‘The Longest Yard’ scores

In Texas there are only two things they take seriously -- football

games (a.k.a. religion) and prisons. “The Longest Yard,” is about a

football game in Texas between some prison guards and their inmates.

This is a remake of the 1974 movie with the same name. It’s a funny

story and a funny movie.

The story is a typical David vs. Goliath sports tale, featuring

men who’ve been locked away from women for so long that their

judgment has become clouded. Unlike a lot of recent “remakes,” this

isn’t a “re-imagining.” A few things have been updated to make the

movie fresh and new, but the important pieces of the original are

still there.

The main character is Paul Crewe (Adam Sandler), a former NFL MVP

quarterback who finds himself in a Federal prison in Texas. The

warden (James Cromwell) is a megalomaniac who pulled some strings to

have Crewe as an inmate. He hopes that Crewe will help coach his

semi-pro team made of prison guards led by the sadistic Captain

Knauer (William Fichtner). The warden then decides to have Crewe put

together an inmate team to play against Knauer and the guards in a

tune-up game.

The idea is that the game would be something like USC versus

Golden West College. The guards will be able to run up a huge score

against the inmates, which will help build their confidence going

into the season opener. What the warden doesn’t know is that Crewe

plans to help the inmates win the game and beat the guards.

Like the original, this “Longest Yard” starts to get fun when

Crewe searches the prison for players and tries to recruit the

inmates who are the most violent. These are guys who would rather

kill you than say hello.

To help him on this quest Crewe enlists the help of the prison

scrounger (Chris Rock) and an old collegiate football star Nate

Scarborough (Burt Reynolds). Crewe and his teammates don’t think of

themselves as cheaters, but they definitely know how to bend the

rules.

The original 1974 version of the film is one of my favorite

movies. Prior to “Boogie Nights,” it was easily Burt Reynold’s best

movie. Reynolds was a Division A collegiate halfback, and was a

perfect fit to play the cocky Paul Crewe. When this movie came out in

1974 he was at the peak of his career.

In his wildest dreams Adam Sandler could never hope to be the kind

of macho sex god that Reynolds was then. Sandler’s humor has always

been more silly than clever, the opposite of Reynolds. Going into

this movie I just couldn’t picture him playing Paul Crewe. Much to my

surprise, Sandler is great in this movie.

There’s a rule in theater that when you’re on stage you can do one

of two things with the spotlight. You can either give it or take it.

Sandler does both very well. He’s funny, without overpowering the

other characters. He knows when to step up and be hilarious, and when

to play it straight and let the virtual freak show around him get the

big laughs.

* JIM ERWIN, 40, is a technical writer and computer trainer.

‘Cinderella Man’

is a knockout film

Memorial Day weekend means the kickoff of summer releases at the

box office. Traditionally, Hollywood narrows its target audience to

teenagers, with a tendency to ignore viewers 25 and older. The movie

choices have been limited to testosterone-driven action shootouts,

teenagers paralyzed with terror in haunted houses or lovable animated

animals out to save the world.

But this year, Hollywood is changing its marketing plan to pull

adults into movie theaters during summer. It’s a matter of economics.

More adults are going to the movies.

Kicking off the 2005 movie summer season for ticket buyers 25 and

older is “Cinderella Man.” Centered on the world of boxing, the story

appeals to women as well as men.

In 1929, boxer James Braddock (Russell Crowe) enjoys a run of good

fortune winning bouts and titles at Madison Square Garden. He’s

happily married and is the loving father to three children. By 1933,

James -- along with 15 million other men -- is unemployed and

scrounging for food to put in his children’s grumbling stomachs.

Even his ability to fight has been affected by the Depression,

forcing Braddock into early retirement and onto the breadlines. All

the Braddock family has left, after selling everything they own to

keep a roof over their heads, are love and family values.

Four years into the Depression, James and his wife Mae (Renee

Zellweger) have managed to keep their marriage intact and shield

their children from the harsher realities of the fallout from the

stock market crash. At times, though, James and Mae’s abilities are

tested when the boys are directly affected, like when one of them

steals food and the other is getting too weak and sick and the heat

in their apartment is disconnected.

A change of events returns Braddock to boxing. As the brutal

effects of the Depression begin to ease up on James, a new challenge

rises up -- a Goliath-sized challenge that tests not only his

physical skills as a boxer, but also his marriage to Mae.

Movies tell one of four types of stories: individuals in conflict

with others, society, the elements or themselves. The majority of

movies incorporate one type, like Jane Fonda constantly fighting her

future daughter in-law in “Monster In-Law.” Good movies combine two

elements.

Memorable movies, such as “Cinderella Man,” involve all four

types. James has enemies both inside and outside the ring. He

struggles with his conscience over the right thing to do for his

family. Braddock, like millions of others, is being beaten down by

the Depression. And a subplot deals with the family trying to survive

the freezing New Jersey winters.

Movies rarely capture and communicate the depth and scope that

humans endure as “Cinderella Man” has. Co-writers Cliff Hollingsworth

and Akiva Goldsman (“A Beautiful Mind”) and director Ron Howard

deserve the majority of credit.

Based on the life of boxer James Braddock, who fought Max Baer for

the heavyweight title, the co-writers have written a script that

gives a 360-degree perspective of the fighter’s life. Braddock’s

personal, professional and social worlds intersect, interact and play

off of each other, giving viewers an intimate view of the fighter.

Howard’s interpretation of the script, along with his ability to

visualize the story, creates an absorbing human interest story. He

gives the audience a “what’s going to happen next?” experience in a

character-driven drama, usually reserved for wall-to-wall action

flicks.

And Howard has done something different with the fight scenes,

making them easier on the eyes and ears of viewers watching the

action.

Crowe and Zellweger enhance “Cinderella Man” with their ability to

play characters from other times, as their award-winning performances

in “Gladiator” and “Cold Mountain” prove. Paul Giamatti is an extra

bonus to the cast, playing John Gould, Braddock’s ringside manager

and biggest supporter.

“Cinderella Man” delivers knockout entertainment from the first

punch to the last. * PEGGY J. ROGERS, 40, produces commercial videos

and documentaries.