So, you’ve survived the big holiday rush and are feeling a bit restless after the big meal. Perhaps you usually recoup by watching one of several football games on the tube that afternoon. But what if you’re not that invested in the match-ups and just want to get out of the house for a bit? Well, why not combine the two by taking in a new flick at the multiplex…one all about football. Oh, but it’s not a fictional tale of a group of “ragtag’ misfits pulling together for a beloved but often cranky coach. No, it’s all true, a sports biopic, but also a love story in the vein of the classic PRIDE OF THE YANKEES, minus the disease finale. And unlike that “chestnut, this man’s story is still “being written”. So, as all the details are revealed it becomes clear why the title is AMERICAN UNDERDOG..
It all starts with a young boy’s dream of tossing the ole “pigskin” like his idols on TV. That lad studying the tube and practicing his throw grows into the quarterback for the University of Northern Iowa Panthers, Kurt Warner (Zachary Levi). After much prodding from a teammate pal, he sets aside his studies and practice for an evening at a local country-western bar. And that is where he meets her, Brenda Meoni (Anna Paquin). He’s so gobsmacked that his buddy teaches him line dancing in order to join her on the dance floor. The former marine and current nursing student is stunned when Kurt shows up on her doorstep with a rose. That day he meets her mama along with her two children from a previous marriage, sweet five-year-old daughter Jesse and ten-year-old son Zack who is legally blind. The kids, especially Zack, bond with him immediately, so the ‘gun-shy” Brenda agrees to date him. Their budding romance is tested over the next four years as Kurt tries to get a shot at the NFL Then finally the Green Bay Packers tap him for a tryout. But his time is short there, as the coach sends him back home after just two days. Brenda’s family lets him stay in their basement as he stocks groceries at night while still dreaming of another opportunity. And it happens, not with the NFL though. The scrappy owner of the Iowa Barnstormers, a team in the AFL(Arena Football League), Jim Foster (Bruce McGill) offers him a contract. After barely scraping by, Kurt takes the job despite the hardships of traveling on his new family. Eventually, he marries Brenda just as a rep for the NFL’s St. Louis Rams comes to see him. And though he’s a bit “long in the tooth” for a rookie, he works with coach Dick Vermeil (Dennis Quaid) as a backup quarterback. But things change when the first-string QB is injured. And though the media believes that he’s an “aging hack”, Kurt, buoyed by the love of Brenda, knows that this is his moment.
In the title role, Levi deftly balances the drama and athlete aspects involved in this story. He looks confident on the field, while also doing his best to prove his worth to his soulmate. He’s charming in their courtship and warms to the kids with no prodding. But he still has his frustrations as he looks wistfully at a box of Wheaties, thinking he’ll never adorn it. Luckily Levi has great chemistry with Paquin as the tough, world-weary Brenda. She’s touched by this lumbering “puppy dog’ even though her emotional wall is still solid. We see the sadness in her eyes as she opens up to Kurt about her first marriage. And Paquin doesn’t make her merely a devoted “cheerleader”, confronting him about his goals. They’re the heart of the film, ably assisted by a quartet of great teachers/ coaches to Kurt. Adam Ballwin is his growling bulldog-like college coach (“Stay in the pocket”). And just as tough, but more amusing is McGill as the larger-than-life Foster who’s got Foghorn Leghorn’s bluster paired with Scrooge McDuck’s wallet as he promises a “C-note” for every touchdown. But he’s a pushover compared to Rams coach Mike Martz, played with scowling intensity by Chance Kelly. Luckily he’s offset by the warm, father-like Vermeil played with a calm strength by Quaid, Their conversation in which he sees Kurt as a kindred spirit is an emotional highpoint of the film.
The direction by the brothers Erwin (Andrew and Jon) is brisk and confident, whether in the locker room or at the dinner table, making it an engrossing story for those with little interest in sports. Though many of the domestic scenes have the feel of a basic cable miniseries, the sprawling intensity of the game scenes elevates the story taking us right to the center of the action, and groaning with each tackle and “hit”. The script by Jon, Joe Gunn, and David Aaron Cohen adapting the book “All Things Possible” by Michael Silver and Kurt avoids many sports film cliches as we see how the relationship of the Warners endure through the dark dire times ( a scene on a snowy road is harrowing) right through the triumphs. And although the Erwins are mainly known for “faith-based” films, the message is never hammered home but is tackled with subtlety and sincerity. They show us how to move past the disappointments and tragedies of the past, often gaining strength from adversity and turning failure into determination. It’s inspiring and sweet without getting syrupy. As far as biographies go, AMERICAN UNDERDOG is often a solid scorer.
2.5 Out of 4
AMERICAN UNDERDOG opens in theatres everywhere on Christmas Eve
