Movies-TV

One of the best of the year

I don't intend to add to the many positive comments about this movie. I agree with them. But from another perspective:First, I have never been a football fan. However, any movie that combines Oliver Stone and Al Pacino has to get my interests. I loved it.One thing that did impress me more than anything else was the quality of the sound design. The 3 dimensional noises in the huddle, on the line, from the grandstands; the growls and other sounds from the players; these things made the movie live and my blood boil. I was breathless.Then these things interspersed with dead silences and slow motion dreamlike sequences gave the action a spiritual quality.I stayed for the credits to see who had done this sound work and I think Wylie Stateman will get, at the very least, an Oscar nomination for sound design. If you ever wondered what this credit meant, see this movie and you will know. This movie would have lost a great deal of its punch without that sound designer's talent.

Of Sharks and Men.

Any Given Sunday (1999)Al Pacino, Jamie Foxx, Cameron Diaz, Dennis Quaid, LL Cool J, James Woods, Matthew Modine, Lawrence Taylor, Jim Brown, John C. McGinley, Aaron Eckhart, Charlton Heston, Oliver Stone, Elizabeth Berkley. Directed by Oliver Stone. Spoilers herein."Any Given Sunday" is a film that is a feast for the eyes, but not the mind. Stone does a great job for creating a dizzying direction, eye-opening visuals, and extremely loud sound, and he does all of this with the 2 and a half+ hours that he has to spare with the film but never does go deep into detail on the characters.The story consists of a professional football team struggling with their season. The film opens with a quote from football legend Vince Lombardi, and then fades into a football game, where the starting quarterback for the Sharks, Jack Rooney is hurt in the middle of a game, unknown third string quarterback Willie Beaman is sent in for the rest of the season. As Beaman starts rising to fame, aging Coach D'Amato and Rooney begin to question if Beaman is worth risking the rest of the season and their chance for the championship as he is trying to make the team win by himself.The performances are pretty good and powerful. Al Pacino and Jamie Foxx do great with the lead characters, and other familiar faces such as Cameron Diaz, Dennis Quaid, James Woods, LL Cool J, Matthew Modine and John C. McGinley in the supporting performances.One thing I did really like about "Any Given Sunday" is how the action during the games is very realistic, gritty, and fast. It ultimately captures the intensity and hard work from the sport of Football. But like "Natural Born Killers" and "U Turn", the sound is so unbearably loud and images are so fast and dizzying that the film could give some viewers a headache. Stone has been known to cause controversy among his films, and this is a way that he seems to do it, but it didn't bother me so much as haters of the film. Despite of some of the strengths, "Any Given Sunday" does have a few flaws. The film is unnecessarily overlong, overly stylish, and underdeveloped. Stone really could have made the film about 20-30 minutes shorter, and with most of the time the characters are either playing on the game field or yelling at each other. Some scenes showing Willie's rise are no more interesting than a Nike Gridiron commercial or a Michael Bay film. Another thing Stone forgets to do is add emotion to the film, and he replaces that with mostly sports action.Overall I really did enjoy this film a lot, for it's realistic football scenes and the living hell that the players go through in order to win. But at times it really does try too hard, especially when it's absent with a great script and follows clichés of older Football (or even gladiator) films. But I would recommend it to Stone fans and football fans especially. A very considerate 4 stars out of 5.

Waste of Talent

This film had a few interesting moments, but in the end it was nothing but a raunchy, loud, sensory assault. After the first half of the movie, I'd had enough. It was unwatchable after that.

American Football championship between Dallas and Miami

American Football is less popular than basketball outside USA, but when you see this film you feel that for the Americans this pastime is as important for them as baseball and basketball. In the past there was a mediocre film acted by Heston about the same topic. Now this new film came made by masterful Oliver Stone, so good film maker is a sign of quality. Unfortunately this film is not the case, the sequences are designed in the same way as the former Heston's film and it is difficult to follow, moreover if your understanding of this sport is limited. Al Pacino never looked to be a sportsman or a trainer in his own life, although we should admit that he acted well as the trainer of Miami. Dennis Quaid played a very modest role and Cameron Diaz tried but not succeeded. Charlton Heston again played a very modest role, an insignificant one. James Wood, always wanted in Stone's cast, did his job well although modest. However, the message of the film is good and is there, i.e. no matter if players are deadly hurt they must play until they are killed or become unable (blind or anything else) to play, money is the main issue in this professional sport, the man and his family no matter.

