Genres

Visitors Review

2012-05-25 22:47:33

TOM LANDRY EAT YOUR HEART OUT!

Filmed version of Tom Landry's tyranny at expense of Dallas foot-ballers, is fair adaption of first hand accounts. A ruthless czar, Bible-thumping Landry (very thinnly dis-quised in both the film and Novel), makes unreasonable demands from entire contingent - from players, to management, to physical therapists assigned to the team. Some very amusng shots at the beginning, in the locker room, at the party, and on the field, do indeed make it worth a peek. Not the greatest sports recounting, but you won't get dis-appointed. Somewhat aged cast is otherwise superb.

2012-05-25 09:51:23

Possibly the greatest sports movie of all time!

Nick Nolte, Mac Davis and G.D. Spradlin are absolutely fantastic in this outstanding film about the business of professional NFL football. This is not a football film--it is a film about the big business of football. Phil Elliot (Nolte) is an aging wide receiver with the mythical North Dallas Bulls (obviously modeled on the Dallas Cowboys.) He is essentially rebelling against the cold-hearted businesslike approach of the team coach (G.D. Spradlin in one of his many great roles!). "None of you is as good as this computer!" screams the coach ungratefully when Elliot deviates from the computerized play and scores the game winning touchdown. The team owner admonishes Nolte with one of the greatest lines in any film: "...seeing through the game is not the same thing as winning the game." This is a truly great movie. The combination of humor ("lying can be really good for a relationship...!) and the cold-blooded ruthlessness of the team owners and coaches gives this film a gritty authenticity that is difficult to describe. Nolte, Spradlin, and Davis are particularly excellent, but the supporting cast is equally good and propel this film into the ranks of the all-time greats. I have read the book upon which this film is based, and it is good enough, but the screenplay here did things for the story that give it far more dimension than in the novel; a reversal of the usual state of affairs. This one is not to be missed. Not by anyone. Highly recommended.

Moustafa_Q 2012-05-24 04:57:21

Memento mori

Beautiful, powerful, cold and magnificent.A superb piece of ice with some shadows of mud.Poem, exploration of feelings and signs, parable and pledge forresignation.New version of relation between Oedipus and the Sphinx.Taste of ash and nostalgic dreams, slices of illusions and subtlesearch, corpses of hope and mist of fear. Same disillusion and vaindesire. Same spider law and strange fight against the Angel.It is not an atheistic pledge or aesthetic experience. It is onlyreflection of huge solitude and shadow of Kafkaesque Castle.A "memento mori" and sounds of Texan voices. The silence of death and alost football game.

2012-05-23 13:05:16

Order review

This review is from: North Dallas Forty (DVD) My grown children love football but had never seen this old movie, North Dallas Forty. They loved it a I thought they would. Although a comedy, the movie provides insight into the business side of the NFL as it used to be.

mollusks 2012-05-22 16:21:53

Exhibit "B"

This film is nearly ruined by the ADR, which renders it almost a B-movie.All the actors suffer -- and this is a huge shame, because you can tell fromtheir body language that they really worked hard to deliver. Without theADR, Nolte's performance is undoubtedly Oscar-worthy. (In other words, don'tlet your sound mixer bully you into using boom mics in questionableenvironments when wireless body mics will do. The integrity of theperformance is WAY more important than the quality of the sound recording.IMO: ADR SUCKS.)The script is lazy, from a structural perspective. There is no cleandistinction between acts one and two. There easily COULD HAVE been, butsomeone dropped the ball.That said, what's truly inspiring about this film is its tenor anddirection. Ted Kotcheff, who did a bravura job with First Blood, reveals asensitivity for character that few American directors of this period canmatch. BTW: Kotcheff's a Canadian. Which is only proper. The best movie evermade about hockey was by an American, George Roy Hill.Long live sport.

2012-05-22 00:15:47

This video goes all.....the......way!

