Dear Charlie:
Just watched The Longest Yard, 2005 version.
Now, I doubt many people did what I did -- watch the original the night before -- but I'm kinda glad I did. You don't need that fresh memory to enjoy this one, of course. The new version is a great remake, with everything we loved about the old one and lots more humor to boot.
Aside from the plot -- which I think was treated better the second time around, despite several of the same lines and the identical follow-thru -- the football action was INCREDIBLE.
Enter Bill Romanowski. Now, part of my beef with Romanowski is that he's a former Raider, and I'm a heinously loyal Chiefs fan. That in itself is good for a helluva hate-on. However, I also dislike him because he's MEAN. He's one of those players that adds that extra elbow after the whistle, the "accidental" step on the chest as he walks away, and doesn't even bother hiding it from the refs or the camera. Forget the suspected steriod use and all that stuff. He's just MEAN.
However, he's a helluva football actor! *laughs* Man, did he carry that prison guard part!
Then, there were the three wrestlers -- Stone Cold, Goldberg, and Nash. Woo-hoo! They did GREAT! Not only are they big hulking guys that are used to acting, but they actually played great football players. Awesome!
And there's Adam Sandler and Chris Rock, both of whom simply crack me the hell up. And they played it pretty straight, too. Comedy, yes, but not over-the-top. They played their parts. In fact, they played them well.
Phenominal.
Now, for the plot. I always wondered why Burt Reynolds never told his team why he tanked at the start of the second half. I wondered why he didn't simply say, "Hey, guys, it's either skim points or spend the rest of my life here, so whaddya say?"
That's one of the few things that changed in this remake, and I think it changes it for the better. I believe the rebuilding of that trust more because Sandler was simply honest with his boys. He tanked, but when he realized the deal was shot, he tried to make things better, then admitted what he'd done. I can dig that.
And oh, my God...is that guy HUGE! That #44 guy. MAN. Is he like a relative of Jaws from the first one? *laughs* He's a monster!
And damn if he isn't great, too!
Seems like Hollywood's intent on making a bunch of remakes lately. Some of them seem pointless -- like Dog Town, which wasn't terribly interesting to anyone outside that culture in the first place, etc. -- and some of them are just bad remakes.
This one, however, is good. It's good on its own, and it's good as a remake. If you've never seen or even heard of the first version, you'll still love this one. If you just watched the original the night before, you'll still love this one. It takes a lot to make a movie that's enjoyable no matter what, but they sure as hell did it.
Anywho, it's a good flick. I can honestly say that it doesn't deserve the morose, meeching review that Ebert gave it. I mean, I'm sure that all the artsy shit at Cannes makes this look like a high school play, but that's no excuse to damn it with such faint praise while giving it a pity grade. *shakes head*
Just goes to show that critics no longer actually like movies.
And Burt Reynolds was great. *snickers* Gotta love that guy!