Caution: Egomaniac At Work

I love sports and sports flicks. That is the very reason I didn't care for this film. This film is not a film about football; it is a film about Oliver Stone. With "Any Given Sunday", Stone has created his most ambitious tribute to his own megalomania. This film is a classic example of excessive style negating substance. Stone was so intent on showing us the sizzle, that he cooked all of the flavor out of the steak. A good director uses innovative technique to enhance the telling of the story. An egomaniac uses the story as an excuse to show off his talent and creativity. The result of such self-indulgence is almost always a diminishment of the final product.

Here Stone tries to out-hip the hip generation of directors by providing a staccato progression of weird angles, extreme close-ups and disjointed perspective shots with so many jump cuts that it makes "The Limey" look like it is on tranquilizers. I have never seen so much dialogue delivered by actors with half their heads cut off. The hand held football sequences were dreadful; as cameras were pounded into the turf without regard to the action that we were supposed to be following. The entire movie was like a three-hour music video, with images flitting willy-nilly as if they were being shot by a drunken mosquito. Ironically, Stone failed to learn the lesson learned by Willie Beaman (Jamie Foxx) in the story; that is that the good of the whole is more important than the glory of the individual.

It is a pity, because buried beneath all this decadent directorial tripe, there was a good sports story and some terrific acting. We saw how money and greed adulterates the sport and how athletes too often become selfish and conceited as they bask in the limelight. There was also the drama of the comeback in the critical game, which was dissipated by Stone's erratic camera work and editing.

Al Pacino gave a great performance as the legendary coach past his prime, who let his pride stand in the way of the team's success. Cameron Diaz rose above her accustomed quirky lightweight roles to deliver a stunning performance as the hard-as-nails club owner trying to move out of her dead father's shadow. Jamie Foxx was electric as the third string quarterback who explodes into the public eye and begins taking himself far too seriously, evoking the ire of his teammates.

This film had a great cast and a solid story that was marred by a narcissistic director who rendered it annoying to watch. I rated it a 5/10. It's a shame, because I love sports stories and I never got a chance to enjoy this one.

Oliver Stone's worst effort...

This movie is just awful. Especially if you like football. It has a hokey story line, lousy script, and an aura of stupidity. If you don't believe me, then just know this: Some guy's eye comes out in the endzone. Ridiculous. Pacino is the only actor in the movie that did a decent job... Diaz is unconvincing. Bad movie. Avoid it. 1.5 stars

Not a one

JB gave it 2 out of 4. I wouldn't give it a one.Stone stoops to the ultimate nadir.What is this movie about? Does anybody care? Great cast but what a waste. Is Stone really that good? Well he made Scarface, didn't he? And that's probably why he got Pacino into this mess.And he made Wall Street and others.But what kind of a bent is he on anyway? This movie has so little appeal already in its conceit that it's a wonder it's even shown on the late late late late show.Who wants it? Who wants to ruin their ratings?

Another One?

OK, now i love this movie... I saw it in the movie theater, loved every minute of it. So naturally when the DVD came out, i snapped it up.. along with every other cool movie i've seen lately. There's a trend building in the DVD world, and its double and even triple releases of a single movie. Now to me i find that unfair. I love all the extras that DVD has to offer, but if you go and buy the movie the minute it comes out, like you naturally want to do, your not necessarily getting everything you had hoped for. This is a prime example, the DVD when it was origionally released had a bunch of extra stuff on it, but they obviously found more to put in it cause here they are with yet another release. So me, as a buyer of many DVD's feels cheated, because now, if I want to see all the new features, I have to go out and buy the DVD all over again. I thik its unfair to assume that people will buy this movie AGAIN, and i hope this trend doesn't continue, because thats one of the main resons i buy DVD's, there's so much more than VHS. And if i'm not getting everything when i buy a DVD when it first comes out, I'm kinda upset that it has to be released again and again before you can get all that is possible. Shouldn't that be their goal when the movie is first released? Or is this just another ploy by the powers that be to pry more money out of the consumer's pocket? you be the judge.

