The Replacements

An agreeably and unapologetically lightweight late-summer blockbuster. more

What The Replacements does have is energy.

As obvious as they get, and it wears its message on its bloodied jersey. more

Formulaic but surprisingly charming. more

The story of the triumphant underdog is irresistible, even when every single plot point comes marching down Main Street. more

Slap-happy entertainment painted in broad strokes, two coats thick. more

So lazy and rote, it feels like a rerun the first time you watch it. more

Harmless, mindless and shameless. more

Just like a low-budget football comedy, only with money. more

Any ESPN commercial at all leaves it in the dust when it comes to imaginative firepower. more

As shocking as it may be, when you think about it, the football movies of the past, to include Oliver Stone's excellent but dark, "On Any Given Sunday" simply do not match this film. I will even place this film in the all-time greats like "Pride of the Yankees" and "The Natural". First, we don't need to watch any more tragedies on film, we need to see something that inspires us to overcome, and this film delivers: I'm surprised its considered a comedy! Hackman should get an oscar for this film because his narration and actions drive the film and create yet another complex character from... more

Despite the fact that this film is a totally unoriginal and predictable retread of a dozen "losers to winners" sports stories, it is so hysterically funny that I didn't even care. The story is thin at best. The NFL is having a players strike and scabs are called in to finish the season. Our heroes are low on ability but high on desire and peculiarity. The quarterback, Shane Falco (Keanu Reeves), once had a promising career, but he fell apart psychologically when his team was pummeled in a college bowl game and he was labeled a player that folds in the big game. Of course, while visiting... more

For the record, I don't know a lot about football. I was one of those guys who figured that football was for those poor souls who couldn't make it in the band. I am not qualified to pass judgement on how good the football sequences in this movie. I AM QUALIFIED, however to pass judgement on what entertains me. This movie qualifies. The situation is an NFL strike. Some scab players are hired to play in the pros in the place of the "real players". Against all the odds, they do well. That pretty well sums it up and it follows, I think, all of the standard cliches. That is not what the movie... more