This was a rather good comedy sports movie featuring a college football team that basically gets hit hard with sanctions and such. I can not believe this film is so old, however. I was thinking this thing was made in 1995 or 96, but it came out in 91 while I was still in high school. The film actually predates Quantum Leap, a television show that features the star in this one Scott Bakula. Speaking of Scott, here is the case of a guy that just seems like he should of been a major star in Hollywood, but it just never materialized for him. He is great in this one as an older man who returns to college because he had to leave college prematurely the previous time. A coach in charge of rebuilding the football program recruits him as the team has few players and no real quarterback. The dean of the school is against the coach the whole way and is sort of the villain of the piece, but here is one of the kinks. I find it refreshing that a dean would want to focus on education rather than the gridiron. As much as I enjoy football, to often the educational program takes a backseat to a bunch of jocks who should not even be at the college except they are good at sports. Meanwhile, those who go to the school trying to pay their way and in the need of loans have to keep having their tuition raised to pay for things such as stadiums. Enough of my rant, the film is rather good, but is unbelievable. Suffice to say, there is no way a team that has so few players that some have to play offense and defense is going to compete against the number one team in the country. So just think of it as a Hollywood sports comedy, totally unrealistic, but worth a few laughs, unless of course it is Sinbad making the jokes.
39 Reviews
Aging quarterback returns to college
archgrafix5 July 2013
You can read most details of the film in other, more complete reviews, pro and con. But I need to add an oddity.
The movie team, the Texas State University Fighting Armadillos, battles to a pounding against the Southwest Texas State Bobcats in one game. The point I want to make is that the REAL Southwest Texas State in San Marcos, TX changed its name in real life to Texas State University--San Marcos (the "--San Marcos" designation has also recently been dropped). So, in the movie, the problematic TSU university team in green and white plays its own real-life future alter ego, the real maroon-and-gold SWT Bobcats, complete with cheerleaders. The Armadillo mascot for Texas State in the movie is fictitious, but the Bobcats are real.
Since the movie was made in 1991 and the name change took place in 2003, the two movie opponent school names -- before anyone knew about the future name change -- eventually became the same university in reality.
Footnote: I graduated from Southwest Texas State in 1978 in journalism, with a minor in art. When the name change happened, the Alumni Association wrote and asked if I wanted a new diploma with the new college name, which I did opt for. So they sent me a new diploma with the new school name. I now have two diplomas from the same university (different names) with the same degree and minor.
According to WOAI-AM radio station in San Antonio, the total cost of the name change and resulting associated do-overs (stationary letterheads, repainting, etc) was $350,000, paid for by private donations.
The movie team, the Texas State University Fighting Armadillos, battles to a pounding against the Southwest Texas State Bobcats in one game. The point I want to make is that the REAL Southwest Texas State in San Marcos, TX changed its name in real life to Texas State University--San Marcos (the "--San Marcos" designation has also recently been dropped). So, in the movie, the problematic TSU university team in green and white plays its own real-life future alter ego, the real maroon-and-gold SWT Bobcats, complete with cheerleaders. The Armadillo mascot for Texas State in the movie is fictitious, but the Bobcats are real.
Since the movie was made in 1991 and the name change took place in 2003, the two movie opponent school names -- before anyone knew about the future name change -- eventually became the same university in reality.
Footnote: I graduated from Southwest Texas State in 1978 in journalism, with a minor in art. When the name change happened, the Alumni Association wrote and asked if I wanted a new diploma with the new college name, which I did opt for. So they sent me a new diploma with the new school name. I now have two diplomas from the same university (different names) with the same degree and minor.
