Somewhat surprised that this Michael Ritchie sendup of the Motivational Self Help 70s, disguised as a sports flic, gets such a low rating (below a 6) from my IMDB colleagues. Maybe, like me, they were hoping for more of a gridiron "Jules And Jim" since that was the tone of Dan Jenkins' fine novel. And whenever Reynolds and Clayburgh are onscreen together the film achieves perhaps the most elusive quality in Hollywood, genuine charm, so that when we cut from them to the EST spoof scenes and the Pelf stuff the film seems to die a little before it is semi revived by the force of Ritchie's and screenwriter Walter Bernstein's mordant humor. Still, I always admire Ritchie for grabbing the satirical football handed off from Sturges and Wilder and running with it, the only 70s Hollywood director to do so successfully other than Altman and, occasionally, Mazursky, in my opinion. B minus.
PS...Wish there were more Gene Autry songs.
PS...Wish there were more Gene Autry songs.