I love this movie! Nick Nolte and Mac Davis had me cracking up the entire movie. I always thought athletes never touched drugs when I saw this as a little boy but now that I'm older and wiser I know that athletes and drugs are definitely a reality. This movie lifted up the pretty face of the NFL and showed the ugliness inside. I encourage any high school or college coach to show this to their teams for the simple reason that the NFL is not all power and glory.

altafayejones2 2012-05-21 01:36:58

Mac Davis

Another reviewer wrote that some of the actors here gave some of thebest performances of their careers in this film, and I heartily agree.There's not a fake moment in any of the actors' contributions, but Iespecially think Mac Davis has never surpassed what he did here. As aCowboy (and Pete Gent) fan I was intensely interested in seeing thiswhen it came out, those many years ago. The public image of Tom Landry(the guy in the hat as Roger Staubach called him) was so large thatDallas residents even protested at movie theaters. The filmmakerspresented the truth as it was seen by the player that wrote the book.It holds up well and any sports movie that has Bo Svenson and JohnMatuzak in it gets an automatic 10 out of 10.

2012-05-20 14:18:54

It's the real deal

Taken from Pete Gent's book about life with the Dallas Cowboys of the Don Meredith era, this movie (a quarter century later) is still the only film that deals with much of the reality of professional football in America. Other movies have been funnier ("The Longest Yard"), others have used more Hollywood fantasy to make their point ("Any Given Sunday"), but none other than George Plimpton's "Paper Lion" have any accuracy. Not only is "North Dallas Forty" accurate, it is accurate in the extreme. It shows players taking shots in their joints in order to play in the game. It shows the way management treats players like meat, like yesterday's newspaper. It shows the way players eschew teamwork to look out for themselves, their statistics and their salaries. In a very Hollywood way, this movie uses big stars but makes a valid point about pro football in a way no film ever has. I went to Pete Gent's school, Michigan State University, where I lived in an athletic or "jock" dorm. I knew football players at MSU including a couple that went on to become pros and all-pro in the NFL. I'll never forget the day I showed up for my test in freshman Natural Science when I had a little chat with the two football players in my class, one of whom went on to become an all-American and all-pro in the NFL and blocked for O.J. Simpson. "We were at the professor's house last night going over the test," one of them told me moments before the test was passed out. That was one of my first real-life lessons in how college athletes are different from the rest of us. When the "North Dallas Forty" version of college football is made, maybe that scene will be included. Until then, you have this film to help you understand how the NFL really works and what it's employees go through during their careers, which average 4.3 years.

Mike R 2012-05-20 08:32:54

Greatest sports movie ever

This is a tremendous sports movie. It dares to show the truth about professional football. All the dirty little secrets the NFL would rather not be known. The violence, the drugs, forcing players to play even while hurt. This is one of Nick Nolte's finest performances. My only complaint was the way the movie was marketed. The studio didn't realize what a great movie they had and they pushed it as a party film, which is the farthest thing from the truth. I've seen the movie a dozen times, and can't wait to see it again!

2012-05-20 03:01:01

When football was really a contact sport.

This review is from: North Dallas Forty (DVD) If you like pro football, you'll love this film. Especially, if you remember the old Dallas Cowboys. The movie's "fictional" team, the Bulls, are suppose to be the the Dallas Cowboys. The coach is suppose to be Landry, the quarterback (Mac Davis) is suppose to be Don Meredith, etc. Of course, any resemblance is "purely coincidental". Yeah, right.The point of the movie is how the players are manipulated/motivated to win. Receiver Elliot, played by Nick Nolte, is a veteran nearing the twilight of his career. He loves the game, but also sees the human toll. Mac Davis understands and doesn't care. He realizes that it's just a job.I asked a co-worker who used to play for Green Bay about that time, if the movie was accurate. He said it was mild compared to the real thing. This is what football was like when roughing the quarterback wasn't illegal, it was expected. Everyone always knew football was business and not just a game, but someone forgot to tell the players. When they realize it, it's too late. See this movie. You won't be disappointed!

2012-05-16 07:05:35

For movie lovers and football fans

NORTH DALLAS FORTY delivers first-rate entertainment. Football fans will note stinging parodies of a few famous NFL players/coaches. Among quality performances from Nick Nolte, Mac Davis, Charles Durning and the late John Matuszak, actor Bo Svenson stands out. Svenson adds depth to what could have been a cartoonish role of an immature, stupid muscle-head, and it is unfortunate that I have not seen him in anything else this good. The film's poster makes NORTH DALLAS FORTY look as though it is a pro football version of ANIMAL HOUSE. Sure, NORTH DALLAS FORTY is funny at times, but the film also takes on the abuses in big league sports and management's selective enforcement of the rules. Sports journalists, let alone other sports films, ought to address those issues as boldly.