According to WOAI-AM radio station in San Antonio, the total cost of the name change and resulting associated do-overs (stationary letterheads, repainting, etc) was $350,000, paid for by private donations.
fine silly little sports movie
SnoopyStyle2 February 2015
The Texas State University Fighting Armadillos face NCAA sanctions after multiple infractions. The old players are all expelled and the old coaches fired. Carver Purcell (Fred Dalton Thompson) hires coach Ed Gennero (Hector Elizondo) to run a clean program with no pressure to win. Gennero talks defense coach Wally Rig (Robert Loggia) to join him. There are no scholarships and the players have to be actual students. Wally asks former high school star Paul Blake (Scott Bakula) to try out. Dean Phillip Elias (Larry Miller) doesn't like the football program. Joining the team is rich boy Jarvis Edison (Jason Bateman), receiver Featherstone who can't hold on to the ball, Eric 'Samorai' Hansen and soccer player Lucy Draper (Kathy Ireland). Blake falls for Dr. Suzanne Carter (Harley Jane Kozak) who turns out to be his professor. Andre Krimm (Sinbad) is the celestrial mechanics professor and former football player who Blake gets to join the team. It's a silly little sports movie in the vein of Major League. It's got the zany cast of characters. It's got the evil dean. This one even has a girl on the team and Kathy Ireland makes for a very cute football player. Bakula is terrific as the old weary freshman. Rob Schneider is actually funny when he's doing commentary. It's very formulaic but that's what these movies are.
This film is funny!
mycatslyone19 June 2005
Freshman college football with a 34 yr old playing? (Scott Bakula) A HUGE science teacher playing? (The ever-funny Sinbad)A rich kid who gains confidence from the 34 yr old? (Jason Bateman) The best lookin' Greek-Aussie I ever saw & probably the smallest in football? (Louis Mandylor) I bought this DVD thinking it would be another Major League. Well, it was a little drier but still funny. When the GIANT guys come out on the field from prison, (The Refrigerator, Too-Tall, etc.) you wonder how & why but it's only to 'toughen up' the team. The roughness is necessary! See this for a laugh, especially during football season. And ladies, there is always something for US in these sports films! It's your choice!!
A fine football flick, with enough zany humor and romance to please both sexes
inkblot1126 September 2007
Paul (Scott Bakula) was a great high school quarterback in Texas, where he never lost a game. However, his father died after football season was over and Paul felt obligated to take over the family farm. Therefore, he turned down scholarships and never went to college. But, now Texas State wants him, wants him badly. The university has had a long history of NCAA violations and, consequently, is having trouble recruiting players. But, with a new, straight-arrow coach (Hector Elizondo), his assistant (Robert Loggia), and a dedicated college president, Texas State is trying to turn the tide. Paul, although he is now 34, agrees to join the team and the freshman class. Wouldn't you know it, though, he soon has a run-in with an attractive female professor (Harley Jane Kozak), who refuses to accept his growing interest in her. And, with a ragtag roster of only 17 players, playing both offense and defense, can they win any games? This is a fine football flick with some elements of romance thrown in, too, to please any viewer. The cast is very nice, with Bakula, Elizondo, Loggia, Sinbad, a tiny-bit- pretentious Kozak, a lovely Kathy Ireland, a very funny Rob Schneider, and a hilarious Larry Miller whooping it up all the way. The football scenes are quite fine as well, which should please any true gridiron fan. Yes, unfortunately, the film looks dated, with its out of fashion costumes and its mediocre camera work. The Texas setting, however, is rather welcome. All in all, if you love the game-with-a-pigskin, you must arrange to view this one. You will find it greatly entertaining. Fans of romcoms, too, who are running out of material, will be pleased with the efforts here as well.
Fun football movie
magellan3335 January 2006
Necessary Roughness is a fun movie that if it isn't taken too seriously can be very enjoyable. The first to worst Texas State team finds itself with a team of mostly "non-athletes" that came about after the school held open tryouts. The entire championship team from the year before had been suspended for violations. Scott Bakula plays a competent lead as a middle aged college athlete. Sinbad adds some fun to the story as another "elder athlete". Kathy Ireland, while no actress, does add some eye candy to the film. I also like this film in that this rag-tag team does not reach the heights of being #1 or making it to a championship game. The "big game" of this film is when Texas State plays the the #1 ranked college team. The film has plenty of laughs, a touch of drama and competent script writing and players. Watch it on a Sunday afternoon when nothing else is on.
