(out of ****)
_Any_Given_Sunday_ (R) ***
_Play_It_to_the_Bone_ (R) * 1/2
_Any_Given_Sunday_ is a guy's film. And I say that not because it's a football film (though that does play a major part) but because it's an _Oliver_Stone_ football film--a fact that gives one an idea of how testosterone-happy this gridiron saga is. But let this be said: I enjoyed this film. Maybe it's the testosterone running through my own veins, but it's hard not to get adrenalized by the bonecrunching football action Stone stages with maximum intensity. He has been criticized with being a bit too busy with the camera, shooting it so close and cutting so quickly that often the exact plays are unclear. That complaint is understandable, but Stone's approach brings the audience into the game like no other film, giving viewers perhaps the closest cinematic approximation of the chaotic experience on the field.
While there is plenty of football sequences in the film, there is a reason why this film clocks in at close to three hours, and that is the plot--which, quite simply, there is too much of. Stone, along with writing collaborator John Logan, want to give an exhaustive look at just about every aspect of professional football. In addition to the usual win/loss issue--which, as the film opens, is gradually falling less in favor of the Miami Sharks' longtime coach Tony D'Amato (Al Pacino)--there's the matter of the up-and-coming hotshot quarterback Willie Beamen (Jamie Foxx), who is called on to replace reliable veteran Cap (Dennis Quaid) who is sidelined with an injury. That indirectly links to the issue of rushing injured players' rehabiliation, which the team orthopedist (James Woods) has no qualms about but his intern (Matthew Modine) does. Willie's showboating and penchant for calling his own plays puts him at odds with his teammates (including one, played by LL Cool J, with an eye to up his own endorsement stock) and especially Tony, who, in turn, has an even more heated battle of wills going on with Christina Pagniacci (Cameron Diaz), the Sharks' ballbusting owner.
There are even other, smaller concerns on Stone's mind, but those cannot help but get lost in the shadow of the Tony-Willie and Tony-Christina conflicts. Granted, these threads are given the bulk of the screen time, but even if they did not, the forceful performances would have demanded attention. That comment is hardly surprising in the context of acting reliables such as Diaz--who, in five short years, has carved out quite an impressively eclectic career for herself--and Pacino, but the real revelation is Foxx, best known for his television comedy work. Surprisingly, the comic material he's called on to do doesn't work (though that's the fault of the script, which saddles him with a silly running gag where he vomits on the field during every game), but he impresses everywhere else. Not only does the convince on the athletic end of his duties, he also holds his own against Pacino in one particularly memorable verbal confrontation. (One can only be glad that the role's original portrayer, rap impresario Sean "Puffy" Combs, had to back out before filming began.)
Most of the actresses in _Any_Given_Sunday_ do nothing here that would tarnish their reputations, but one cannot help but notice the glaring negativity of the female characters in the film. Christina is a strong, independent woman; but not only is she a bitch, but she's portrayed as being in over her head in such a male-driven business. Christina's mother (Ann-Margret) is in an alcoholic daze for the entire film. In one scene, Cap's seemingly supportive wife (Lauren Holly) is revealed to have a dark side--only to have that trait magically disappear for the rest of the film, making her character turn that much more arbitrary. Tony sometimes enlists the services of a whore, who is played, appropriately enough, by _Showgirls_ slut Elizabeth Berkley. The one female character that appears to have some virtue is Willie's long-suffering girlfriend (Lela Rochon), but even her steely backbone is softened toward film's end.
But as I said, this is a "guy" picture (and how, given all the bare manhoods on display in the locker room scenes), and the target audience won't care once they get a taste of the stunningly staged action and Stone's trademark way of juicing up the visuals of even the most pedestrian scenes. Though it's being released in the thick of awards season and bears a number of Oscar winners on its team, _Any_Given_Sunday_ is essentially a pure entertainment vehicle, and taken at that level, it works.
The boxing comedy _Play_It_to_the_Bone_ aims to be a pure entertainment vehicle, and for one thirty-minute stretch, it succeeds. The advertising campaign touts a big match between stars Woody Harrelson and Antonio Banderas, and in no way does the film disappoint in that area. Theirs is one helluva fight, expertly staged, edited, and containing more action than perhaps all the pay-per-view boxing events held in the last five years combined.
It is in every other area that this film disappoints--a fact that is made especially more disheartening considering the writer-director at the helm is none other than Ron Shelton, Hollywood's premier cinematic examiner of sports, as seen in films such as _White_Men_Can't_Jump_ and _Bull_Durham_. Instead of a sharp satire of a subject ripe for parody--professional boxing--we get a tedious, unfunny road movie. Harrelson and Banderas respectively play Vince Boudreau and Cesar Dominguez, best friends and has-been middleweight pugilists who are given one final shot at glory when they're tapped at the last minute to plug a hole in the undercard of a Mike Tyson bout. The promoter, sleazy Joe Domino (Tom Sizemore), doesn't throw in L.A.-to-Vegas plane fare as part of the deal, so Vince and Cesar, along with Cesar's current (and Vince's former) girlfriend Grace (Lolita Davidovich), take to the open road.
This trip, which makes up most of the movie, is as long and dry as the miles of desert the three pass through. Along the way, Vince and Cesar recount their past traumas in the ring, the ones that consigned them to obscurity. And there are a number of jokes, none of which are particularly funny (Cesar experimented with homosexuality after his big loss--ha ha ha). One's hopes are perked up with the entrance of _Ally_McBeal_ siren Lucy Liu, who plays drug- and sex-mad Lia, who joins the trio's journey midway. Alas, not even she can redeem a poorly-conceived part whose only apparent purpose is to serve as an excuse to feature a gratuitous sex scene.
Upon arrival in Sin City, _Play_It_to_the_Bone_ jolts the audience awake with its bravura centerpiece boxing match. There is never any doubt as to how this match will end--it's really obvious by the film's design. That the bout is still exciting and even nailbiting at times is further proof that Shelton is a master at cinematic recreations of sports. The celebrity cameos in the audience and the presence of the HBO Sports announcing team of Jim Lampley, Larry Merchant, and George Foreman add immeasurably to the fight's authenticity.
Frankly, I probably wouldn't have minded _Play_It_to_the_Bone_ as much as I did if it _hadn't_ featured such a terrific sequence. A completely bad movie is not a pleasure to sit through, but at least it doesn't come with the strong sense of frustration that comes with a film that has one great scene--especially one that shows the potential the whole project had. But once the fight is over, it's back down to earth and below with the uninteresting characters and their uninteresting personal issues, which, sadly, is the focus of the film. What it all comes down to is that _Play_It_to_the_Bone_ is a boxing movie that is not only _not_ about boxing--it's about absolutely nothing of value at all.
Michael Dequina twotrey@juno.com | michael_jordan@geocities.com | jordan_host@sportsmail.com | mrbrown@iname.com Mr. Brown's Movie Site: http://welcome.to/mrbrown CinemaReview Magazine: http://www.CinemaReview.com on ICQ: #25289934 | on AOL Instant Messenger: MrBrown23
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