The 2000 film, the Replacements, is an underdog sports comedy. The film is about a fictional professional football team, the Washington Sentinels. The players decide to go on strike for financial reasons, four games before the playoffs. The Sentinels decide to hire their former coach, Jimmy Mcginty (played by Gene Hackman) to lead them out of this dilemma.  Micginty’s first move is to sign replacement players for the rest of the season. Players such as an Irish soccer player turned goal-kicker, a sumo wrestler turned into an offensive guard, a gulf war veteran turned linebacker, and other colorful characters.  The replacement player that is our main character is quarterback Shane Falco (played by Keanu Reeves), a former Ohio State quarterback with a legendarily bad performance at his last collegiate game. Shane and Jimmy must find a way to get this motley crew of replacement players to stop fighting and arguing each other long enough to work together and win 3 out of the 4 remaining games make the playoffs.

What sets this underdog sports movie apart from any other sport’s movie is the reason for which the players are playing. They are not playing to win a championship, or make the roster. They are playing for those four games of glory where they are in the circle of elites, with full realization that their fame is temporary. It really adds a bittersweet, but nostalgic element to the film’s narrative. Most of the players have lives that they are not fond of, or spend their time wishing they were playing football like in their glory days. They all get a taste of the dream, with the clock ticking before they have to return to their normal lives. In the beginning, this hangs over the heads of the replacements; they get no respect from the fans or each other. However, once the replacements come to terms with their temporary fame, they began to use it as their incentive to prove to the world what they got.

I think what else makes film such a unique sports film is because I see elements of old western films in the Replacements. Let’s start with the conflict: a group of overly paid men who abandon their post because they are not getting the pay they desire, leaving their city in turmoil. Much like the mercenaries and hired guns of the old west that protect towns for abnormally large payments. The new coach in town, which is similar to the of a western movie mayor, finds replacements for those who abandoned them. Replacements can be thought of as wonderers or your standard cowboys (Not the Dallas kind). The leading cowboy is Keanu Reeves, somebody who has had a troubled past involving his football throwing arm, which could be thought of as a metaphor for his gun. When Falco first starts throwing again, his aim is very off and sloppy. After he gets used to throwing again, his aim is as good as it ever was. One that portray a western atmosphere are the bar scene, and the jail scene. The saloon (or bar) setting is a classic setting for the climax of a Western film. In the Replacements, the bar that the replacements hang out at gets a visit from the real players. The bar scene has ever cliché in a western bar fight; somebody gets slid across the bar table, corny lines in John Wayne fashion, a jukebox is involved, and of course, they all end up in jail for the night.

In terms of sports movies, the Replacements has to be one of my favorites. All of the characters are unique and likeable, the plot leaves you caring about what happens next, and the comedy is not overly corny. I would recommend it to somebody who is not really a fan of football, because the movie is more about the struggle to achieve your personal goals more than just the sport of football. Keanu Reeves gives one of the best performances of his career (granted, that’s not saying much) and Gene Hackman is excellent as always. The one part I was not too fond of was how stereotypically antagonistic the pro-quarterback was. He had no real empathy or character, and it was hard to believe some one would be like that.

4/5 stars.