Not Bad.
w0rm919118 March 2003
In the pantheon of football movies it's not the best, but not the worst by far. It's a decent comedy for the generation when it came out. The ensemble cast worked well together and anything with Kathy Ireland in it can't be all that bad. Sinbad also looked like someone who may have played football before going to teaching. 6/10
Artificial Turf
wes-connors20 March 2011
Likable "Quantum Leap" TV star Scott Bakula (as Paul Blake) touches down in a leading feature film role. He's a 34-year-old high school star football hero who decided to tend the family farm after his father died. When the college Mr. Bakula failed to attend loses its football squad to scandal, honest coaches Hector Elizondo (as Ed Gennero) and Robert Loggia (as Wally "Rig" Riggendorf) recruit Bakula for the Texas State "Armadillos". Also making the cut is smarty-pants Sinbad (as Andre Krimm), rich kid Jason Bateman (as Jarvis Edison), and female kicker Kathy Ireland (as Lucy Draper).
No points for guessing which team wins the climactic big game. Bakula smokes cigarettes, but seems to have kept himself in excellent shape. This is noticed by journalism teacher Harley Jane Kozak (as Suzanne Carter), who gets her backfield in motion for Bakula. Maybe she will give her old crush and his team good grades. The story barely passes.
**** Necessary Roughness (9/27/91) Stan Dragoti ~ Scott Bakula, Hector Elizondo, Robert Loggia, Harley Jane Kozak
No points for guessing which team wins the climactic big game. Bakula smokes cigarettes, but seems to have kept himself in excellent shape. This is noticed by journalism teacher Harley Jane Kozak (as Suzanne Carter), who gets her backfield in motion for Bakula. Maybe she will give her old crush and his team good grades. The story barely passes.
**** Necessary Roughness (9/27/91) Stan Dragoti ~ Scott Bakula, Hector Elizondo, Robert Loggia, Harley Jane Kozak
So why review a 21 year old movie?
fredericksmith195218 February 2012
So why review a 21 year old movie? Easy. Good movies have no expiration date, and this is certainly one of them. At the time, the NCAA was going through all sorts of problems with player bribes, payoffs, faked grades, violations from steroids to hookers to cars for the players. This movie was brave enough to face these problems and gives an accurate picture of trying to build a football team from a bunch of wanna be's and never were's. Scott Bakula is perfect in the role, neither attempting to affect a fake Texas drawl nor over playing the role. Hector Elizondo and Robert Loggia, two veteran actors who could easily dominate the film, instead add their considerable talents to make the film believable. Several great touches are added, including Rob Schneider as the announcer for the games, and the appearance of a prison team arranged by Dean Elias (Larry Miller, the schmuck you love to hate) adds an extreme and interesting comic scene. Dick Butkus, Earl Campbell, Roger Craig, Ben Davidson, Tony Dorsett, Evander Holyfield, Ed "Too Tall" Jones, Jim Kelly, Jerry Rice, Hershel Walker, and Randy White are the prison football players, and if you have to ask who they are, you need to head over to the NFL Hall of Fame (Except for Evander Holyfield, former Heavyweight Champion of the World). The film is cohesive, the language is minimal, and the violence is limited to the football field, practice, and a slight altercation between two teams at Billy Bob's. Collectible if you are a fan of good sports movies, and definitely a great film for the family on a Saturday night.
Where are the rules? There is none silly!
GOWBTW14 November 2005
This movie really shows how the college football teams get away with this. "Necessary Roughness" is like the sister movie to "Major League". Only it's dealing with college football. Times do change for sports. The old members of the teams are gone not because they have moved on to bigger projects. Scandal is the cause of the team's folly. A shady dean, two coaches who are trying to get the team back to their winning ways. There comes a 34 year-old farm hand , and former high school football hero named Paul Blake(Scott Bakula, aka Sam Beckett on "Quantum Leap") gives the college a hand. He does a mighty good throw, and along with the other misfits. The big guy Manumana is the most menacing character of the team. However, they bring in the kicker Lucy(Kathy Ireland) and Manumana is smitten. I liked it when Samorai(Michael Dolan) got really rough with one of the players and the ref was good at naming the moves he was doing. I liked the part where Lucy reduced that blow-hard player into a "little boy" when she gave him a three point kick to his "friends". HAHAHA! It all ended well when the dean got his "just desserts" and Manumana went down "hard and fast" when Lucy gave him a victory kiss. I would feel the same after I do some back-flips. It was funny and it was fast, see this movie, the fun always lasts. RATING 3 OUT OF 5 STARS!
