A Division II comedy

Rating: 7/10 (31 May 2012)

One could call The Longest Yard remake one that was bound to happen and play more as a hilarious comedy rather than a dark, gritty picture. While there are some dark elements conveniently scattered throughout the film, it is safe to dub this an Adam Sandler comedy. Again, I'd rather have it succumb to this instead of one of Sandler's "anti-character studies," but we won't even go there.
This is a remake of the Robert Aldrich film of the same name from 1974, but that note will undoubtedly have little importance to modern audiences. Sandler has taken the film and pretty much revamped it into a modern day take on the underdog formula. He plays Paul Crewe, a selfish former football player who was immediately blacklisted after "shaving points," or in simple terms, purposely not covering the point spread on a given game. Crewe has become a careless louse, and after a recent run in with the law from stealing his wife's car to getting into a high speed chase on the freeway, he must do three years in the big house.
Crewe is harassed by Warden Hazen (Cromwell) to join the football guards' football team in prison, and despite his decline of the offer, he is manipulated into doing so by Hazen's threat of adding five years to his sentence for false accusations of attacking Captain Knauer (Fichtner). He rounds up his team of misfits including his close friend, nicknamed "Caretaker" (Rock) and the gentle giant Switowski (Sapp), along with the legendary coach Nate Scarborough (Reynolds). At first, everyone seems to be rather hasty of the idea, until they learn the prisoners will be facing the guards and perhaps get some much needed anger out of their system.
Something I noticed almost immediately; the film is abnormally cast, meaning a lot of actors you wouldn't think would be in a comedy football remake do a pretty commendable job. Most notably Chris Rock and very underrated rapper Nelly, who also wrote the song "Here Comes the Boom" especially for the film. The song is easily more memorable and impressive than the picture itself.
Sandler does a decent job, and the script seems rather potent and lively, at times almost having too much fun with the formula. My immediate problem with the film is this is more of a by-the-numbers, textbook take on the underdog football formula. Scenes of long, droning, and cliché training take place, not to mention the inevitable tragedy the team will face just before the big game and sporadic gay jokes litter the picture.
What rather elevates The Longest Yard is its quick comebacks and its unlikely talents utilized in the picture. It's nice to see the film pay respect to the screen legend Burt Reynolds, and even feature a well-composed collection of songs, but the film, as a whole, is long, dry, and conventional, and it winds up being a Division II take on Division I material.
Starring: Adam Sandler, Burt Reynolds, Chris Rock, James Cromwell, William Fichtner, and Nelly. Directed by: Peter Segal.