Gridiron Gang (PG-13)
Mike:
Scott:
Scott: Tonight we are reviewing Gridiron Gang
, a story based on counselor Sean Porter bringing football, and the team concept, to teenagers in a juvenile detention center.
What did you think Mike?
Mike: I liked it a lot. Well done and some nice acting.
What did you think?
Scott: I liked the movie. I thought it was a feel good movie and I felt good afterwards.
Mike: And not as formula as some that we have seen.
Scott: I think the audience would agree with it being a feel good movie. I don't ever remember seeing a movie where there was so much audience applause. It wasn't just at the end of the movie, it was throughout the movie
Mike: It was feel good without a lot of forced emotion.
This movie will help prove that The Rock (Dwayne Johnson) is not just another action hero.
Scott: Very true. He has more range than any other person to come out of wrestling - except for Stacy Keibler.
Mike: I know it's based on a true story, but it had more of an air of realism than most of this genre.
Scott: It had some really good humor in it as well.
Brandon Smith as Bug Wendal, had some of the best lines of the movie. He was always funny on the screen and by the end of the movie he almost feels like a younger brother to you.
Mike: I like the fact that they show some background on the kind of life that leads these kids into the situation they are in at the detention center.
Scott: Sometimes it's not the kid, but the environment.
Mike: Exactly.
Scott: The kids in the movie were good kids; they just weren't allowed to be good where they came from. The team concept of football allowed that to shine through though.
Mike: You can watch the teamwork develop, instead of just happen through a montage.
Scott: Wow, you're right, there wasn't a montage in the movie. I think that's a first.
Mike: I have been a fan of The Rock's since he was a wrestler and I thought he would make a great action star, at least as good as Arnold Schwarzenegger. But this movie shows that he can actually act as well.
Scott: I think this showed he can do better than Arnold. He doesn't have the size problem that Arnold had, and that will allow him a few more non-action roles
Mike: By the way his English seems a bit better too...
Scott: Jade Yorker as Willie Weathers is the troubled teen that is the focus of the movie. Porter takes interest in him after Weather's cousin, Roger Weathers (Michael J. Pagan), who was also in juvy with Porter, is killed. Porter doesn't want the same thing to happen again.
Mike: Jade did a nice job as I think most of the young cast did.
Scott: It was a good cast. Most I had not seen before, but a few people, like Yorker, I had seen before.
Mike: I think Xzibit plays a good sidekick to The Rock as Malcolm Moore. He's very likeable. Isn't it amazing how many rappers turn out to be a great presence in a film?
Scott: I think it shows that those guys have pretty good range. They aren't just rappers, they are entertainers.
Mike: I want to mention a nice supporting part played by L. Scott Caldwell as Porter's mom.
Scott: And on what show did you first see her?
Mike: All you Lost fans out there will recognize her as Rose. Of Rose and Bernard.
Scott: What did you think of the soundtrack?
Mike: Excellent music by Trevor Rabin. The score seemed to fit perfectly with the visuals of the film. Definitely feel good music in a number of scenes.
Scott: Director Phil Joanou did a really good job on this movie. He was also the director for the classic Three O'Clock High, one of my favorite movies.
Mike: I recognized Phil's name, but I guess it was more for TV than movies.
Scott: He also directed several U2 concert movies.
Mike: Yes and the film that stands out for me is his U2 concert film Rattle and Hum.
Scott: So how do you rate this?
Mike: I think it's obvious that I liked it. I give it a 4 overall and a 4 for sports drama.
And you?
Scott: I give it a 4 overall and a 4.5 for sports drama. I haven't seen a lot of movies better than this one, especially as it was focused on football.
Mike: Also, remember to stick a round at the end if you are curious to see and hear the real Sean Porter and the gridiron gang.
Scott: Some lines in the movie were taken directly from him, and they worked.
This movie scores on all fields.
