The best football movie of the summer...

Rating: 7/10 (9 August 2000)

The Replacements: Professional football takes a turn for the bizarre when the players go out on strike - rather than suspend the season, the owner of the Washington Sentinels asks his coach to cobble together a team of replacement players to carry on.
Football on the big screen has been approached from almost every conceivable angle: humorous ("The Longest Yard"), love story ("All the Right Moves"), sport as metaphor for life ("Any Given Sunday") and pathos ("North Dallas Forty") are but a few examples. Essentially a composite of all the above, "The Replacements", is loosely based on facts - the fictional Sentinels represent the Washington Redskins whose replacement players did quite well - the NFL however would not allow the film to use the name of any real teams).
If I remember correctly, (keep in mind that I'm not a sports fan and it was a long time ago) the NFL strike of 1987 was due to player dissatisfaction with the salary cap and the subject of free agents. The utter ludicrousness of multimillionaire sports figures pleading poverty is summed up in an interview with the striking quarterback for the Sentinels who says "Well $5 million might sound like a lot of money, but I have to give 10% to my agent." Just then a colleague pipes up "And do you know how much it costs to ensure a Ferrari?!?" The frightening thing is that some players actually believe this stuff.
Reeves, not known for his dramatic flair, is believable as Shane Falco (it is after all Reeves' third outing as a gridiron grappler), a forgotten quarterback who blew a promising career with one bad game . Brook Langton, Reeves' love interest, is gutsy, subdued, and cute, but not obnoxiously so and. reminded me of a young Lauren Holly (before she became bitter.). The supporting cast does an excellent job, but I particularly enjoyed the casting of John Madden and Pat Summerall whose officiating lends an air of realism to the proceedings.
I do however have two misgivings about the movie: the trailer I saw this evening gives away some of the best parts of the movie (a trend that I've noticed is getting worse) and what is the preoccupation with football players vomiting (it played a role in "Any Given Sunday")- I don't find it particularly amusing.
That said, , "The Replacements" is uncomplicated, funny, and takes a few well aimed shots at professional sports. I recommend it to anyone in search of some light entertainment - just don't pay full price.