My All American
Next to the zombie genre, sports dramas are usually pretty unoriginal. They have nowhere to grow and they at times follow the same formula piece by piece. With it being an America game, you see so many of these football films and really only a handful work.
My All American is more of the same. Freddie Steinmark (Finn Wittrock) is a high school football star who eventually goes on to play college football at Texas University. This is the story of Freddie's efforts and setbacks while at Texas that changes his life forever. As someone who walked into the theater knowing nothing about it, the plot is the true story of Freddie Steinmark's life.
Frankly, I don't think this movie will have an audience outside of Texas. Freddie is sure a likable character (even if he is single-minded about football) but more times than not I asked the question "why". Why should we care so much about this guy? Why so much into his life story? Sure, he has a lovely girlfriend in character Linda Wheeler (Sarah Bolger) but there's no room for her to grow.
Even a big name like Aaron Eckhart playing Texas coach Darrell Royal doesn't work because there is nowhere for the character to go. Don't get me wrong, it's a nice story but a 30 for 30 feature makes more sense for the story.
My All American becomes more cliche once you get into the depth of the football aspect. We see football scenes that have been done so many times before. So many of the game highlights just drag. The ending wants to really grip you even though it doesn't come close, and it's so cheesy. If one of the purposes of the story was to get me interested in Texas Longhorns football, then it was very far off.
This movie is easily watchable but it feels so much like a one-time experience. Really, what's the point of it if you already know the story? The most dramatic happening in the plot is in the third act; a third act that drags badly. My All American is one of the many sports stories we can simply skip.
2.5/5