One of the funniest movies I've seen
Verbal-1713 November 1998
This is an absolutely hilarious movie that I would recommend to
anyone. True, it has the same basic plot as every other sports movie that has come out in the last 20 years (group of ragtags come together to form a team to defeat a bigger, more evil team, etc.), but there such high energy in all the performances, and the dialogue is so brimming with hilarity that it doesn't matter. How many "comedies" have come out recently that contain only a few jokes, each of them surrounded by tons of boring and meaningless plot development that don't add up to anything. For anyone tired of this, I highly urge you to take a look at this highly underrated film filled with dialogue that is refreshingly funny all the way through. Movies like this are what great comedy is all about.
anyone. True, it has the same basic plot as every other sports movie that has come out in the last 20 years (group of ragtags come together to form a team to defeat a bigger, more evil team, etc.), but there such high energy in all the performances, and the dialogue is so brimming with hilarity that it doesn't matter. How many "comedies" have come out recently that contain only a few jokes, each of them surrounded by tons of boring and meaningless plot development that don't add up to anything. For anyone tired of this, I highly urge you to take a look at this highly underrated film filled with dialogue that is refreshingly funny all the way through. Movies like this are what great comedy is all about.
Can't help but like it...
wally726 November 2006
First of all, I'm going to say that this is definitely not American Cinema at its finest. Better movies have been made, better comedies have been made, better football movies have been made. With all that said...I just can't help liking this movie. The acting is decent, with assistant coach Riggendorf (Robert Loggia) being the funniest character. The halftime speech at the climactic "big game" makes me laugh out loud every time. If you're the "hoity-toity" movie critic type who appreciates nothing outside of Oscar-worthy pictures, why are you watching a football movie anyway? If you know how to have a good time watching a movie, and laugh at the eccentricities and vulnerabilities of realistic characters, "Necessary Roughness" is more than worth a look! 7/10
Oh yeah, it's necessary
ck24089910 October 2000
When was the last time a Scott Bakula performance blew you out of your seat. Actually, when was the last time a Bakula performance DIDN'T blow you out of your seat. Scotty's back and he's up to his old tricks. In this flick he throws on a denim jacket and cowboy hat and heads back to good ol' Texas State where the football team is desperate to find anyone to fill out their squad (even a 34 year-old). When viewing this, prepare yourself for a stellar performance from Hector Elizondo and even Hogan Familiy's Jason Bateman (fully!). You can expect to find Sinbad "keeping it real" and "to the max". If comedy is your vice than prepare to get naughty because Rob Schneider's one-liners from the press box gave my knee a bruise from slapping it so hard. I know you're probably thinkin'... it's a football film, no girls allowed. No siree, Suzanne Carter is magnificent as a professor who falls for Paul Blake's (Bakula) rugged charm. Kathy Ireland rounds out the cast as the place kicker (and kick she does)! If your ready for a some rowdy, radical comedy on the grid-iron, then make sure you add this little gem to your your "collection de excellance". You can find this film on my shelf right next to other sports comedies such as "The Little Giants", "Major League 1-3", and "Goofus and Galant Take the Field".
One of the most well made football movies of all time
Agent108 June 2002
Sports comedies are truly a lost art, and this one proved to be the last great film in this rather little used genre. While films like The Replacements and Little Giants have tried, they have ultimately failed. This film's cast wasn't littered with big name talent, it proved sufficient in the story of a bunch of football players trying to be a team. While few really appreciate this movie for what it is, it is probably the last great film in a genre that is slowly being overtaken by raunchy teen comedies and pointless excursions into other sub-genres
For football fans only
lastliberal17 April 2007
There is really nothing special about this movie.It really has only the thinnest veneer of a story. Team gets on probation - coach finds 34-year-old quarterback to bring them back - team is a bunch of losers - they win the big game. You know, the usual stuff these sports films are made of, but unlike Hoosiers, there is not much going on outside the lockeroom or off the field.
