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The Longest Yard (2005)

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276 comments in total

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111 out of 183 people found the following comment useful :-
Not the original. Get used to it., 4 June 2005

Author: drsubtitles from United States

I have read bad comment, after bad comment, about this movie, and I saw it, and I am sick and tired of everybody giving it a bad rap. People are downsizing it because it isn't enough like the original. But to truly enjoy this movie, you have to realize that it isn't really a remake. It's an homage. All it has is the same basic idea, and the characters. I found this an absolutely brilliant comedy, filled with frequent references to the original. It's genius characterizations of what some prison inmates might act like work perfectly. Especially Richard Kiels character turned into a weightier, less intelligent black man. I also quite enjoyed the frequent humor derived from taking scenes from the original and changing the words into PG-13. Although it originally seems silly, the player sh***ng himself scene is so much better when you realize it was originally the broke his f****ng neck scene. Also, the million one-liners, I guess could be taken badly, but only if you're looking for them to be. Possibly the reason everybody hates this so much is because they're looking for it to be the original. If you're going to see this, remember, it's not the original. Its an Adam Sandler movie making homage to the Longest Yard.

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64 out of 90 people found the following comment useful :-
Take it for a stand alone movie.., 3 June 2005

Author: kennethcoker1982-1 from United States

Don't compare today's comedy version of "The Longest Yard" to the old with Burt Reynolds. Today's is good and effective for what it is, a comedy film with a bit of action interlaced. So many classic Hollywood films were so good, that any attempt at a remake is just going to fall flat on its face. The Longest Yard with Adam Sandler is more of today's take on the story if you asked me. It has humor, and is Sandler at his best with Chris Rock playing his role well too. Critics and classic moviegoers beware. Unless you are open-minded, you will never find the hidden treasures of the movie world. It's a football comedy, plain and simple.

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44 out of 66 people found the following comment useful :-
It made HOW MUCH????, 4 December 2005

Author: TOMASBBloodhound from Lincoln, NE USA

People who lined up to bash this film had better get used to seeing more like it. Hollywood these days is stuck in a rut where three types of films account for nearly every film they release. Those are: remakes, sequels, and films based on comic book characters. The Longest Yard would of course fit into the first category. It is a slightly updated, but fairly faithful remake of the 1974 film of the same name. This time, we have Adam Sandler who plays the incarcerated quarterback that Burt Reynolds played in the original. Reynolds is on hand to play a minor role which the original film also contained. The plot is still the same. Prisoners vs guards in a game of football. Pretty simple.

Did the film make me laugh? Sure it did. There are more than a few chuckles, but not much in the way of side-splitting material. Sandler is actually not that memorable in this film. Some of the best performances actually come from people you might not expect. I was truly impressed with Nelly and Michael Irvin. Both men had their characters down, and really proved they could actually act. Chris Rock is about as good as you'd expect. Your own personal opinion of him will determine how you rate his performance. James Cromwell plays the corrupt warden about as well as you might expect. He's pretty much got the market cornered on evil white guy roles, since J.T. Walsh's untimely death. The rest of the cast becomes a game of "see if you can spot the NFL player, WWE combatant, or famous sports journalist". And what on earth was Cloris Leachman doing in the Bernadette Peters role from the original? Did she lose some kind of bet with Sandler on the set of Spanglish or something?

Should this film have been made? Well, we film critics can argue that point all day. The truth of the matter is that this film grossed over $150,000,000!!! As far as the studio bosses are concerned, this film was more than worth it. This was actually one of the more profitable comedies released this year, so you can expect more like it in the near future. I'll give it 6 of 10 stars. Don't expect anywhere near the film we got in 1974. But there are plenty of worse films on the shelves at your local video store.

The Hound.

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26 out of 40 people found the following comment useful :-
Laugh out loud funny, 3 June 2005

Author: ccvix from United States

I loved this movie! I have seen the original, also, and I have to say that this version is much more fun to watch and should appeal to a wider audience. For those who thought this was going to be a more serious movie for Adam Sandler....what on earth gave you that idea?? It's a comedy. It's meant to be funny and it is. If you are not a fan of Adam Sandler's then don't bother with it, because you won't like it. If you are a fan, I believe you will enjoy it very much. If you have absolutely no sense of humor, as it seems quite a few who have written comments about this movie are lacking just that, then don't bother with it either. I know when my husband and I saw it, the whole audience was roaring with laughter throughout the movie and my husband has informed me that he cannot wait for it to come out on DVD. It was a whole lot of fun to watch and I recommend it highly.

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39 out of 68 people found the following comment useful :-
it's trade-off: less character development, more laughs, 25 May 2005

Author: drjimmycooper from United States

I went to this film thinking it was going to suck. I was a big fan of the original. Loved it as a kid, although I know it's not a great film or anything.