2012-05-15 12:48:43

You, and B.A., and all the rest of you coaches are.....

An NFL wide receiver (Nolte) who purportedly has "the best hands in football" has been benched and is being used as a substitute. It's not for lack of ability or effort but because of his "attitude". He's been a starter for years and it's hard to take ("I'll die on the bench"). He needs to "give 'em what they want" and "you had better learn to play the game, and I don't just mean the game of football". Advice from his buddy Seth Maxwell (Mac Davis), who's the team's quarterback and a "star", is good advice, but Elliot (Nolte)doesn't seem to have it in him to follow it. Catching a winning TD pass from Maxwell in the closing seconds isn't enough. The play was a "fluke", as summed up by their head coach B.A. (G.D. Spradlin) while analyzing the game film the following week. The week after the game is what the show is about. The meetings, practices, workouts and various extra curricular activities, all leading up to the next game in Chicago. Charles Durning plays an assistant coach who is a constant bother to the players while he drinks bottles of Maalox. Bo Svenson (Joe Bob) and John Matuszak (O.W.) play excellent supporting roles along with many other actors. If you grew up thinking professional athletes were the salt of the earth this show may very well make you reconsider.

kenjha 2012-05-12 11:47:42

No Fun League

A professional football team makes a season-ending push for theplayoffs. The film really tries to belabor the point that playingprofessional football is hard on the body, with Nolte wincing in painwith almost every movement he makes. Similarly, the ills ofprofessional sports are exaggerated to stress the greed andruthlessness of this cutthroat business. Nolte is fine as the agingwide receiver while Davis is surprisingly effective in his film debutas the quarterback. Also good is Spradlin as the stern coach who seemsto be modeled after Dallas Cowboys coach Tom Landry. The cast featuresthe late Oakland Raider Matuszak as a fierce lineman.

2012-05-12 01:13:35

LIKE A HELMET TO HELMET HIT

NORTH DALLAS FORTY is not just a sports film, it's an indictment of corporate America that was the forerunner of the "Greed is good" films of the 1980's. One of the nicest acting surprises of 1979 was Mac Davis as Seth Maxwell, the consumate huckster who fails in his quest to save his friend, Phil Elliott from his own pre determined gridiron destiny. As Elliott, Nick Nolte, gives 1 of his 3 best performances and he and Davis play perfectly off each other. This film is a winner. All that was missing was NFL Films "Voice of God" John Facenda, with the play by play.

2012-05-04 20:42:52

Sad But True

I'm not a particularly big sports fan so I am not qualified to rate the football sequences of this film but by impression is that there is nothing wonderful about them. That's fine because they are beside the point. They are just an incidental part of the story. The real story is of the aging athletes.Nick Nolte plays the receiver of the Dallas football team. He was great in his day and still has the talent but a life on the field has severely battered his body. He's having a hard time keeping up and, for the first time in his career, he is not a starter. That slot goes to some younger talent. He's at the age where his body and his love interest insist that he should retire. The problem is that he genuinely loves the game.He has other problems as well. Most of the team are spoiled rotten and act little better than spoiled children. The team owner and the team coach are difficult to work for; they demand sacrifice of their players but are two faced and willing to permanently see them hurt in order to further other goals such as bringing along a newer player. Having your girlfriend catch the eye of the owner's brother is also something that tends to put a damper on either your professional career or your love life.This was presented as a comedy and there are some light moments where the players are acting badly. They are, after all, getting paid millions to play a game. It is really about the human decisions, though. It is about making tough, personal choices and being willing to live with the consequences. It is about being willing to give up that which is important.

jhopp21 2012-05-04 15:20:35

Best Football movie ever

This is by far the greatest football movie ever. Other than the LongestYard, nothing compares. I recently, saw ANY GIVEN SUNDAY, and the onlything that it did for me, was make me realize just how good thisis.Nolte is tremendous, but to be honest Mac Davis is the real scene stealer.The greatest scene is when Haddon is watching him stretch in themorning...classic!

