Friday Night Lights Details

Excellent movie

Great movie, basically a coach takes over the local highschool american football team. The poor town is obsessed with the team and it is all about the kids and the coach trying to overcome the local pressure. Really gets you involved in the characters, ending is great.

[Highly rated reviewer]

the book is supposed to be great

The film I wasn’t that into. I’m told the book has more of an expose about the town and it’s relationship to football. The film, for me, had too much sport and not enough character. The people in it are mostly one dimensional, and even if they are based on real people, on screen, you have to make these people engaging. The only person who was gripping to watch was, surprisingly, Tim McGraw, playing an alcoholic disillusioned football dad. It’s well made but doesn’t have the depth or humour of ‘North Dallas Forty’ with Nick Nolte, or for that matter ‘Slap Shot’ with Paul Newman, or the original ‘Bad News Bears’ with Walter Matthau. Not up there with other great sports films.