I was surprised at how fun the remake was, although it is a superficial kind of fun. The original had better casting and stronger character development. Reynolds and Eddie Albert are so wonderful in their roles, Sandler and the new warden are pretty damn lame in comparison. And the original spent more time building the characters, so that by the end, the film really resonated in a way the remake does not.

BUT, the remake is a fun & energetic piece of pop entertainment. It goes much more for broad comedy and pretty much succeeds. It's not super- hilarious, but it's funny enough and much funnier than the original. Although Sandler is wrong for the part, he's likable enough. Chris Rock is funny, as are some of the others. And the overall brisk pace keeps the whole thing afloat.

Yes, it's a disposable movie. It lacks the dark undercurrents that made the first one so good. It even seems to self-consciously acknowledge that it will never stand outside the shadow of Burt Reynolds. No, it doesn't have as much substance, but it has its own childish charm.

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47 out of 84 people found the following comment useful :-
A Great Pre-Summer Film!, 13 May 2005

Author: blondie1972 from United States

I too got to see a free-sneak peak of this film in NYC and I'll tell you one thing . . there were no sleepers in the cinema! A very mixed crowd from race to ages here and everyone seemed to be having a great time . . even the teenager who sat behind me who reminded me of every actor when he appeared on the screen .. like Nelly. I haven't had this much fun in the theater in quite awhile. No, it's not a super serious film, but if you like football and the good feeling of revenge you'll love this film. Lots of violent blows from the guards and a little racism, but nothing too "out of the ordinary" . . some great one-liners from Chris Rock's character. A definite #1 film for Memorial Day weekend when it opens. I can see this film bringing in some good dough this summer.

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59 out of 108 people found the following comment useful :-
Excellent Remake, In My Opinion... And Bob Sapp Still Rules!, 5 June 2005
Author: BigHardcoreRed from Calimesa, California

The remake here was surprisingly good and pretty true to the original movie but will be most enjoyed by Adam Sandler fans or fans of the original. Except for a few exceptions to keep it up to date and a few to screw with those that saw the original, the stories are pretty much identical. The main character were all the same as well, but the supporting cast, especially the guards and cons, were changed up a bit.

Former NFL quarterback Paul Crewe (Sandler, replacing the original Burt Reynolds) is arrested and faces a 3 year sentence for GTA, DUI and I am sure some other stuff which is unimportant. After his sentencing, Warden Hazen (James Cromwell) pulls a few strings to get Crewe placed in his prison so he can coach his semi-pro team. Upon the urging of Captain Knauer (William Fichtner), Crewe declines, which sets the wheels in motion for an eventual game between Crewe and the convicts against Knauer and the guards.

The supporting football players were the real highlights of the movie, most notably Bob Sapp and Kevin Nash (I hate to say it but Nash did a good job. If only he was this good a wrestler), with honorable mentions to Nelly, Michael Irvin, Bill Goldberg, Steve Austin, Bill Romanowski & Brian Bosworth. Also, who could forget Chris Rock as Caretaker? This could not have been cast better.

Overall, A good comedy worth seeing. Especially if you are a Sandler fan.

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22 out of 36 people found the following comment useful :-
Good kicks, near touchdown, 6 June 2005

Author: T1Thousand from Miramar, FL

I'm going to start off by admitting that I had no interest in this movie whatsoever. I only saw it because I was dragged. Was it as bad as I thought? Not at all. It was way better than I expected it to be. We all know those mindless comedies that barely have a plot, cheap dialogue and jokes, and are just filled with stupidities galore. I thought this was one of them. I was wrong. This remake had a pretty good storyline and a few laughable jokes and moments. I usually don't laugh out loud at movies, but I did find myself doing so three or four times here. So that takes care of the Funniness Factor. The story is easy to get involved in--you want to see the prisoners kick the guards' butts in football. It is a well played story and fun to watch. Sandler is not one of my favorite actors, but I have to give him his props because I am starting to see that he usually stars in movies that are at least remotely funny and that have a pretty decent plot. But the main thing is that his characters usually act the same. I would get into the slight lack of character development, but I'm sure you don't care to read about that. You only wish to know if this movie is funny or not and if it's worth watching! Well, yes the movie has its moments and it's good to watch, especially if you like football or are a Sandler fan. This has its good kicks and it is near a touchdown in the comedy category. So if you want to have a good time and relax to some entertainment, you can watch this one =)

6.6/10 Stars

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14 out of 21 people found the following comment useful :-
Good movie for a sports fan., 14 December 2005

Author: shredsofmetal from United States

Revenge is the one thing on the mind that every prisoner wants to impose on the guards. This idea of revenge is exactly what Paul Crewe (Adam Sandler) does to help motivate other inmates to organize a football team in an inmates vs. guards football game.

