Only the strong will survive. Pacino stars as Tony D'Amato, head coach of the Miami Sharks. The director, leaving no doubt as to his agenda, shoots this opening sequence like the celebrated storming of Normandy Beach from Saving Private Ryan . Slow motion shots collide with whiplash camera moves, shifting film stocks and hyperreal sped-up action. The Gridiron Is A Battlefield.
Football Is War.
But the real battle going on here is the psychological warfare Oliver Stone conducts on his audience. The skittish Beaman vomits as he takes the field, an action that becomes his trademark. This all-out assault on the senses is one of the most visually unpleasant Hollywood releases in years. It's not enough for Stone to make a football movie - he has to make The Football Movie. But the heavy-handed approach makes for a queasy screen moment.