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FUNNIEST
MOVIE OF THE SEASON...
Written
by Dean
Kish
Cast:
Keanu Reeves, Gene Hackman, Jack Warden, Orlando Jones,
Brooke Langton
Kick
Eddie in the Klumps, punch-out "Irene", and
let the air out of "Scary Movie" because the
funniest movie of the summer season is "The Replacements".
Keanu
Reeves stars as washed out Quarterback Shane Falco is
offered a second chance at stardom when Coach Jimmy
McGinty (Gene Hackman) offers him that chance when professional
football faces a walkout. The walkout cripples all the
league franchises and the owners scramble to find "scabs"
or "replacements" to finish off the last 4
games of the regular season. McGinty uses a lot of ingenuity
to assemble the biggest group of misfits he can put
on the field. Some of those misfits include "Swingers"
Jon Favreau as an unstable psychotic defensive lineman,
Orlando Jones as butter-fingered sprinter, "Notting
Hill's" Rhys Ifans as a Welsh soccer striker as
the field goal kicker and even a Sumo wrestler as an
offensive lineman.
When
it comes down to team-sport comedies the plot and stories
are always very similar. A group of misfits are thrown
together to overcome insurmountable odds. Some of those
films include "Major League", "Slap Shot",
"Mighty Ducks", "Bad News Bears",
and "Necessary Roughness".
"The
Replacements" is a welcomed return to the magic
that made these films so great. The writing is smart,
funny and delectable. The cast is great in all the strange
kinds of things they bring to the film. I loved to see
that big Hollywood actors like Hackman and Reeves can
interact among a great ensemble like this and never
steal the limelight from some of the lesser known people.
This
film is a riot and a welcomed departure from all the
gross-out, over the top comedies of the past couple
months. It's refreshing in that the intermingling of
the ensemble actually blend and compliment each other.
This full-blown chemistry will make you scream for this
team to overcome their deficit. Another thing I liked
about the film was its score and soundtrack which is
so full of adrenaline and great songs of old.
The
only flaw I found from this light-hearted film was the
predictable script but it's the cast that make this
film soar over its script. They make it fun.
In
some respects you may even appreciate life message that
Gene Hackman tries to convey to his disheartened Quarterback.
In one scene, Keanu is preparing for his first game
and Hackman has a great line of inspiration. "I
look at you and I see the man you are. But I also see
the man you could be. Someday those two men will meet
and you will be one hell of a football player."
In a sports comedy as in life, lines like these are
precious but for this critic this one of my favorite
lines of the summer.
I
really hope the masses give this little movie a look
because it's a gem in a crowded movie season.
(4
of 5) So Says the Soothsayer.
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