I only watched it because one of the minor stars is coming to town to give a speech and I wanted to see his part. It was about 10 seconds long.
Kathy Ireland was there with a small part and Fred Dalton Thompson was there too, again with a small part. The rest of the cast is forgettable. Well, I hate to admit it, but Rob Schneider was a little funny.
I only watched it because one of the minor stars is coming to town to give a speech and I wanted to see his part. It was about 10 seconds long.
Kathy Ireland was there with a small part and Fred Dalton Thompson was there too, again with a small part. The rest of the cast is forgettable. Well, I hate to admit it, but Rob Schneider was a little funny.
The Legacy of North Texas
Quicksand26 November 2003
So let me pitch a movie to you. It stars Scott Bakula, Sinbad, Jason Bateman, Rob Schneider, and the director of "Mr. Mom." What's not to like?
Okay, ideally all those factors should cancel each other out, but... no. This is a moderately entertaining movie at best; not worth a rental, but in the top-tier of movies they show ad-nauseum on basic cable. Comedy Central should add this one to their rotation. I'm not kidding.
It's a footnote on the resume of every actor involved, with the exception of the Unversity of North Texas campus, in scenic Denton, 30 miles north of Dallas/Ft. Worth. Much of the campus has changed since 1991 (including the football stadium), and the telescope Sinbad teaches with has been moved, with bemusement, to the UNT Observatory, 20 minutes north of campus.
Sometime later in the 21st Century, when North Texas gains a little more notoriety, people will point and remember famous alums such as Peter Weller, Roy Orbison, "Mean" Joe Greene and "Stone Cold" Steve Austin... and they'll remember this movie. Six points for the Location Scout.
Three points for the guys who wrote the script (a few good lines, and Kathy Ireland in tights), and no points for the director. Even so, we film-watchers could do worse.
6/10
Okay, ideally all those factors should cancel each other out, but... no. This is a moderately entertaining movie at best; not worth a rental, but in the top-tier of movies they show ad-nauseum on basic cable. Comedy Central should add this one to their rotation. I'm not kidding.
It's a footnote on the resume of every actor involved, with the exception of the Unversity of North Texas campus, in scenic Denton, 30 miles north of Dallas/Ft. Worth. Much of the campus has changed since 1991 (including the football stadium), and the telescope Sinbad teaches with has been moved, with bemusement, to the UNT Observatory, 20 minutes north of campus.
Sometime later in the 21st Century, when North Texas gains a little more notoriety, people will point and remember famous alums such as Peter Weller, Roy Orbison, "Mean" Joe Greene and "Stone Cold" Steve Austin... and they'll remember this movie. Six points for the Location Scout.
Three points for the guys who wrote the script (a few good lines, and Kathy Ireland in tights), and no points for the director. Even so, we film-watchers could do worse.
6/10
A mediocre film about college football that tries too hard.
Captain_Couth21 August 2005
Necessary Roughness (1991) was a bad comedy/ drama that tried to hard on every level to be a serious film about college football. A lot of current and former superstar athletes appeared in this production during one of the film's comedic highlights. Other than that it's a very mediocre movie. They should have just stuck to making a straight out comedy filled with no realism. Instead the film makers try to play both fields and they end up on the short end of the stick. When will somebody make a decent film about college football that's funny and realistic?
Not recommended, unless it's for free on t.v.
Not recommended, unless it's for free on t.v.
Short n Sweet
Smegger19 January 2000
Very funny film, and even though it was the same tired old formula of misfits winning against the best team it was still entertaining to watch. Scott Bakula, and Sinbad made it for me and I can't believe I've only just watched it. If you like Quantum Leap then I guess you'd like this .
Not great, but fun to watch.
