Today I'm writing a review of a movie I've wanted to do for a long time. A review of my favorite football movie, Friday Night Lights! It should be noted that this is not the only football movie that I am a fan of, but to me after years of watching many strong candidates this one has been my favorite. If you don't agree don't be afraid to let me know what your favorite is and why. Without further ado let's do a review.
Friday Night Lights was released in theaters back in 2004 and was based on the 1990 book of the same name. Both the movie and book follow the real life story of the 1988 Odessa Permian High school football team and their struggles of winning with the pressure of the entire town on their backs. Director Peter Berg does an excellent job of catching this feeling too. There are scenes where the team is talked about on local radio, players are hounded in public constantly and the town closes down for home games. These scenes really help set the atmosphere for the movie and is a constant throughout the film.
I've said before that it can be hard to do a sports film because generally they are predictable, so it makes performances in said film even more important. Fortunately for Friday Night Lights not only does it have amazing performances but its base story is actually pretty predictable.
Not every character gets the same amount of dialogue but every character we meet upon the team feels important and has an arch beyond being just football players. Billy Bob Thornton as the Head Coach Gary Gaines also gives a strong, controlled, leading performance.
One thing that absolutely hit me with this film is the music. The music is perfect in its timing and ambiance. The soundtrack for the film was done by a band called Explosions in the Sky and all throughout they are able to give the film its perfect sense of intensity and emptiness that comes with the setting of a small west, Texas town. The music is also at its best in the most important scenes of the film to me, the football scenes.
Many actual experienced football players were used in the film for all teams and it shows. It's hard hitting and brutal at most times with its action. The way football scenes in this movie are shot, scored, and directed are just awesome and my personal favorite of all football movies.
It's not a perfect movie, it's certainly no Rocky of sports movies due to a myriad of reasons. Due more to the fact that the movie uses montages a bit too much and could've gone a bit deeper into its subplots. However, overall Friday Night Lights is an extremely enjoyable movie that casual and hardcore football fans can watch.
