Varsity Blues

Varsity Blues

      If nothing else, one has to give credit to rising star James Van Der Beek who
came into television viewers' homes as the star of Dawson's Creek, playing an
angst-ridden teenage who wanted to be the next Steven Spielberg. Unlike his series
co-stars, though, the actor eschewed a role in the latest horror flick in lieu of
undertaking the lead in the crowd-pleasing but pedestrian VARSITY BLUES.

      If I wanted to be snide and start my review by saying something along the
lines of "on this week's episode, Dawson becomes the unlikely quarterback, facing
down the mean coach and . . ." but that's giving the film too much credit. Much has
been made in the media lately about movie reviewers being out of touch with
audience tastes. How else to explain the box-office success of critically-panned films
like THE WATERBOY. The reason, in my humble opinion, is that we are not out of
touch, but our standards are a bit higher. I would hazard a guess that few of the
teenagers paying money to see THE WATERBOY or even VARSITY BLUES would
know of Francois Truffaut or Kurosawa or any of the other really great film directors.
Those of us who write reviews tend to have a love for and appreciation of great
films. I know several younger people (in their teens and twenties) who won't even
watch a movie if it's in black-and-white. In some ways, it's just a manifestation of
the dumbing-down of the country. Culture has been corrupted. Broadway has gone
the way of corporate sponsorship, film studios care more about the bottom line and
very few truly great films achieve box-office success. So what does this have to do
with the film at hand? Well, I found VARSITY BLUES to be a predictable but
well-acted film that rates about average. Screenwriter W. Peter Ileff (whose credits
include the Keanu Reeves vehicle POINT BLANK) hasn't met a cliché he doesn't
like. The actors are playing archetypes more than three-dimensional characters.
Brian Robbins, the former sitcom star-turned-producer/director, handles the material
well and the soundtrack is cool but maybe I've just see   one too many movies. To
quote another sports figure, "It was déja vu all over again."

      Van Der Beek plays Jonathan 'Mox' Moxon., a studious second-string
quarterback, stuck on the bench and dreaming of the days he escapes his hometown
for Brown University. Of course the film is set in Texas because, as we have been
conditioned by countless other films and TV shows, we know Texans treat football
as a religion. In this setting, Mox has a very dicey attitude toward the sport; to him
a game is just a game. Why he spends his time on the bench not studying the play
book but reading Kurt Vonnegut. He's a rebel in this town. His father, indeed it
seems the fathers of all his classmates, all trained under the same Coach Kilmer
(Jon Voight), a man for whom it's not how you play the game but rather that you
win. When the overweight blocker named Billy Bob (a cartoonish character made
human by the skill of actor Ron Lester) fails to protect the golden boy quarterback
(Paul Walker) who is injured on the play, all hell breaks loose. Mox suddenly finds
himself the hero and finds that being top dog has its perks (free beer, horny girls).
In an almost self-destructive move, he organizes an all-night drinking party at a
strip club where they make a tantalizing discovery that was telegraphed several
scenes earlier which affects their play in an important game. With the district
championship on the line, things come to a head. I won't spoil it for anyone, but the
story plays out as if written by the numbers

      The saving grace of the film is the young cast of relatively unknown actors,
most of whom will no doubt go on to bigger and better things. Van Der Beek wisely
left behind his TV persona and gets to display a swagger and yearning. Like most of
the actors, he manages to transcend the stereotypical and finds a shred of
something that keeps the audience rooting. Scott Caan brings a bravado to his role
as the wild man that recalls the best performances of his father James and Ron
Lester actually makes his fat boy believable and touching. After his exemplary
understated work in T HE GENERAL, Jon Voight tends to chew the scenery a bit as
the mean-spirited coach. The role calls for more than being just a black and white
villain, but that's all Voight has chosen (or been directed) to deliver.

      I can easily see why VARSITY BLUES would appeal to movie-goers. The cast is
young and attractive, the soundtrack is hip and on target and the film has the
polished look of a music video. But, just because it appeals to the general
population does not make it a masterpiece. Sometimes you can fool some of the
people.

                          Rating:                 C -
                          MPAA Rating:        R for strong language throughout,
                                                        sexuality and nudity, and some
                                                        substance abuse
                          Running time:       106 mins.