Breaking down the X’s and O’s of the top 10

football movies of all time. At number nine: This list’s Cinderella story. A David of a
movie Womens Kyle Juszczyk Jersey , starring a Goliath of an actor (in terms of star power, not actual size)."WhiteFanposts Fanshots Sections 49ers Salary CapLevi’s
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Conference CallsGame Film, No. 9: All The Right MovesNew,14commentsBreaking down
the X’s and O’s of the top 10 football movies of all time. At number nine: This
list’s Cinderella story. A David of a movie, starring a Goliath of an actor (in
terms of star power, not actual size).PDTShareTweetShareShareGame Film, No. 9:
All The Right MovesSome people will say this pick is a reach, and they may not
be wrong. But I go with my gut, and my gut loves the hell out of this movie.
Most of all, I love the crude, unrefined feel of it. The lack of pretense or
flash. It’s a grimy, simple movie about a grimy town and a kid with a simple
motive: To escape.The only reason it’s not even higher on this list is that it’s
really more a coming of age movie than a true football movie. Because of that,
and other reasons, it’s not for everybody. It’s definitely not the crowd-pleaser
that a few movies left off this list are. It’s not about pro football or even
college. And while there are a couple other high school football movies on this
list (SPOILER ALERT!), this one is not about teams fighting for a state
championship.It’s about a small, down-on-its-luck town -- Ampipe, Pennsylvania,
named after the American Pipe and Steel mill it was built around -- and how much
high school football means to a place like that, in good ways and bad. It’s
about small town dreams -- getting out, and making a life for yourself.Let’s
break it all down. But first, the trailer:MVPThe kid trying to get out is Stefen
Djordjevic, excellently played by a 21-year-old Tom Cruise, in just his sixth
film role and second as a lead -- only two months after his first, Risky
Business. It wasn’t nearly the same hit that was, but did get a decent enough
review by the estimable Janet Maslin in the New York Times.This is not nearly
the Tom Cruise we’re used to -- polished, practiced, not a hair out of place. In
this, he’s raw and rough around the edges, every bit the kid from the wrong side
of the tracks. Part of that is good acting, but I think much of it has to do
with the fact he wasn’t a star yet. Like Stef, Cruise was a kid who just wanted
his shot. Remember, he filmed this before Risky Business was released, so he
didn’t know he’d be well on his way to stardom by the time it came out.You can
feel his hunger, and whether it’s from his real life or the script, it’s plays
perfectly here. You believe a shot at college is all he wants and provides the
fire that drives him. And you believe the speech he gives a college recruiter,
when he says all he wants is trade his football talent for a college education.
You see, Stef doesn’t dream of a pro career -- he’s much too smart for that,
joking to the recruiter about NFL teams wanting a 5’10” white cornerback (never
mind Cruise isn’t even 5’10” when he stands on a hard cover copy of Dianetics).
He has a much more down to earth dream -- to be an engineer.It’s this kind of
realism that allows us to become emotionally invested in Stef’s struggle, and to
root for him to achieve his modest goals. So when those goals are threatened,
then held hostage, Stef’s plight becomes riveting, even heartbreaking, drama.
“Grounded” is not generally a word used to describe Cruise or his movies, but it
fits here. But don’t worry, Cruise also does what he does best: Run.Key role
playersChristopher Penn gives a standout performance as star LB Brian Riley.