Apostle18 October 2003
Scott Bakula gets re-recruited (if that's a real word) to play for the fictitious Texas State Fighting Armadillos after the NCAA drops the hammer on the football program following various violations. It sounds like a premise to a bad sitcom, but in this case it's the premise to a somewhat decent, if not forgettable, movie.
POSITIVES:
Sinbad: The man has always been funny and will probably go down as one of the most under-appreciated comics working today.
Kathy Ireland: 'Nuff said.
Hector Elizondo and Robert Loggia: Not exactly Laurel and Hardy, but a likable duo and one that you truly want to root for.
Larry Miller: As the dean, he's a complete tool. He does that part so well it makes you wonder if he's as big a tool off screen as he is on. The perfect villain.
The "Convict" Football Team: Just looking at the credits that say "Convict Football Team" would make any football player wet himself.
NEGATIVES:
Harley Jane Kozak and Scott Bakula: I didn't feel any chemistry between them at all. Nor did I believe for a second that they had any feelings for each other whatsoever.
The writing: It's in the negative category. 'Nuff said.
** out of *****
POSITIVES:
Sinbad: The man has always been funny and will probably go down as one of the most under-appreciated comics working today.
Kathy Ireland: 'Nuff said.
Hector Elizondo and Robert Loggia: Not exactly Laurel and Hardy, but a likable duo and one that you truly want to root for.
Larry Miller: As the dean, he's a complete tool. He does that part so well it makes you wonder if he's as big a tool off screen as he is on. The perfect villain.
The "Convict" Football Team: Just looking at the credits that say "Convict Football Team" would make any football player wet himself.
NEGATIVES:
Harley Jane Kozak and Scott Bakula: I didn't feel any chemistry between them at all. Nor did I believe for a second that they had any feelings for each other whatsoever.
The writing: It's in the negative category. 'Nuff said.
** out of *****
hilarious sports movie
mattkratz11 July 2010
This was a very funny sports (specifically American Football) movie where a college football team gets heavily sanctioned by such things as recruitment violations and has to get a new team from its student body and recruits its quarterback as a 34-year-old farmer in Scott Bakula. I will admit that there was hardly anything new in this formula and cliché-ridden film, and you will probably be able to figure out what happens in the final scene once it arrives, but you will have a fun time getting there. I absolutely loved Rob Schneider's role as the sportscaster. The coaches, players, and the lady professor were all great, and the movie was hilarious throughout. I actually attended the filming of the final scene at UNT. That was fun. You will not regret watching this movie.
*** out of ****
*** out of ****
It's a Football Movie, That's Really All You Need to Know
gavin694212 November 2006
After the college football team is cracked down on by the dean for poor grades, the coach is forced to sign on some unconventional players (a 34-year old man, a teacher and a samurai) to play Iran Man football.
With Scott Bakula being the star of the film, this movie is very much like "The Natural" with Robert Redford. Like Redford, Bakula was pushed out of sports 16 years ago and returns to be a star in his later years when everyone thinks he is past his prime. Yes, 16 years in both films. I could say it was like "The Replacements" but that seems almost too easy.
A lot of things about the film are really stupid. Using Kathy Ireland as a kicker was just an excuse to put a hot girl in a locker room. Having a teacher coincidentally be a woman with a crush on Bakula from his high school years is a stretch. And in general, the movie served no point... the team has no chance of winning, so the best they can hope for is to not be skunked.
Bakula is a great actor, but very dated in this film with his goofy jean jacket. Sinbad was Sinbad, and not the one from "Houseguest" but the unfunny one from the 1980s. Kathy Ireland was a better actress than I expected. The best actor? Strangely, Rob Schneider, who is probably known best for his dumb characters from Saturday Night Live and subsequent bad movies. In this, a young Schneider plays an announcer who is lovable and funny... comparable to Bob Uecker from "Major League".
This film was okay, but I have no interest in seeing it again and if you choose to watch it, you don't have my blessing.
With Scott Bakula being the star of the film, this movie is very much like "The Natural" with Robert Redford. Like Redford, Bakula was pushed out of sports 16 years ago and returns to be a star in his later years when everyone thinks he is past his prime. Yes, 16 years in both films. I could say it was like "The Replacements" but that seems almost too easy.