The movie is fantasic though, and if you haven't bought this DVD already, please buy because Oliver Stone delivers another kick-butt movie about the American Lifestyle in an inovative, and fresh star-studded way.

Excellent movie

AL Pacino, Cameron Diaz, and Jamie Foxx are excellent in this movie. I love football flicks. this is in my top 5.

This is what home cinema systems were made for!!!!

This is perhaps one of Oliver Stone's finest directional masterieces recently. I was never really a fan of American Football anbd still I wouldn't stay up during the night to see a game.....but this is just sensational. The movie puts you in the hotseat not only in the game itself but in all aspects from locker room tension to that felt in the characters. The script is well crafted, the acting very genuine and the action is vibrant. Having first watched this movie on board an aeroplane, I was anxious to see it again with the full ensemble of home cinema magic and it really paid off. Apart from the movie being excellent, there's enough extra stuff amongst special features to keep you entertained even more. (I recommend the special edition region 1 or region w disc).

There's nothing more to say. I may not a film critic but I do appreciate superlative entertainment especially when directed by a genius. As mentioned before.....your home cinema system is not complete without this so go get it!

SLICE OF AMERICANA COURTESY OF MISTER STONE

OLIVER STONE by now has treated every theme possible about the AMERICAN institutions.He has sometimes succeeded in doing so(PLATOON,BORN IN THE FOURTH OF JULY,JFK);sometimes he failed miserably(HEAVEN AND EARTH,NIXON).ANY GIVEN SUNDAY is a fair movie about that marvelous AMERICAN institution called football.The usual four letter words are present;the overuse of montage is also on display;these are two items you can always find in any STONE movie.Characters often talk all in the same time.Yet ANY GIVEN SUNDAY has entertaining value,and tells a few truths well included in the script(Television killed that sport).CHARLTON HESTON a real AMERICAN legend has one scene;the use of clips of BEN-HUR is out of place.One of the pleasant surprize of this film is the performance of CAMERON DIAZ as the team's owner.As for AL PACINO,he gives his usual foul mouthed speeches,sometimes annoying,sometimes on target.If you don't think about it too much,you can actually swallow this piece of AMERICAN junk without trowing up.Good luck!

A Fan of Stone, but 'Sunday' misses mark

I am a huge fan of pro football, and I am a fan of Oliver Stone. However, the two together is a disaster. Stone totally goes overboard with his action scenes on the football field. Stone portrays the football field like the war zone battle fields in his past movies. It just doesn't work because football is exciting and violent enough every Sunday in the NFL and Stone's version looks fake! There was no one to like in this movie. The coach was a drunk that neglected his family, the owner was a power hungry monster that did not care about the players or fans, and the players only cared about the money and women. I love Cameron Diaz, and I thought she gave a great performance, departing from other cream puff roles.

One of the all-time best football flicks

First, a tip to those who can't stand Oliver Stone movies yet keep going to see them, only to show up in here and gripe about them: no, Oliver Stone is not going to make a "normal"-looking movie. He's not going to make his movies to look exactly like every other mindless chunk of garbage that shows up at the Cineplex Odeon. If you don't like his style, stop watching the movies. :-)On to "Any Given Sunday". Frankly, I thought it was great. The performances were superb (even Stone himself as a sportscaster) and as always I found myself constantly being kept on my toes by Stone's visual style, particularly the football footage.Stone does an excellent job of capturing the essence of the game by giving us rapidly-edited high-speed footage. Most of it is very "in-close" and claustrophobic, and the intensity level is completely off the scale. This frantic, chaotic feel is complemented by background music cranked to a level of discomfort. This should give people a good idea what it's like to actually be a participant in a good old-fashioned smash-mouth football game.I didn't think Cameron Diaz could play a villain, I really didn't.
Surprise, surprise, surprise, folks. She comes through with a bald-faced viciousness that raised my eyebrows on more than a few occasions. (However, it should be kept in mind that I *also* didn't think Angela Lansbury would make a good villain, and "The Manchurian Candidate" proved me very wrong in THAT instance.)Pacino is, as always, Mr. Badass. This time around, he's Mr. Badass with a heart and feelings. He means business when he sets foot on the field, and he takes it hard when he is criticized. All in all, a very believable performance.And as far as the length of the film goes... GOOD. I LIKE long movies. If a movie can hold my attention for three hours without letting me get up to smoke a cigarette or take a leak, then I consider it a success.The bottom line: I rank it right up there with "North Dallas Forty" and "The Longest Yard". Never mind all this other nebulous junk like "The Waterboy", "Varsity Blues", and "The Program." "Any Given Sunday" is where it's at.Oh, and I *do* have one complaint about the movie: whoever decided on the color schemes for the various football teams' uniforms (particularly the Dallas "Knights") needs to be tested for color-blindness.

