Another Score for Costner in Sports Genre

Rating: 7/10 (30 January 2015)

Avid NFL football fans will likely be familiar with the annual draft of college players, although even they may be surprised by the Oscar-like ceremony at Radio City Music Hall on "Draft Day." Non-fans may find this film difficult to follow at first; they may also find it hard to comprehend the importance attached to this day by both team managers and potential draftees, who dream of an NFL contract. However, after the initial confusion clears, patient non-fan viewers will be rewarded with a generally entertaining film; the wheeling and dealing over potential draftees and draft positions intensifies, the clock ticks down to the deadline for making a pick, and genuine suspense rises.
Kevin Costner is no stranger to sports movies, and he plays Sonny Weaver, general manager of the Cleveland Browns, with expected ease in a solid performance. Unfortunately, the female roles are gratuitous in what is essentially a male-centric film. Jennifer Garner has little to do as Costner's associate and love interest; the couple show little chemistry, and their romantic problems and trysts in the supply room add little to the film. Rosanna Arquette has a fleeting and unnecessary appearance as Costner's ex-wife. While Ellen Burstyn is always welcome, her brief role as Costner's mother borders on annoying; she appears callous and oblivious to the pressures on Costner, and her urgency to spread the ashes of Costner's deceased father on a playing field, when an important deadline approaches for her son, seems insensitive. Frank Langella is also welcome in a small, but key role as the owner of the Cleveland Browns, and he too delivers professionally.
Director Ivan Reitman keeps the story moving and builds tension towards the end as Costner weighs the pros and cons of two potential draftees, while the minutes tick down. However, Reitman liberally utilizes split screens, sliding scene shifts, and occasional sequences in which a character will pass from a half screen on the right, cross in front of another scene in the center, and enter the first scene again, which is now a half screen on the left; sounds confusing, and it is. With viewers focused on the process, rather than the action or dialog, these splashy graphics distract rather than enhance; however, when used to introduce a city, its local stadium, and the name of the NFL team, the effect works well.
"Draft Day" will likely appeal more to football fans, who understand and are excited by the back room drama behind NFL drafting. However, the film should also grip non-fan audiences after an initial catch-up learning the rationale, mechanics, and lingo of the draft process. Good Costner performance, and generally entertaining, if unexceptional, film.