The Longest Yard is a remake of the
1970’s box office hit. With Adam Sandler on the lead, it is expected that the
film will get a humorous makeover that will make it perfect for the audience
who love light moments with serious themes.
In this movie, Adam Sandler plays
the part of Paul “Wrecking” Crew. Crew was a famous professional football
player who got drunk both with alcohol and his fame and ended up causing a
tragic accident because of his drunk driving. He had to serve his sentence in
Allenville. In the penitentiary, he met the Warden Hazen who also happened to
be a football fan played by James Cromwell. The Warden organized football teams
to make money on betting during their free time. When the warden and Crew met,
the former challenged Crew to organize his own football team to make the
betting even more exciting. Another guaranteed character to make the audience
laugh, the caretaker played by Chris Rock helped Crewe with his football team. The
players included Nate Scarborough who was an NFL coach played by Burt Reynolds.
The humor in the Longest Yard is
much needed what with the setting of prison being bleak, lifeless, and filled
with negativity. This humor sets this version apart from the original 1970’s
The Longest yard and its loose remake in 2001 entitled Mean Machine. It is a
whole new approach without losing the social relevance and the excitement of
the original film, getting 31% at the Tomatometer with an average rating of
4.8/10.
The Longest Yard is a perfectly
fast-paced movie that will leave you light-hearted. The cast delivered a
wonderful performance with their comedic timing and entertaining scenes. It
also delivers an inspirational message for the racial underdogs lightly masked
with humor. It is as every bit respectable as the original film in its own
right. The combination of the prison life story and the action of football as
sports will satisfy the hunger of the audience for a nice, light film plus a
dessert of laughter sprinkled with insider humor served on a shining tray of
the glittering stars of the cast.