Stef’s plight wouldn’t be nearly as involving if we didn’t see how it can all go
wrong. Stef watches his worst nightmare play out for his best friend, who gets a
scholarship to USC, then learns his girlfriend is pregnant. An abortion is out
of the question, so instead of playing in the Rose Bowl, Brian stays home to
start a family. Penn plays this transition expertly, going from the youthful
exuberance of his childhood dreams coming true to the very adult realization
that his dreams now come in second to his responsibilities. Watching Penn, you
feel you’re seeing a boy become a man. It’s no surprise Penn went on to become a
dependable and underrated character actor.Paul Carafotes is also great as
Salvucci, Ampipe’s even more ill-fated RB. Without much screen time, Carafotes
displays a wide range — from comic relief to sympathetic figure to cautionary
tale — as Salvucci’s life quickly goes down the tubes.The opponentBest known as
Hayden Fox on ABC’s Coach, Craig T. Nelson plays a whole different kind of coach
here. Ampipe head coach Vernon Nickerson runs his practices like a drill
sergeant, golf club in hand, grabbing players’ facemasks to make sure he has
their attention. It’s hard to tell if he’s toughening them up or just being a
jerk.Nickerson is hard on Stef, criticizing his unwillingness to be coached. He
warns Stef playing the receiver instead of the ball will result in a pass
interference penalty, and he’s right. But he takes it personally, telling his
assistant “He’s using me,” without realizing he’s using his players in the same
way. Just like Stef, Nickerson is using the team to escape the confines of
Ampipe, by way of a college coaching job. This foreshadows Nickerson’s thin
skin, and also the disregard he has for the fact he’s not just coaching a team,
but shaping young men. These traits take root when Nickerson blames his players
for a heartbreaking loss and kicks Stef off the team in the heat of the moment
(more on that later). It’s quite the heel turn, and Nelson nails it.It’s not
enough to end Stef’s high school career and put his future in jeopardy,
Nickerson actually blackballs him. When a recruiter from Boston College comes
asking about Stef, Nickerson warns him he has an attitude problem. That’s more
than being a hard-nosed coach, that’s playing god. It isn’t until Stef calls him
out on this later that Nickerson sees the error of his ways. Luckily for him,
and also for Stef, Nickerson does get that college job -- as DB coach at “Cal
Poly” (San Luis Obispo, I assume), which just happens to be of the best
engineering schools in the country. That allows Nickerson to offer Stef the
scholarship he desperately needs, giving them both a happy ending. It’s one of
those rare occasions when the antagonist isn’t so much defeated as reformed
(think Darth Vader at the end of Return of the Jedi, minus the dancing
Ewoks).Rookie of the yearLea Thompson is solid as Stef’s girlfriend, Lisa,
despite only having a couple of bit parts prior to landing the role. She’s
sympathetic as a small town girl who loves her boyfriend, but fears losing him.
Part of Lisa’s storyline is cliche — Stef wants sex, and she’s “holding out” —
but another thread is original and heartfelt: Lisa loves Stef and wants him to
achieve his dream, but realizes she’ll almost certainly lose him if he goes to
college. When it appears Stef has lost any shot at a scholarship, Lisa goes to
the mat for him, speaking to coach Nickerson’s wife on his behalf. Even when
Mrs. Nickerson points out she’ll lose Stef if he leaves Ampipe, Lisa only wants
to best for him. That’s what real love is all about, and the scene sells you on
Lisa’s character and Thompson’s performance.It’s no surprise that in the four
years after this movie Thompson went on to several high-profile films: Red Dawn,
Back to the Future, and Some Kind of Wonderful, where she met her future husband
and director of the number 10 movie on this list, Howard Deutch.Football
scenesThere’s not much football -- just a few practices http://www.49erslockerroom.com/authentic-c.-j.-beathard-jersey , and one game. But what a game. Ampipe travels to powerhouse Walnut Heights in
what feels like an actual high school football game, played by real kids, with
remarkable passion. Walnut Heights is a heavy favorite, but with a solid game
plan from Nickerson, and a couple of big plays (including a pick-six by our boy
Stef), Ampipe leads 14-10 late. In the closing minute, Stef commits the dreaded
pass interference penalty to give Walnut Heights a 1st and goal. A goal-line
stand appears to save the day for Ampipe, which just needs to run out the clock.
But playing in driving rain, that proves too much. Salvucci fumbles the handoff
and Ampipe loses on a defensive TD as time expires.Key momentAfter what might be
the most dispiriting loss in football movie history, the post-game locker room
scene provides the movie’s turning point.Nickerson taunts Salvucci for crying
over his game-losing fumble, saying he choked and quit on his team. You know,
just what any good coach would do after his team played its heart out in a
gut-wrenching loss to a superior opponent on the road.When Stef defends
Salvucci, Nickerson calls him out for the big pass interference penalty he was
warned about. Stef doesn’t back down, criticizing Nickerson for not having his
QB take a knee to end the game: ”We didn’t quit. You quit!”Nickerson responds by
kicking Stef off the team. Bear in mind, Stef is a senior with one game left in
his college career. Nickerson won’t even let Stef take the team bus home,
telling him “This is the wrong bus, son. This bus is for players. You ride back
with the cheerleaders.” Classy.HighlightsEverything about the Walnut Heights
game. It’s one of my favorite game sequences ever. Not just the game itself, but
everything leading to and from it. It starts with the pep rally, where Nickerson
stirs up the students’ hatred for Walnut Heights, the “have’s” to Ampipe’s “have
not’s.” He begins with the obvious: “Their football team is undefeated and
ranked third in the state.” Okay, screw them. Then he goes for the throat: “They
have a swim team. A tennis team. They’ve got a golf team, for boys and girls.”