The movie opens up with Crewe being chased by cops after he stole a Bentley. The car chase ends with Crewe getting arrested and bragging to his girlfriend by jumping up and down in front of the media helicopters that were covering the chase. Immediately we get to see the personality of Paul Crewe as a cocky spotlight loving person. Crewe is a former NFL player who is the only player to be banned from the league for point shaving. When he enters the jail, he is hated by everybody because he caused so many people to lose bets from the point shaving incident.

An NFL player, or any celebrity usually has special treatment in prison. Crewe's opportunity arises when the prison Warden, Hazen, (James Cromwell) offers Crewe a chance for a nice cell and good words in parole hearings. The offer was to organize the inmates to play the guards in a football team. The point was for the inmates to have such a horrible team, that the guards would win easily and have high enough spirit to be able to compete in their organized league. After vowing to never be involved with football again, Crewe declines the offer. The guards beat up on him, and he is unable to socialize with any inmates. After not wanting to take anymore beatings from the guards, Crewe accepts Hazen's offer.

The first friend that Crewe makes is Caretaker (Chris Rock). Caretaker had already spent a long time in prison and knew most of the inmates. Caretaker helps Crewe with tryouts for the team, but there was no talent. As are most prisons, the Old Main prison is racially separated. Crewe wanted some of the black players on the team, but they wanted nothing to do with football. Megget (Nelly) had a respect for Crewe, and was the first player to join the team. He was an extremely fast runner, but there were not enough players to make a decent team.

Enter Nate Scarborough, (Burt Reynolds) a Heisman Trophy winner, who still lived for football. He helped train the team, but the lack of talent made it so that there is no chance for the inmates to win. After several racial incidents involving guards, many other black players join the team, and the inmates become a decent team. The inmates are ready to face to guards in the battle of revenge they have been waiting for. Most of the inmates only want to play so that they can impose as much pain as possible on the guards. Crewe and Scarborough want to take the respect out of the guards by beating them. They train the teams until the Warden asks Crewe for something that he will not do again; shave points off the score so that the guards can easily defeat the inmates.

The cast of The Longest Yard has many big names. Adam Sandler, Chris Rock, Burt Reynolds, James Cromwell, and Nelly are the main characters of the movie. On both teams there are many NFL players such as Michael Irwin and Bill Romanowski. One of the best roles in the movie is Chris Berman's cameo as the ESPN announcer during the big game. Berman is the benchmark for football commentating, and for such an important game, it is fitting to have such a personality as Berman.

The visual effects of the film are fantastic. The bone crushing hits are presented well in slow motion and with up close camera shots. The set of the prison gives a realistic sense of a jail as well. It is in the middle of New Mexico with absolutely nothing but desert near it. The sense of isolation is similar to what the prisoners probably feel.

The Longest Yard has the same basic premise as Happy Gilmore but football rather than golf. Adam Sandler is trying to get revenge, but turns to a sport rather than fights. In both movies, I found myself rooting for Sandler's character, and hating the antagonists. This film is not as crude as other Sandler films, but still has plenty of laughs. Chris Rock's humor is similar to his standup as most of the things that Rock says in The Longest Yard has something to do with race. Burt Reynolds is not given a lead role in this movie, but he still has a "tough guy" attitude through his character.

I have not seen the original The Longest Yard, so I cannot compare the remake to the original. While watching the movie, I found myself cheering for the teams as I do when watching the Bears beating the Packers. Chris Rock's character adds a lot of humor to the movie. The one complaint I have with the movie is that the conflicts at the end are not completely resolved, and it is unclear about what will happen in the future. The Longest Yard is not an Oscar worthy masterpiece, but for a typical sports fan, The Longest Yard is a great movie. In all, I give it a rating of 8 out of 10.

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7 out of 10 people found the following comment useful :-
It just doesn't have the swagger., 23 December 2005

Author: SmileysWorld from United States

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

If this were a story that I were not familiar with,I would go ahead and say that this was another "ok" Adam Sandler film.However,since I am familiar with it,I cannot help but make the comparison to the 1974 classic.It is a matter of which film does a better job of telling the story.I hate to say it,but it isn't this one.When we think of the character of Paul Crewe,we think of the swagger of Burt Reynolds,not the goofiness of Adam Sandler.Chris Rock's Caretaker is in no way comparable to Jim Hampton's portrayal.I mean,Jim Hampton had a way of making us care about the guy.With Rock,you just didn't care as much when the man dies.Also,the story seems to be pushed along a little too quickly here,whereas the original graciously took it's time building up to the exciting finale,which wasn't as exciting here because we know what's coming.I gave this film every chance in the world to be at least comparable to the original,if not better that the original.It did not succeed,and even the presence of original stars Burt Reynolds and Ed Lauter did nothing to help it.A note to Hollywood:The notion that every classic film of old needs to be updated and modernized is thoroughly ridiculous.Leave the old classics alone and just let them be respected for the time period in which they were made.Enough already!

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