all-pro wide reciever is a white guy that looks about 5'-4"

***The first was seeing He Got Game (1997) with a friend and his mother.