Stone is judged by a different standard

Rating: 9/10 (6 September 2000)

Any Given Sunday has come under lots and lots fire from plenty of people for all sorts of reasons. Some people don't like the style in which the football sequences were shot because it obscures the action. [Guess what, the action isn't the point!] What bugs me about this film's criticism is that some people, not the least of which is Leonard Maltin, say that the film has too little substance. The editor reviews at Amazon.com say that the film's only interesting points are about race relations, and that it is bogged down by obvious and simplistic comparisons between football players and gladiators. Ok, you know what? I'll buy that. But remember what we're talking about. We're criticizing a film because what it has to say isn't interesting enough. Compare that to the ridiculous acclaim garnered by The Sixth Sense, a film that has practically nothing to say at all, except perhaps something staggeringly banal like "Live for today, because you might die tomorrow." Compare this also to American Beauty, which does have a lot to say. Just not nearly as much as it thinks it does.
People judge Oliver Stone by a different set of standards. With most films, having a "point" is a rare and unnecessary bonus. With Oliver Stone, everyone whines if the point he has isn't quite up to his previous standards. You can only make Platoon once. You can only make Wall Street once. This time, he made Any Given Sunday. So maybe it's not as good as JFK, but it beats the living crap out the The Replacements. Perspective, people. Perspective.
Any Given Sunday is a film that knows what it is. It's not out to change the world, it's out to tell a terrific story, which it does. [I normally loathe sports movies because they are so predictable. This one had just enough elements to keep it interesting, so I didn't mind the predictability.] It does have something to say, but it knows (unlike American Beauty) that it's nothing revolutionary. So, it neatly avoids seeming pretentious (unlike American Beauty).
Bottom line: strong story, excellent characters, great performances, stunning direction, strong script. This film is not one of the absolute greats of all time. But it is significantly better than 90% of the crap that gets thrown at us every day. Significantly better.