A film we could live without, inspired by an original that was anything but essential.
The Longest Yard (2005)
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:162
Fresh:51
Rotten:111
Average Rating:4.8/10
Consensus: This Yard has some laughs but missing from this remake is the edginess of the original.
Runtime: 1 hr 53 mins
Genre: Comedies
Synopsis: Director Peter Segal (50 FIRST DATES, ANGER MANAGEMENT) and comedian Adam Sandler are at it again in a fun remake of the 1974 classic, THE LONGEST YARD. In the role of Paul "Wrecking" Crewe, first... Director Peter Segal (50 FIRST DATES, ANGER MANAGEMENT) and comedian Adam Sandler are at it again in a fun remake of the 1974 classic, THE LONGEST YARD. In the role of Paul "Wrecking" Crewe, first immortalized by Burt Reynolds (who appears here as Nate Scarborough), Sandler plays an ex-football star whose career ended amidst allegations of point shaving. Fed up, he drunkenly steals his unfriendly wife's (an uncredited Courtney Cox) luxury car and drives it into a multi-car pileup. This lands Crewe in a cruel Texas state penitentiary. His only respite comes from Warden Hazen (James Cromwell) who wants Crewe to help lead his well-equipped prison-guard football team to the league championship. Crewe timorously agrees, suggesting the creation of an opposing team of convicts to the give the guards an easy tune-up before the season. To the ragtag inmates, this is the chance they've been waiting for, and they hustle to get their team together so they can exact some revenge on the harassing guards. In THE LONGEST YARD, Sandler steps out of the spotlight he enjoyed in films like BILLY MADISON and HAPPY GILMORE and is instead content to let his sizable cast of costars shine in the comedic light. Both the guard and the convict teams are infused with solid contributions from a swath of entertaining personalities: ex-football stars Michael Irvin, Bill Romanowski and Brian Bosworth; pro wrestlers Bill Goldberg and "Stone-Cold" Steve Austin; ESPN anchors Chris Berman and Dan Patrick; and famed rapper Nelly. However, it is Chris Rock, as Crewe's friend Caretaker, whose scenes never fail to steal the show, providing some of the movie's most memorable laughs. [More]
Starring: Adam Sandler, Chris Rock, Burt Reynolds, Nelly
Starring: Adam Sandler, Chris Rock, Burt Reynolds, Nelly, James Cromwell, William Fichtner, Steve ("Stone Cold") Austin, Bill Romanowski, Brian Bosworth, Kevin Nash, Michael Irvin, Lobo Sebastian, Nicholas Turturro, Dalip Singh, Bob Sapp, Bill Goldberg, Terry Alan Crews, Joey Diaz, Chris Berman, Daniel Patrick
Director: Peter Segal
Director: Peter Segal
Story: Albert S. Ruddy
Screenwriter: Sheldon Turner
Producer: Jack Giarraputo
Studio: Paramount Pictures
Reviews for The Longest Yard
Everyone involved with this remake claims the utmost respect for Robert Aldrich's raucously funny 1974 original. So you have to wonder why they crapped all over it, starting with the casting.
Homophobia, sexism, racism, ageism and OJ-ism pound against genre clichés as weathered as Reynolds' skin, bludgeoning you into submission.
Adam Sandler, of course, is no Burt Reynolds. But then neither is Burt Reynolds these days, judging by his performance as the team's crusty mentor.
The film looks fine, but [Segal] never even tries to make something out of this thin material.
Peter Segal ("Anger Management") successfully helms his third Adam Sandler project in this funny modernized retooling of Robert Aldrich's 1974 original .
Yields the dispiriting insight that Hollywood can't even make credible rabble-rousing junk any more.
This edition of Yard has a lighter feel than the original -- well, considering it's a movie about prison inmates.
The new film keeps about 90% of the original story and even some of the original lines of dialogue, yet the changes it makes are all misguided.
Filme poco pretencioso que no busca otra cosa que no sea entretener. No pasará a la historia, pero por lo menos es mejor de lo que parece.
If you’re looking for a predictable, unoriginal, mediocre offering from the good folks over at Happy Madison, rent this puppy...
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