Shamelessly manipulative, yet wonderful in its own way

Rating: 8/10 (28 November 1999)

"Rudy" is an old-fashioned tear-jerker of a movie, but such a good one that's it's very easy to forgive. The fact that it's based (quite closely I understand) on a true story makes it all the better. I first became aware of Rudy's story on a CBS Sunday Morning piece, and actually met Lou Holtz after the season it was filmed at Notre Dame Stadium, but before its release. You do not have to be a football fan (which I am) or a Notre Dame fan (which I'm not) to enjoy this movie, but it would help. Football as a metaphor for life is hardly a new concept to the movies, or to coaches, or to sportswriters, but this movie is unusually adept at making the application. Anyone who has ever seen a movie can see where the plot is going and the emotional manipulation of the viewer is straightfoward and blatant, but far from ruining the picture somehow enhances it. This is the sort of movie you probably thought that they stopped making about 1955.