Most great athletes have a hard time giving up the game that they love. Just think Brett Favre or better yet think Michael Jordan. He had the perfect ending, he stole the ball and then he made the shot that sealed his 6th NBA championship. Then he comes back with the Washington Wizards. This movie tries to tell the story of one such athlete Ron 'Big Cat' Catlin. It's obvious his career is over but he refuses to accept it. He's well past his prime, He has too much pain to continue but he just can't give it up.
The movie takes place in a one week time frame. It opened on the last preseason game and end on the season opener. During that week we see Catlin, played by Charlton Heston, weigh his options of retiring or keep playing. We see stories on the newspapers saying he's retiring. We see the opportunities being offered him. We also see his marriage crumbling as his wife seems to be having more success now than him. Throughout this time what's foremost is that a man is aging and have a trouble time adjusting to it. There's a scene where Catlin act nasty to a waitress mostly because she's young. I suppose one can see this movie as "the greatest generation" adjusting to a new generation coming along.
One of the main problem with the movie is the screenplay. Most of the dialog are too lame to even be memorable. The most important scene in the movie was when one of Catlin's former teammate ask him for a loan and Catlin ask him why he continued playing football even though he knew he wasn't great. The screenplay and the actor speaking the lines just couldn't get that part right.
Also, the screenplay created characters that were not very interesting. For the most part the minor characters seem to just exist only when they're around Catlin. The two that seemed alive are Catlin's friend and favorite receiver played by Bruce Dern and a gay assistant of Catlin's wife. Need I say that the wife works in fashion.
The casting is another problem with this movie. I like Charlton Heston as an actor, and he gives this role a good shot but let's face it he looked far too old for the character. The character is supposed to be 40 but he looks about ten years older. For the record he was 46 when the movie was made. He always has a commanding presence so he looks right during the huddle but very unconvincing when he has to throw the ball.
Jessica Walters who played Catlin's wife and Diana Muldaur the woman he cheated with should have traded roles. Although they're equally beautiful, Miss Muldaur is not only older than Miss Walters but always acted more mature. Both women were just wrong for their part. The best performance belong to Bruce Dern although the character is your typical '60s swinger.
I have to say that I like watching movies from 1960s that were contemporary, mostly because they have a look to them that I like, especially the outdoor scenes. Seeing New Orleans as it were in the 60s is quite a treat either in day or night. The indoor scenes on the other hand looks like they were obviously shot on a sound stage. For one thing they were too brightly lit. This movie was obviously made when too much lighting is still acceptable for movies.
The ending is one of the movies biggest mistake. It should have allowed Catlin to at least end it with dignity but instead it went for one of the more obvious endings.
The movie takes place in a one week time frame. It opened on the last preseason game and end on the season opener. During that week we see Catlin, played by Charlton Heston, weigh his options of retiring or keep playing. We see stories on the newspapers saying he's retiring. We see the opportunities being offered him. We also see his marriage crumbling as his wife seems to be having more success now than him. Throughout this time what's foremost is that a man is aging and have a trouble time adjusting to it. There's a scene where Catlin act nasty to a waitress mostly because she's young. I suppose one can see this movie as "the greatest generation" adjusting to a new generation coming along.
One of the main problem with the movie is the screenplay. Most of the dialog are too lame to even be memorable. The most important scene in the movie was when one of Catlin's former teammate ask him for a loan and Catlin ask him why he continued playing football even though he knew he wasn't great. The screenplay and the actor speaking the lines just couldn't get that part right.
Also, the screenplay created characters that were not very interesting. For the most part the minor characters seem to just exist only when they're around Catlin. The two that seemed alive are Catlin's friend and favorite receiver played by Bruce Dern and a gay assistant of Catlin's wife. Need I say that the wife works in fashion.
The casting is another problem with this movie. I like Charlton Heston as an actor, and he gives this role a good shot but let's face it he looked far too old for the character. The character is supposed to be 40 but he looks about ten years older. For the record he was 46 when the movie was made. He always has a commanding presence so he looks right during the huddle but very unconvincing when he has to throw the ball.
Jessica Walters who played Catlin's wife and Diana Muldaur the woman he cheated with should have traded roles. Although they're equally beautiful, Miss Muldaur is not only older than Miss Walters but always acted more mature. Both women were just wrong for their part. The best performance belong to Bruce Dern although the character is your typical '60s swinger.
I have to say that I like watching movies from 1960s that were contemporary, mostly because they have a look to them that I like, especially the outdoor scenes. Seeing New Orleans as it were in the 60s is quite a treat either in day or night. The indoor scenes on the other hand looks like they were obviously shot on a sound stage. For one thing they were too brightly lit. This movie was obviously made when too much lighting is still acceptable for movies.
The ending is one of the movies biggest mistake. It should have allowed Catlin to at least end it with dignity but instead it went for one of the more obvious endings.