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The Game Plan is a live-action family comedy from Disney,
directed by Andy Fickman (She's The Man), starring WWE wrestler
Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson (Walking Tall, Gridiron Gang)
and Madison Pettis. Joe Kingman (The Rock) is a professional
football player who has the ideal life - a great job, wealth,
and fame. But things take a turn in a different direction
when a young girl (Pettis) shows up at his front door, claiming
to be his daughter. Now, the once free-spirited Johnson
must raise a child in addition to competing for the football
championship. ***
If you've got children, they'll almost certainly enjoy
this movie - after all, there are plenty of funny scenes
here. Unfortunately, I can only recommend it for kids. There
are too many issues that bog down the film, including characters
who are clichés and totally unoriginal, bad writing that
tends to go over-the-top on more than a few occasions, an
unbelievable amount of Disney-related product placement,
and to top it all off, a nearly two hour run time. It's
a good movie for kids, but there's nothing that sets this
above other family-friendly comedies of recent years. ***
The biggest problem with the Game Plan is the obvious
one - there's nothing here we haven't seen before. It's
yet another example of a “tough guy” actor veering away
from action movies and into the world of family movies.
The Rock has proven plenty of times that he can be a good
actor in action movies. But the below-average writing, overused
character stereotypes, and predictable plotline make sure
this one never truly gets off the ground. I'm sure The Rock
could be a terrific family-friendly actor, but he's got
to find something more original than this. ***
Run time is one of many problems. It seems like most
comedy films out there today rarely venture beyond the hundred-minute
mark, and this is something that serves them well - with
the brief, to-the-point length, they never outstay their
welcome. But the Game Plan is nearly half an hour longer
than it needs to be. If you're making a comedy and you surpass
a hundred minutes, your movie had better be good enough
to hold the audience's attention. The film fails in that
department for everyone except the youngest of viewers.
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Image and Sound:
The picture quality on the DVD doesn't fail to please.
Disney Home Video has given us an excellent transfer of
the film, and I couldn't notice any glitches in the picture
at all. Sound is equally impressive, with the dialogue loud,
clear, and easy to understand. ---
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| Special
Features: |
In addition to Disney giving us a solid DVD transfer
of the film, they give us plenty of bonus material. In addition
to the outtakes and deleted scenes that seem to be standard
on most DVDs these days, Disney and otherwise, they also
have a number of other featurettes, including a “making
of” segment, an ESPN presentation about The Rock's football
experience and how he had to adjust to playing a quarterback
for the film, and a segment with The Rock in character,
involved in conversations. The menus are also customizable,
with adjustable lighting and props to move around. The problem?
Many of these extras won't appeal to kids, who are going
to be this film's main audience.
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