Any Given Sunday Review
by Jamey Hughton (bhughton AT sk DOT sympatico DOT ca)January 27th, 2000
ANY GIVEN SUNDAY
** (out of five stars)
A review by Jamey Hughton
Starring-Al Pacino, Cameron Diaz, Jamie Foxx,
Dennis Quaid, James Woods and LL Cool J
Director-Oliver Stone
Rated 14A
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I can see a decent sports movie struggling to break free of Oliver Stone’s “Any Given Sunday”. It’s an entertaining movie that offers both insight and excitement into the rock-em, sock-em profession of pro football. Unfortunately, the director seems to have only one priority on his mind: sprucing up the film with an assortment of fancy camera maneuvers. In altering each frame with quick-flash photography and dizzying, in-your-face editing, Stone appears to have completely ignored the matter of plausible character development and football politics. We see glimpses of greatness, but “Any Given Sunday” has its agenda all tangled in technical gobbledy-gook. It grows tiresome and monotonous. Yes, Stone has pulled a Brian DePalma.
Matters of importance are pushed aside right from the get-go. Tony D’Amato (Al Pacino), coach of the struggling Miami Sharks, finds his team stuck in a losing rut. Aging Quarterback Cap Rooney (Dennis Quaid) appears to be losing his touch, and D’Amato can’t seem to ignite any passion in his squad. When Cap is injured on the field, and after a patch of unlikely events occur, third-string QB Willie Beaman (Jamie Foxx) is brought into the game. Once in the huddle (and this becomes an in-game ritual), Beaman horks all over the field. Nerves, you see. Eventually though, the ancy youngster wins the game for his teammates, sparking his rise to fame in the football world - the endorsements, the music videos, etc. - and Stone straps us in for the jolting ride of behind-the-scenes stress and fury that the business is apparently like. And I believe it. There is some intriguing insight posed, but in the big scheme of things, Stone fumbles the ball.
The problem with the director’s visual approach is this: he uses extravagant editing devices when a more conventional approach would have been appropriate. Football is an exciting game to watch, but Stone seems to think dizzying the audience with an assault on the senses will only add to the adrenaline rush. I guess he is mistaken. “Any Given Sunday” is a visual kaleidoscope that leaves the audience in a frustrated stupor more frequently than it excites them. Many football fans (including one I attended with) are liable to be disappointed with the “ultra-stylish” way Stone has decided to present the game.
In return, a three-star film becomes unfortunately degraded due to the director’s tampering. In welcome scenes when the visual pummeling comes to a break, this actually shows decent character development and interaction. For instance, heated returns between D’Amato and feisty young owner Christina Pagniacci (Cameron Diaz) are enjoyable to watch. There is also a solid performance from Jamie Foxx, who experiments with great success in his first trek into dramatic territory. The stellar supporting cast includes Matthew Modine, Aaron Eckhart, Lauren Holly, Ann-Margret and Charlton Heston (in an extraordinarily brief appearance). Unfortunately, too many big names are wasted - a typical demise for a film with such a large and experienced cast.
Pacino makes some interesting progress with his character. You begin to identify with coach D’Amato and the morals he is striving for.... but I often felt he was just another play thing Stone could weave in and out of his editing dynamics. “Any Given Sunday” is a watchable but disappointing sports film in which plot and characters take a back seat to excessive filmmaking technique. And a very distant back seat, at that.
(C) 1999, Jamey Hughton
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