When the Game Stands Tall

In addition to football, When the Game Stands Tall is also about life and values. The movie teaches the importance of developing character and virtue so that when you mature you can be someone your loved ones can depend on and you can contribute to a stable society. The movie especially teaches the virtues of faith, hope, love, and courage. Faith is a personal belief in God. Hope is the desire for God and the trust we will receive grace for the future and to be with Him in heaven. Charity leads us to love God and our neighbor as ourselves. Prudence is a moral virtue which helps us make the right choice in every instance. Justice leads us to respect the rights of others and to give them their due. Fortitude gives us the courage to carry out what is right even in the face of difficulty! Temperance gives us self-control over our desires and appetites.

The movie tries too hard to be more than a high school football flick. Having been both a boy and a high school athlete, I cannot remember any of us who could stand up in a group and construct a complete sentence, much less deliver the lengthy gut-wrenchingly eloquent soliloquies the viewer is asked to accept every few minutes in this film from children aged 16-18. Without a doubt this movie will appeal to the die-hard football fan - especially fathers who are actually so well symbolized by one negative portrayal in the movie. For the rest of us listening to those dramatic clashes of helmets and pads over and over and over, we couldn't get one word out of our minds - concussion concussion concussion. Opening at the start of yet another football season of obsession in this Country, the story panders to the ideal that if you play well, no matter win or lose, you will be a wonderful human being. Gimme a break.

Rife with clichés, leaden dialogue, and obvious greenscreen technology during the football games, "When the Game Stands Tall" was one of the most cringeworthy movies I've ever seen. The family wanted to go, so I did, but every time I hear the phrase "based on a true story", I think "direct to Lifetime channel" and my expectations drop about 20 points. The directors seem to think it's necessary to remind us that a scene is in a black neighborhood by making the hip hop soundtrack REALLY LOUD. Hamfisted doesn't begin to describe this turkey. I will say that the production team did a decent job recreating the real-life video of the funeral (translation: we have no imagination and we think you won't notice), and the games were interesting. Here in Pennsylvania, there are high schools that field spectacular teams year after year--many by recruiting to a private school, some not so much. This was the California version of one of those schools. The school in the movie happened to be Catholic, a fact that was almost completely ignored, except for a couple scenes where the coach is also teaching religion class (or what passes for it). The stereotypes are all there: The grandparents caring for their grandson, the rabid fan dad who lives vicariously through his son's accomplishments, even the cameo appearance by a real live football star. This game didn't stand tall. Sorry pals and gals, don't waste your money.

When the Game Stands Tall is about coach Bob Ladouceur and his values. Bob Ladouceur turned down bigger offers to coach high school and build people. The movie has religious values about the measures we give is the measures we receive. Team over individuals, depending on each other, commitment, and selflessness over selfishness. One experiences the unfairness and trials of life, and the dealing with adversity. I keep seeing in substories Good over evil, and light over darkness. The most low point in a bad year and the movie is over come by giving at a V A hospital. A strong script, and inspiring story. The directing and acting excelled. One experiences the intelligence/strategy, heat, pain and pressure during the football action. The distractions and frustration off the field blend into the field action excellently. How the team deals with the adversity not only make the team winners, but builds productive people. The ending scene is inspirational. I give What the Game Stands Tall and eight out of ten.

Before I review the movie proper, let me just mention how pleasantly surprised my movie theatre-working friend was in seeing LSU football coach Les Miles as an audience member in the beginning of the movie with lines, to boot! I wasn't as surprised since I knew about it having read about his appearance in last Friday's review-by John Wirt-in the Red section of our town paper, The Advocate. All right, we both loved the various plays as depicted on screen of the games and were touched by many of the dramatic scenes of many of the teammates outside of the game. Oh, and the filmmakers did a good job of disguising New Orleans as a California town, too. I really don't have anything else to say except I recommend When the Game Stands Tall.

I could only watch about half of this film due to the horrible script. The characters don't talk, they spew talking points such as "We are doing it for the coach" or "Your not alone, you have us". I don't know what group of 7th graders wrote this crap but it is worse than an after-school special, I'm surprised Eve Plumb was not cast in the Laura Dern role. The entire time that I did watch I just kept thinking "How desperate for work is Laura Dern to take this part?" There are some good actors/actresses in this film and they basically do nothing but chew the scenery and recite Hallmark card messages to the "kids" on the team. The "kids" look like 30 year old men and they must have all attended the Copacobana Acting School, where they were taught to act like silent movie stars. I mean every expression is so overacted, it makes Mommie Dearest look like Sophie's Choice. I think the producers thought "Hey that Sandra Bullock football movie was a hit, lets make another one" unfortunately the later is worse than most lifetime movies. This is definitely a movie not worth even an in-demand or Netflix rental price, do yourself a favor and just watch We Are Marshall or Brian's Song again.