Scene is famous for being the difference between the movie rated R or PG/PG-13. Worth it.
Rental Family (2025)
A bit of an uneven experience, and I have notes. But, importantly, I also felt things. Brendan Fraser brings the pathos for me. He can take pretty saccharine material and infuse a significant dose of sincerity.
They cast perfectly for the little girl who plays his non-daughter. I was attached to her from the first scene, and given the nature of the plot I was immediately distraught at the realization that I would almost certainly have to watch her feelings get hurt. Fraserâs plot with her felt like the A plot. The B plot was a bit less interesting to me, and I had a harder time getting attached, but I found that I cared a lot about it as it wound down.
The ending I was a bit mixed on, but it wasnât bad. It felt like it got things partially right while also leaving me wishing they stuck the landing a little better.
All in all, a good experience that approaches the fringes of my top 10 so far this year.
3.5/5
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The poll, conducted Oct. 3-6, surveyed 1,519 U.S. adults and asked them to pick their favorite sports movie released in roughly the past quarter century. The columns reflect the percentage of respondents who picked each movie. Since respondents were allowed to select more than one, the percentages will add up to more than 100%
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List makes me sad for humanity.
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Every movie list in existence is just rage bait, intentional or not.
I reserve the right to post my own movie lists in the future.
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Agree but this theoretically holds more water than totally subjective lists as this is an actual poll.
List adds up to like 400%.
Horrifically designed poll if this is reflecting a bunch of people picking 1 or 2 films and a few people picking 10.
Happy Gilmore is NOT on the list but Happy Gilmore 2 is? Am I seeing that right? Gonna agree with Clovis on this. I canât explain it but it feels like they polled Trump voters on their favorite sports movies.
*since 2000
I havenât seen most of these, the ones I have Iâve immediately forgotten.
Shit, dumb ass list
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I saw some press with Fraser and the little girl and they have real chemistry even off screen.
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I think the Since 2000 qualifier is killing this. What is a good sports movie since then that isnât on this list?
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Not the list that makes me sad. Itâs the order. 
Ford v Ferrari not on the list that I thought was really good
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Depends on what qualifies as a âsports movie,â I guess, though Iâd certainly include Uncut Gems. A degenerate sports bettor tracking several games, as well as a notable role by Kevin Garnett, seems like it would be enough to fit the category.
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By this metric do we have to include Trainwreck too?
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Oh and Silver Linings Playbook should be there as well, but at the very bottom of the list.
I donât remember Trainwreck well enough to judge.
Sports movies are a pretty minor subgenre, so itâs tough to be too precious about them as a group.
Draft Day erasure.
Thanksgiving was awesome because I spent it with a bunch of cinephiles. They all work or used to work in the film biz. Lots of hot takes and vigorous discussions. Not all serious. There was a fun period talking about producing Jackass and how many times a couple of them had seen Johnnyâs penis.
After a scrumptious dinner (the French silk pie was delicious), it came time for us to select a movie. One of the guys had brought his newest rare purchases. We almost went with When Evil Lurks, described as a fucked up intense movie for fans of Red Rooms. I said yes, letâs go in blind.
But then the ride turned as soon as he brought out a German-only Blu-ray release of Spartan (2004), an American political thriller film written and directed by David Mamet and starring Val Kilmer, Derek Luke, Tia Texada, Ed OâNeill, William H. Macy, and Kristen Bell.
When the presidentâs daughter, Laura Newton (Kristen Bell), is kidnapped by a human trafficking ring, high-ranking Secret Service agent Robert Scott (Val Kilmer) takes on the case. With the assistance of his protĂ©gĂ©, Curtis (Derek Luke), Robert begins investigating, but the operation is called off when Laura is reported dead. However, Robert and Curtis, who have discovered evidence to the contrary, continue their search, and soon find evidence of an elaborate government cover-up.
I could sort of feel the cool factor when the owner of the Blu-ray said this copy was a German-only release, but not to worry, heâd brought a special Blu-ray player just in case we wanted to watch it.
RT 65% and a consensus: âA good cast and Mametâs mastery over the written language elevate an otherwise conventional thriller.â
Roger Ebert gave the film a four-star rating saying that âThe particular pleasure of âSpartanâ is to watch the characters gradually define themselves and the plot gradually emerge like your face in a steamy mirror.â
As weâre watching it, pretty much everyone in the room is glued to the screen. Laughing at the jokes. Jumping at the scares. Leaning forward for the action. Nodding sagely to the dialogue. I mean even if you donât always enjoy Mamet, this is the same guy who wrote Glengarry Glenn Ross.
But just a few minutes into it, I was slack jawed. This thing stinks. I mean it was awful. All of the dialogue sucked. None of the performances worked. Val Killer has never been worse.
Most of the action happens off screen?? At first I thought it was kind of a cool stylistic choice to hear whatâs happening without seeing it, but soon it becomes clear the reason we donât see the action is because Mamet has no idea how to shoot it.
Mamet leaves no doubt he doesnât know how to shoot action by including several laughably bad gun shootout scenes. Val Kilmer not only never misses, he can deliver a killing blow with a simple shoulder shot. This man has never seen a flesh wound.
The only exception to the badness is a late-game appearance by a young Kristen Bell exuding raw talent.
And donât get me started on the ending. M Night Shyamalan has nightmares about twists this bad.
This is a strong contender for what I will select for @LikeClockwork when they lose their bet to me.
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