Bad Remake

Rating: 5/10 (17 October 2005)

A former NFL Quarterback (Sandler) breaks his parole and gets sent back to prison where the warden (Cromwell) sets up a nationally televised football game between the guards and the convicts to promote his run for the governor of the state.
Remakes are okay if you are doing Spiderman, but not something like this. The original was so much better that I would recommend people go rent it. It's very good. Blockbuster is open late. That show had its comedic moments, but it also had good tension between Reynolds (NFL QB) and Eddie Albert (Warden). There was good acting, drama, suspense and relief in the resolution at the end. That was a drama that had good comedic moments. This is a "comedy" that has nothing.
This remake is a mess. Adam Sandler is miscast (but he is one of the producers so..), Chris Rock is annoying and the wisecracks, prison transvestites and football stunts are old hat, not funny and actually quite boring. I didn't find one line worthy of a laugh or even a smile. No drama, no suspense and I didn't care about anyone. Burt Reynolds, James Cromwell and all the supporting cast are very good, but with the "star" being miscast there isn't much hope for the rest of this.
Now, why is Sandler miscast? I didn't believe he could ever have been an NFL QB. And, let's face it, he plays the same deadpan victim part in all his movies.
There is something that I don't understand in regards to the story itself. If the Warden (Cromwell) wanted to use the game as a national showcase for his political ambitions, why was winning the game at any cost, repeat: at any cost, more important? Oh, I understand--just didn't like it.
I do not think the original had this story-line (TV national coverage) in there.
There has to be a brake in some Hollywood warehouse that can put a stop to all the bad remakes that are thrown at us (leave Spiderman alone). Anyone know where that warehouse is? Go long!