THE CHAMPIONSHIP SEASON



Directed by : Paul Sorvino



CAST : Vincent D’Onofrio, Terry Kinney, Tony Shalhoub, Gary Sinise, Paul Sorvino




Release Date: 1999


Genre: Drama




Plot Summary : The film tells the story of four men whose nostalgic yearning for the past

informs and colors their current relationships with each other through their former basketball coach’s reunions.


My Opinion : This film is not for everyone but I loved it all the actors were first class and their portrayal of the characters they played carefully layered to build up a picture of each one as an individual and the interactions between them. The story makes you think about the kind of expectations each of us have when we are young and the way in which events send us careering off down unexpected avenues.Vincent D’Onofrio plays the part of Phil, a rich but disillusioned playboy he is sort of sleazy on the surface but manages to show, ever so subtly, the soft underbelly of emotions which his apparent cynicism hides.One of the things that absolutely delighted me about the film as a whole was the way tension gradually built up to breaking point several times only to be dashed by some completely farcical event. Well worth having in your collection.

12 comments:

val said...

It's a film that keeps you on the edge of your seat for the denouement. Not sure the year of issue is right, Cathy, as that would predate Full Metal Jacket. I'm useless at remembering the film dates, but I always remember FMJ (1987) 'cos he was just a few miles away and I never even knew who he was.

cathy said...

Your right about the date. I've given the date for the original film. thanks I'll change it

mary said...

I found this kind of like TWWW, hard to get thru by at the end I was glad I watched it all (instead of fast forwarding thru to the IMPORTANT VDo parts:))

cathy said...

vpdzoo it does take a while to get into.

JoJo said...

I have this movie, but I confess, I have not yet watched it. My bad! Still, I am looking forward to checking it out when I get a chance.

cathy said...

jojo- OMG how can you have it in the house unwatched!

monkeedo- bad hair days are almost a trademark of some VDO films,that and dying or getting dumped.

l'oreal said...

hey! nice blog! im lovin it :)

Eliza said...

Just found you :-)

This is one of my favourite films,I love the whole feel of it.Wasn't sure what to expect whe I got it,never having seen the original,but I got absorbed by the characers pretty quickly.Sign of a great story in my opinion

cathy said...

l'oreal, hello interesting comments between the photos on your blog.

eliza, what would we all do without your velocity blog your the first place I look for hard to find photos. Forever in your debt.

ann said...

now this was an excellent film... every character a superb actor in their own right. this wasn't watching a vincent film, just because he was in it, this was watching a quality story with a quality cast adding fresh dimensions to their characters as layers are peeled off, layer after layer and we learn so much about them and how their lives entwined with each other.

So many crescendos... well worth buying and owning and watching and enjoying again and again

cathy said...

hi ann, nice to hear from you hope you soon recover from your hard work.

Jane said...

Strange film, but interesting. A bit of a wideboy in this one, but very cute all the same. Nuts to the wig, it didn't suit him, but for the character of a "yuppy type" businessman it was probably appropriate. I imagine that the movie/play was set in the 80's as apposed to the year that they made the movie, 1998. Despite all the terrible revelations in the movie, the boys' friendships are not broken and that is a nice thing to see, it demonstrated that in the end, friendship is all that matters; wives' infidelities, job opportunities or lack of, and politics are nothing compared to having a friend to lean on in times of trouble.