2012-05-04 21:37:25

A better halftime show than Janet Jackson

This is an unsparing, unsentimental look at pro football in which the players are alternately brutes, and slaves to management. Coaches shamelessly manipulate the players and then discard them the moment injury strikes; the players are drugged up in order to coax them onto the field, while at the same time the unpopular players are ensnared by drug charges in order to trap them at contract renegotiation time."North Dallas Forty" is probably one of my favorite sports movies, and definitely my favorite football movie. That's because of its defiant outsider approach -- "Ball Four", the baseball book that made Peter Gent's football novel possible, only ever wound up a lame sitcom; "North Dallas Forty" goes all the way. Even though the movie is based on the Dallas Cowboys of the 1960s, the instantly dated 1970s' filmmaking technique remains timeless (even if it's from the same director who made "Weekend at Bernie's", which is timeless for very different reasons).Part of the movie's continuing appeal remains its cast. Nick Nolte is a brilliant lead, as the rebellious but honest-to-a-fault North Dallas wide receiver Phil Elliott. Phil tells it like it is and sees management for what they are, but doesn't realize he's being cheated out of his career until the third or fourth time he's been double-crossed by owners, coaches and friends alike.Playing a riff on Dandy Don Meredith, country singer/songwriter Mac Davis plays sly quarterback Seth Maxwell. The rest of the football team is filled out with several ex-NFL players. John Matuszak's second acting career was launched by this movie, and Bo Svenson's football career should have been launched by this movie. The coaches, Charles Durning (as a cliche-spouting offensive coordinator) and the great G.D. Spradlin (playing a thinly veiled Tom Landry) both dominate their scenes. And yes, that's Dabney Coleman as an oil man and part owner who delivers one of the movie's best lines ("Do you speak Canadian?").Dayle Haddon looks great as Phil's love interest, but otherwise gets overshadowed by the rest of the cast. She seems so disinterested in Phil throughout the movie that I was convinced their relationship wouldn't make it another week after the story ended.Kotcheff directs his football scenes with an interesting approach that could never be duplicated today: there's not a single wide shot of a packed house, not a single closeup of a spectator in North Dallas face paint and a Maxwell jersey. Gone are the excesses of modern TV football coverage, and the only product endorsement I could spot was for xylocaine. Most of the early football action is shown in mute flashbacks, and the climactic game against Chicago is not joined until after the two-minute warning. Even with such minimal football, however, Kotcheff's action is so muddy, bloody and cruel that you can imagine the final game sequence was cued up in L.T.'s VCR the fateful Monday night he tangled with Joe Theismann's leg.Always worth watching every late January, "North Dallas Forty" is one of those films you hope is never going to be remade, because the original has everything you need in a football movie.

2012-05-04 07:07:36

Best sports scenes EVER filmed.

This review is from: North Dallas Forty (DVD) This movie ages fairly well. The best being ALL the scenes of them practicing and playing football. The "love story" is a little weak but the football stuff is like being there.

2012-04-26 09:53:05

Very Satisfied

This review is from: North Dallas Forty (DVD) Bought the dvd for my husband. He's a big fan of these type of movies. He liked how quickly we received the merchandise.

BartG 2012-04-25 17:05:11

Fine Football Fare!

This 1979 film based on the novel by Peter Gent is the most insightful and accurrate representation of the sport of professional football that I can recall ever viewing.To this day the sight of an already heavily bandaged Nick Nolte taking cortisone shots in the locker room, and a pain wracked aging quaterback beautifully played by country western singing star Mac Davis stay clearly in my mind.In addition to the authentic football play, we also witness the players off field contract negotiations, dealings with higher ups, as well as some very vivid and ribald rompings after hours. Nolte is outstanding here a Phil Elliot, the golden boy who's hands just are not what they used to be, and the supporting cast adds greatly to the proceedings with Charles Durning as the coach and G. D. Spradlin as the owner. Also the other players rounding out the rowdy gang including Bo Svenson, and the late John Matuszak feel and look just right. And the then popular model Dayle Haddon pops up periodically to help in other ways!Again, this is one lively and touching sports opus that deserves a repeated viewing, or a first time one for the uninitiated.