Any Given Sunday Review
Lately Oliver Stone hasn't been cutting it. His last 2 films were garbage, and I was hoping he would have a come back here. He partly succeeds, but again he gets too fancy and ends up fumbling again. The story is simple, but messy. Head coach Tony D'mato (Al Pacino) is struggling to win. He has a beat up quarterback named Cap Rooney (Dennis Quaid), a severely injured defensive captain named Luther Lavay (Lawrence Taylor) and an extremely moody owner (Cameron Diaz) breathing down his back 24:7. The Miami Sharks needed help, and they got it. When Cap and another QB become injured, their last hope arrived. His name, Beamen (Jamie Foxx)a cocky young player who likes breaking the rules. Even though he helps the team win some games, he is constantly changing the plays, there by angering the team as well as the coach. There are also a few subplots, involving the medical staff (James Woods, Matthew Modine) and a sports writer (John C. Mcginley). Any Given Sunday is similar to For Love Of The Game. Both films work on one level, which is focusing on the game. Outside that, it's one sloppy mess. That's not to say that isn't bad, but it does indeed have many faults. One thing I particularly liked was the message. As Pacino says in the film, he believes there's more to football then winning, but Foxx and other young talents believe otherwise. I couldn't help but feel this was a jab towards Hollywood. Like I have been saying in a few of my past reviews, many directors only make films for money. Profit is all that matters, in other words winning is a must. Aside from those positive aspects, there are many sloppy moments. Director Oliver Stone uses far too many scenes in which more than 1 objective is going on. One moment we're watching the football game, the next a scene from Ben-Hur. His artistic ability has gone down the tubes, and so have his movies. He is no longer one of the top directors in the business as far as I'm concerned. He had his moments of fame with Platoon and JFK, but those days are gone. Another painful element of the film was the length. If it wasn't for Stone's obsession with his artistic approach, the film could have been cut an hour. Did they even edit this thing what so ever? I was completely bored the second half, and even the football matches became a bore. Unlike the Green Mile, this actually seemed like 3 hours Luckily the film isn't a complete waste of time during its 2 hour and 40 minute run, because there's some nice acting along the way, but not by Pacino. In fact Pacino has never been worse. He lacked any charisma for his role here, unlike the Insider. I don't know how an actor does the best acting to one of the worst, it just doesn't seem right. Cameron Diaz however continues to prove she's more than a good looking actress. It's true she overacted a bit, but so did the rest of the cast. At least she put forth some energy towards her part. That's more than I can say for Pacino or even James Woods. They were painfully dull. Any Given Sunday is a mediocre but dreadfully long effort by Stone. If you can get pass the length, the many unneeded scenes, the overacting and Stone's pitiful script, then by all means see it. But for me, it's just another fumble for the holiday season.
Grade: C
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