Boo!The bus ride also provides a great prelude. Players are stoic, psyching
themselves up for the game. But as they approach Walnut Heights, they can’t help
but look around in awe at their surroundings. One player: “Jeez, look at the
place!” Entering the visiting locker room, another says, “Now this is what a
real locker room looks like!”The pre-game is similarly telling. Players touch an
old, deflated football from their school’s 1960 state championship season for
good luck. Tension in the locker room leads to a skirmish. Players display
thousand-yard stares and palpable intensity. Just before kickoff, Nickerson
delivers a truly rousing speech, ending with a string of racial epithets to fire
his team up. And you know what? It works!After the game, Stef hitches a ride
back with team boosters. Angry about the loss, they stop to vandalize
Nickerson’s home. Stef dumps some trash on the lawn, but tries to stop the
adults spray-painting the house and slashing car tires, which leads to him being
spotted by Nickerson. This ironic and gut-wrenching twist adds fuel to
Nickerson’s grudge against Stef.LowlightAs in the last installment, it’s a dance
sequence. Celebrating Brian’s scholarship to USC, the black players decide to
show Brian the moves he’ll need in Hollywood. This leads to them giving Penn and
Cruise a dance lesson. Luckily, there’s no clip of this on You
Tube.RealismRealness is a through-line of the movie. It feels like real high
school, with real high school situations, real high school football, and real
high school romance.Also, the film is based on a magazine article by Pat Jordan
about a town in western Pennsylvania where the kids “either get a football
scholarship or work in the steel mill for 40 years.” Jordan lived there for
months to get the feel of that life. After he optioned the story to Hollywood,
they tried to cheat Jordan out of his money and credit by making the movie
behind his back.Best lineUp nextAfter two films I assumed people would feel I
overrated, the next movie is one I assume people will feel I’ve underrated.
Hint: The cast includes four Oscar winners and two other two-time
nominees.Previous posts: Honorable/dishonorable mentionsNo. 10: The Replacements
I’m not a big seasonal decoration guy, despite the best efforts of my wife and
daughters. And I especially hated the House of Horrors that the 49ers put on
Sunday afternoon.This game seemed scientifically designed to crush the souls of
fans as methodically and thoroughly as possible. We have gotten used to — this
year — the steady thud of players falling to injuries like the opening scene of
Saving Private Ryan. To the glacial pace of C.J. Beathard’s decision making and
throwing motion, perfectly capturing that sensation in your literal nightmares
where a monster (lineman) is chasing you and you’re stuck in slow motion,
slogging through invisible molasses and can’t get away. Seven different
Cardinals defenders got hits on Beathard on Sunday. Beathard’s toughness is
inspiring, but I want a QB who is inspired by Joe Montana, not by Tex Cobb.
That’s the former football player who suffered “The Worst Beating in Boxing
History” from Larry Holmes, but was too tough to stay down. His punishment was
so brutal that boxing legend Howard Cosell quit his announcing career and called
“for the abolition of professional boxing.”This team is still talent-deficient,
and our hopes that those 7th round surprises would all turn into Pro Bowlers
have proven as unrealistic as we feared. And then their backups got injured. But
still, Niners fans are used to all that from the last few years.Sunday, this
team found new ways to raise our hopes before killing them at the last second,
just like ??well, I don’t want to do a spoiler. But hey, do you like spy movies?
That old John Le Carre one, The Spy Who Came In From the Cold, hoo boy that was
great. You should check it out on Netflix or wherever.I left that flick feeling
better than I did Sunday.I mean, how can you help but get your hopes up playing
the second-worst team in the NFL, one that you played just three weeks ago, one
that just fired their offensive coordinator in favor of a super green guy in his
3rd year of coaching at any level, one with a rookie QB easily rattled by
pressure?And then you play tough, smother their offense, build a good lead for
three quarters and just need to grind it out. And the one thing SF is good at in
the world is slow, run-based drives!! OK, against all better judgment, I let my
hopes rise, thinking this was the game. For once, Larry Fitzgerald isn’t going
to break Faithful hearts!You might be thinking at this point, “Wait a minute,
Mark. Your article is titled ‘Doom, despair and turnovers.’ But the Niners
didn’t have any turnovers yesterday, they were plus 2 and even got an
interception for the first time since Bill Clinton was president!” Yeah, you’re
right, or close enough. And that’s precisely why this was the worst Halloween
party ever. Because the only hope left for this season was that the Niners had
lost close games, against good teams even, just because of turnovers. All they
had to do then, logically, was clean up that up, turn some giveaways into
takeaways, and they’d probably slaughter Arizona and some good teams too.But
yesterday, they destroyed that hope. They were almost perfect on turnovers.
Perfect would be a takeaway on every drive, I suppose, but this was a miracle —
no turnovers, no fumbles, no interceptions, and they stole two possessions away
from the Cardinals.And they still lost. That’s horrifying.