Wow. This movie was excellent. I'm usually not into movies of this kind (since I hated Miracle and Titans was okay, but not great), but this movie just got to me in a way other sports movies couldn't. It's definently one of the best sports movies ever, if not the best. It's just so... true. It perfectly explains the hardships of being a player and being under so much stress, and how a town will push them to the point of madness in order to win a simple football game. An outstanding performance by Billy Bob Thornton, by the way.

A-

Just got the DVD since this movie will never screen in Germany. I had high hopes in this one, but I was disappointed. The movie does a great job in portraying the football-mania in small-town-america: Whole families, whole cities define themselves with the success or failure of their team. The sports scenes were great choreographed and I also liked that this is a story with an unusual outcome. However I have to criticize director Peter Berg. He tells the story the way he cuts the movie: Fast jumping from plotpoint to plotpoint, from character to character. But you just can't do that from a storytelling point of view. Because he loses his focus on the characters and so does the spectator. It is nice to look at, but you fail to connect emotionally to the story because of the way Berg chose to tell the story. It is too bad since this could have been a defining football movie like North Dallas 40 (C+)

B/B+

Good movie, but not as good as Remember The Titans.

Un-clichéd Sports Movie

This movie succeeds where so many other films like this have failed by giving you a human bond with the characters. This movie had some very deep and inspirational moments not just for football but for life in general. There are no heroes in this movie. There is no magical Disney-esque ending. Only hard-nosed, red-blooded, mortal kids playing for themselves, for their school, and for an entire town. Friday Night Lights may not be the best sports movie of all time, but it without a doubt ranks up there. More importantly, it captures something that most sports movies can't, real life.

A-

6/10 (C+)

Overrated.

OMG!! phenomenal movie!
Ditto on what Zingaling said!

BEST Sport Movie ever IMO
there wasnt a single bad performence in this movie.

A

C+


It's a bit of a letdown and only slightly above average. I was certainly hoping for more. I pretty much agree with what Levy has said above. The movie loses its focus. Actually, I'd go as far as saying that thanks to its editing, its pace and some directing decisions, it never has a focus to begin with. It is well-acted, technically solid and the football games are put in scene very well, but the movie moves in different directions most of the time and doesn't leave us enough time with any of the characters. I haven't seen many sports-based films, but out of those I have seen this one certainly doesn't rank among the best, unlike Miracle.

Excellent movie, also my high school gets a little screen time in this movie. Very good football movie, or just sports movie period. Billy Bob did a great job in my opinion. B+/A-

B

Strong sports movie, no better nor worse than Coach Carter.

Far and away the best football movie I have ever seen.

The ending choked me up beyond belief. SO heart-breaking.

9.4/10 A

One of the most overrated sports movies ever.

I still think it's excellent.

I played high school football in a small Oklahoma town and this is one accurate portrayal of the sport. My brother was also a high school football coach for a while but quit due to the pressure from the community and the stress to his family. This movie doesn't exagerate one bit. I felt like someone had turned a camera on to film my youth! I also liked the fact that Billy Bob Thornton acts like a real coach. He isn't wise or super human like the coaches in Miracle or Coach Carter. It's one of the best sports movies I've ever seen, and I don't really like the genre. My grade: A-.

I agree with everything there, except I'd give it a (pretty high) B+. I thoroughly enjoyed Remember the Titans, and I'd probably rank it above this. But even then, it has a glosyy Disney feel to it. I don't know if it was some sort of filter on the lighting, or just the tone of the movie imposing on my vision...I donno. It just looked and felt grittier. The Coach had a little speech type thing about halfway through the movie that echoed throughout the movie, I think. Sometimes life will give you the short end of the stick. And it happens. But just do what you can for your friends, your teammates, your brothers.

"Being perfect is not about that scoreboard out there. It's not about winning. It's about you and your relationship with yourself, your family and your friends. Being perfect is about being able to look your friends in the eye and know that you didnt let them down because you told them the truth. And that truth is you did everything you could. There wasnt one more thing you could've done. Can you live in that moment as best you can, with clear eyes, and love in your heart, with joy in your heart? If you can do that gentleman - you're perfect!"

Sounds very corny, hehe.

When you analyze a coach's pep talk afterwards it usually is corny.

Heh, but in reality the coaches care much more about the team winning than a speech like this makes it out to be.

A lot of things sound corny in movies. What makes it or breaks it, IMO, is the delivery, and Billy Bob Thornton did a fine job in his role and with his dialogue.

One of the best sports movies; Peter Berg (Hancock aside) is an underrated director.