Dramatic and endeering

I saw this movie at the theater, and my boyfriend wanted to see this so I was nice and saw it with him. I am not into football but this movie had so much more than football to it. It showed that through the hardships this team stuck together, it was a real team spirit kinda movie. It was about love, friendship, and of course football. For the people that do not enjoy football and for people who do enjoy football either way you will like this. It has its moments also where it is also funny.

Any Given Sunday

Very Good movie. Feel the action and the pain. Good ensamble cast - Foxx steps into the spot light and shows why he is an up-and-comer. Another quality Stone pic.

A Rolling Stone Gathers No Moss.

Oliver Stone is probably one of the only directors in history who can make films based on a very wide range of subjects (The Vietnam War, JFK, Jim Morrison, Neo-Nazi's, Zombie Hands, War Time Photographers, Urban Road Trips, Football, and Alexander The Great) and still keep his own VERY VERY DISTINCT style. Let me try to prove my point: Steven Spielberg has a range of film-making like no one else, but unless you can identify the music he uses, you have no way of knowing it is a Spielberg film, he had no style to identify himself. Then again there are directors like Quentin Tarantino, his style of film-making is precise, you can tell when your watching a Tarantino flick, but Tarantino has no range, all of his films have been centered around the violence/crime genre. Stone on the other hand does have both range and trademark style. His flashy- dual colered-quick cut-slow motion, technique has been his calling card since JFK. But what happens when you take that technique and add it to something as everyday as football... ANY GIVEN Sunday happens.ANY GIVEN Sunday is by far, not Stone's worst. In fact it's entertaining, if at the least tolerable. The plot of Sunday is well... empty. It's just a regular football story. It is when stone swoops in with his style that the film separate's from it's genre. The style is perfect for the game of football. Hard Hit's, good music, and a portrait of the sport like no other. Acting: Excellent. Pacino gives a great performance, he plays a moderate man, who doesn't love yelling (now thats different). Diaz is excellent, one of her less sleazy and more real performances. Fox, Quaid, and Woods all do a great job as well. L.L. Cool. J. is to overblown, his performance is over-the-top and irritating at times.Writing: OK. The plot is hollow but it builds a good foundation for the rest of the film to come together nicely.Directing: Great. Classic Stone, blends perfectly with the game of football. Doesn't over direct as he did with "U-Turn" and isn't as egotistical as many critics claim.Music: Great. Wonderful score and songs blend perfectly with the direction and story.Overall: 7.5/10 NEED TO RENT, Worth a buy. (Suggested: DVD)

What junk.

Are you kidding me??? Did MTV make this movie? What the hell was with all the music? I'm guessing the soundtrack is 50 CD's. This movie was the worst football movie I've seen, and yes that includes "WildCats". Does Stone expect us to believe that every NFL team has parties all the time, that all the players cheat on their wives, they do drugs like there's no testing. Please, he had every stereotype imaginable. I'm surprised I didn't see an Eskimo with a spear. Some scenes just don't belong, the football scenes were over done, and the acting (ie. Diaz and Fox) was horrible. If Stone thinks this is football, he may need to follow class teams like Green Bay, Chicago, Indy, etc. and stop assuming every team is like the Dallas Cowboys.

