Based on the original 1974 comedy, Adam Sandler resurrects Burt Reynold’s role as Paul Crewe, a former NFL football star, gone wrong, when he steals his girlfriend’s (Courtney Cox) sports car for a wild joy ride, landing his sorry drunken butt in a three year prison term. James Cromwell portrays the warden, with dreams of forming a football team between the inmates and the guards, because he believes it will help his aspiring political career. Once you get past Sandler as “The Waterboy” you’ll love how he tackles the pigskin showdown, stretching beyond his usual career choices of lame goofball. Chris Rock, rapper Nelly (film debut) and a bunch of big bully wannabe inmates, reluctantly join the team, until they realize who they’ll be pitted against. Reynolds is flawless in bringing to life the role of the team coach with his own macho, laidback swagger. This story thrives on the heart, willpower and underdog qualities of a group of abused and misunderstood prison losers, proving that even with a lifetime sentence, they still share team spirit and even honesty, as they form real alliances of the free kind, from behind a few cell blocks.
