emotional

Rating: 9/10 (16 November 2013)

This is a 10 hankie movie. Every part of the movie is made to make you cry. If you look for underdog in the dictionary, you'll see the face of Rudy. Sure the movie is manipulating us. For that I'll subtract a point. But it's something I'll mostly overlook because the manipulations work so well. The fact is Rudy has become bigger than a simple movie. It is the standard for underdog sports movies. It has become a synonym to inspirational.
Daniel 'Rudy' Ruettiger (Sean Astin) is a poor student and a small physical specimen. Only he has the heart of a lion. He dreams of nothing else other than to play for Notre Dame football. Nobody believes in him other than maybe his best friend Pete. His father's (Ned Beatty) tale of how his grandfather abandoned his family for a dream is heartbreaking. The father's advise is gut wrenching. His fire is almost extinguished when Pete dies in an industrial accident. This drives him to pursue his dreams which borders on delusional.
The story piles on the obstacles facing Rudy. It is overkill and works beautifully. It is heartbreaking every time it happens. The music pulls at the emotional strings. They pile on more obstacles. Even though I know there are manipulations, it doesn't matter. It gets me every time.