Oliver Stone's Any Given Sunday is a massive 150-minute American football drama which, for all its ferocity and cynicism, is as soft-centred and clich??d as any Rocky-style underdogs-make-good crowd-pleaser. The Miami Sharks have lost three games in a row and their coach, Al Pacino in an intense performance as the only half-decent major character in the film, faces crisis when untested quarterback Willie Beamen (an excellent Jamie Foxx) becomes an overnight star. Fame goes to Beamen's ego; manager Cameron Diaz ruthlessly wheels-and-deals; and team doctor James Woods sacrifices medical ethics for his career. The Gladiator-esque close-up "shakycam" visuals reflect the player's POV yet make many scenes almost incomprehensible, while the ludicrously fragmented (seven composers, 80 songs) rap-metal-ambient soundtrack obscures much of the dialogue. The world of American football is presented as brutal, nightmarish and corrupting, the players mainly drug-taking, money-grubbing, whoring, foul-mouthed barbarians. So when Stone's last act offers his hollow men as heroes, mythological noble warriors incarnate, the attempted feel-good finale rings seriously false. Stone exposed the rotten heart of the American dream to infinitely greater effect in JFK (1991), is here too much in love with his target for the shots to hit home. --Gary Dalkin

On the DVD: The first disc presents the director's cut of Any Given Sunday. The UK cinema cut was nine minutes shorter than the US release. The director's cut starts with the longer US version, removes 11 minutes, adds six, including one of the most shocking and horrifying images seen on screen in some time, then re-edits several other sequences. Stone's commentary ranges far and wide, and he is far more interesting and thought-provoking to listen to than his film is to watch. The anamorphically enhanced 2.35:1 image and Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack are both flawless.

The second disc is divided into pre-game, half-time and post-game sections, beginning with Jamie Foxx's audition video and screen tests and a routine 27-minute making-of documentary. Halftime consists of two music videos by Jamie Foxx (both anamorphically enhanced 2.35:1) and one by LL Cool J. Post-game offers three sets of outtakes set to music, a stills gallery, a collection of advertising images and 33 minutes of deleted scenes with optional commentary from Stone. Completing an exceptional set of extras are DVD-ROM features on scripting and editing, plus reviews, a quiz and the complete original promotional Web site.

Great movie.
I occasionally watch the Pacino pep talk ("Life is a game of inches") when i need motivation.
Dr Gonzo Clarke.
8/10.

Don't like NFL football - Not a problem!
Many people that love the Rocky movies are not die hard boxing fans - What AGS does is to take the exciting bits, the touchdowns, the big hits, the fast runs & maximise them, cutting out all the more static parts of a real life game. American Football fans will LOVE it but then again so will Action movie fans! Think of it as Rollerball without the bikes...
It's one of Oliver Stone's most underrated movies, with all the trademark
touches to the direction. There's the usual intensity to the editing and real visual flair throughout. Principal leads, Al Pacino and Jamie Foxx burn on screen as jaded head coach & fame obsessed quarterback of the fictional Miami Sharks, respectiveley.
Stone directs the razor sharp dialogue as intenseley as the game play which is fast, hard & adrenaline packed!
The cast is REALLY strong; LL Cool J, James Woods, Charlton Heston in a brief cameo, Cameron Diaz, Dennis Quaid and everyone plays off well against each other.
There's full acting parts also for real life ex pro-footballers such as Jim Brown & Lawrence Taylor who all handle the task superbly.
As always in Stone's movies, there is a big focus on the politics involved and the money corrupts scenario. The glitz & glamour of the game is shown in full but also its dark underbelly.
The soundtrack is fantastic, a great mix of both the urban music of the time (1999) & rock classics such as Black Sabbath's Paranoid. If you like Rap, Hip Hop & Metal, you'll really enjoy this. One great scene is in the locker room where the white guys vie for boom box supremacy with the black lads, blasting out Metallica's Motorbreath against the competing R n B music! LL Cool J even gets in on the soundtrack as does Jamie Foxx with the excellent title track. There's also a fair bit of Moby here which is often used for the more emotive scenes.
Deleted scenes are excellent, my favourite being where you see Madman (one of the 6ft plus blockers) in the locker room, attending to a shrine he has built to his heroes, Metallica - That's a fan!
It's an adult movie with liberal use of the F-Word, some nudity ( one locker scene will make many of us guys feel inadequate!) & there is one gruesome scene during the final game that is literally eye popping!!!
Simply a VERY cool film!

With a cast list of Al Pacino, Cameron Diaz, Dennis Quaid and James Woods it was always going to be a solid contender for all kinds of awards and plaudits and it does not disappoint. The subject matter makes it more of a lads film but it is still good family viewing really. An early performance from Jamie Foxx is an interesting taste of the confidence he brings to later bigger roles.
Just enjoy it.

The first thing i should probablly point out is the pace. Ok, it didnt appeal to me at all, i found it really boring but i must say the actual acting/plot/pace of it is brilliant and would most likely suit any american football fan! For what i saw it mainly consisted of actual games of football and some good music added to it aswell.
If you like ongoing/sports games movies, buy this!

This is easily one of the best sports films you will ever see. It has a great cast(Jamie Foxx and Al Pacino to new but a few) great set pieces( especially the big game) and a pretty brutal potrayal of American Football players. Al Pacino is simply great as Tony Damato and without doubt his "Inch by Inch" speech is one of the greatest in film. It always inspires you no matter how many times you hear it. Even the supposedly minor characters such as LL Cool J have enough time to make an impression. If you watch this i would recommend watching Friday Night Lights which shows the sport at a lower level.