A lot of things about the film are really stupid. Using Kathy Ireland as a kicker was just an excuse to put a hot girl in a locker room. Having a teacher coincidentally be a woman with a crush on Bakula from his high school years is a stretch. And in general, the movie served no point... the team has no chance of winning, so the best they can hope for is to not be skunked.
Bakula is a great actor, but very dated in this film with his goofy jean jacket. Sinbad was Sinbad, and not the one from "Houseguest" but the unfunny one from the 1980s. Kathy Ireland was a better actress than I expected. The best actor? Strangely, Rob Schneider, who is probably known best for his dumb characters from Saturday Night Live and subsequent bad movies. In this, a young Schneider plays an announcer who is lovable and funny... comparable to Bob Uecker from "Major League".
This film was okay, but I have no interest in seeing it again and if you choose to watch it, you don't have my blessing.
Not Necessary
gpezzullo20 February 2009
This movie was on the pay channels today and I had nothing to do so I had it on. This has to be the worst football movie ever made. This has to be one of the worst movies period. The premium service on the cable system has a rating system, and they gave 2 stars out of 4. This movie isn't even a half a star. Bad acting, Scott Bakula sinks as usual, Larry Miller?? Sinbad, couldn't act if he tried. Rob Schneider's one liners completely stunk. Fred Thompson should be embarrassed that he was even in this movie. The only saving grace for this movie was the hope you would see Kathy Ireland nude in the shower, not even close. A complete waste of time and of film. If we could give a negative number, minus 9.
Just enough heart
hitchcockkelly27 January 2023
"NR" has just enough heart to rate six stars. The appeal of Scott Bakula and Hector Elizondo lift the well-worn material to "not bad" status. "NR" is one of those "big screen bid" movies. There are four TV stars: Bakula, Jason Bateman, Rob Schneider and Andrew Lauer, who I believe at the time starred in the short-lived (and greatly underrated) TV show "Going to Extremes". There are also two stand-up comedians, Sinbad and Larry Miller, and a super-model, Kathy Ireland. "NR" has glimpses of greatness, but there are too many clichés and not enough human drama. It isn't believable football. (The team apparently doesn't have a running back.) But if you like football, you'll cheer. The film also boasts possibly the greatest line-up of Hall of Famer cameos ever.
football goes silly
lee_eisenberg21 September 2023
Okay, so "Necessary Roughness" doesn't have the most original plot, but its purpose is to be funny, and it succeeds. Stan Dragoti's final movie depicts a Texas college that has to assemble a ragtag football team. It looks like the sort of movie that they made just so that they could have a lot of fun. It certainly came out fun. With Scott Bakula, Harley Jane Kozak, Sinbad, Larry Miller, Jason Bateman and Héctor Elizondo in the cast, you know that you're in for something cool.
I noticed that one of the inmates was played by Herschel Walker, who ran for senate in Georgia last year but was dogged by scandal and controversy during the campaign and lost.
I noticed that one of the inmates was played by Herschel Walker, who ran for senate in Georgia last year but was dogged by scandal and controversy during the campaign and lost.
Hey, it won me over
Mr-Fusion21 September 2022
The "Major League" of football movies, and I don't have much love for the sport, so I'll take it. "Necessary Roughness" was an HBO staple back in '92 and I must've seen it a few times because the one-liners came back like it was yesterday.
The movie adheres to the ragtag underdogs formula, and that's always at risk of becoming stale - but there's talent in this cast and they strike just the right lighthearted tone so it doesn't matter. It's got a nice sense of humor.
There was more than enough here to keep my cynical ass entertained and laughing way more than expected. I can definitely get behind this team.
The movie adheres to the ragtag underdogs formula, and that's always at risk of becoming stale - but there's talent in this cast and they strike just the right lighthearted tone so it doesn't matter. It's got a nice sense of humor.
There was more than enough here to keep my cynical ass entertained and laughing way more than expected. I can definitely get behind this team.
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