Stone' s Throw

I like Oliver Stone. On the whole, I do enjoy his directorial style but he has a tendency to belabor a given point. "Any Given Sunday" was a fair football movie that could have been a great sports film if skillfully edited to a more reasonable 2 hour length. Aside from its bladder busting 157 minute endurance, it was a fairly entertaining study of modern day football not too far removed in attitude and tone from "North Dallas Forty". But times as they say are a changing and Stone addressed the new economic realities of creative stadium financing, a new breed of athlete acutely aware of lucrative endorsement possibilities that go hand in hand with success on the gridiron, and Stone played the "race card" to some clever advantage. Comedian Jamie Foxx was wonderful in his dramatic turn as a third string quarterback who suddenly finds himself the object of media and public attention as surprise replacement to "Cap" Rooney, the injured, aging star of the Miami Sharks, nicely defined by Dennis Quaid. As veteran head coach Tony D'Amato, Al Pacino was given carte blanche to let fly with his signature fiery bombast at times directed to players individually or collectively, the franchise ownership (Cameron Diaz), the team doctor (James Woods) or anyone else who crossed his purposes. The remaining cast was rounded out superbly with a host of wonderful performances including but certainly not limited to Jim Brown, Ann-Margret, Lauren Holly, Charlton Heston as the Commissioner, and Clifton Davis as a shrewd big city mayor. On the whole I'd say this was an entertaining and sometimes provocative glimpse into the world of professional sports and big time American pop culture on any given Sunday afternoon.

The WORST movie ever

This movie is the worst movie I have ever seen. If you disagree with me, bear in mind that I left two and a half hours into the movie. That's right, this horrible movie is at least two and a half hours long. My friends and I didn't feel like sitting through a long movie like "The Talented Mr. Ripley," but instead we went to this movie thinking it was shorter. Needless to say, we should have chosen the former. The movie starts out painfully boring. It has the WORST camera work I have ever seen in my life; you can't even tell what is going on. I presume the terrible editing was supposed to contribute to the concept behind the film, but it just doesn't. It is full of irrelevant cutaways that you have to see to believe. The characters are poorly developed and poorly cast: Cameron Diaz doesn't make a believable "bitch," and Al Pacino just does not look like a football coach. On top of that, they try to recreate the drama of real football games on film. Granted, I didn't see the end of the movie, but nothing could have saved it. If you're willing to sacrifice three hours of your life, go see a good movie instead of this piece of garbage.

A good effort, but Any Given Sunday just doesn't work

A good effort, but Any Given Sunday just doesn't work. The film is basically a behind-the-scenes look at professional football. You see the bickering and fighting that goes on among the higher powers up in the box office as well as the conflicts between the players themselves. I think that it was a good portrayal of how instant fame can really go to a person's head and cause them to act in ways that they normally wouldn't, but the football element of the film was awful. It was entirely too polished, football just doesn't look like that. This is what you get when you mix the Hollywood formula with the sport of football.Much of the film was so blown out of proportion and exaggerated that it made it ridiculous. For example, you have the party at one of the players' ridiculously huge house, particularly the fact that Willie Beamen's (Jamie Foxx) truck was cut in half with a blowtorch by another player who he happened to have offended. This is just crap. And how about the play near the end of the film where one of the players got hit so hard in a play that his eyeball popped out of his head? Yes, POPPED OUT OF HIS HEAD. See how funny that sounds? It's even funnier to see it acted out on screen by a bunch of people who were amazingly able to keep straight faces. Simple logic reveals that a person's head would explode before their eyeball, along with a good length of the optical nerve, would pop out of their head like that.Thank God for Al Pacino, he saved this movie single-handedly, as the aging coach who began to feel like he was slightly out of his league, coaching a team that would not come together, even for someone who DIDN'T feel too old. Cameron Diaz and especially Dennis Quaid, perfectly cast in the role of the aging quarterback, also added pretty good performances to this otherwise failure of a sports film, but I don't think that Any Given Sunday had much of a chance to begin with. It is clearly a vehicle for nearly everyone involved, a genre film slapped together for the sole purpose of making money, regardless of how much garbage has to be thrown in. >