Necessary Roughness 1991

Clifford Terry, Chicago Tribune: An amiable comedy. Read more

Kevin Thomas, Los Angeles Times: The film itself is a genial, slight, entirely predictable football comedy, but it serves Bakula well. Read more

Jay Boyar, Orlando Sentinel: As they say in football, pass. Read more

Desmond Ryan, Philadelphia Inquirer: The shameless commercialism and hypocrisy of big-time college football is a target as inviting as a receiver wide open in the end zone. But the muddled huddle that is Necessary Roughness is one long fumble strewn with offensive lines. Read more

John Hartl, Seattle Times: For every sharp one-liner about a pampered college football team that's "so corrupt it could use its yearbook photos as mug shots," there's a brain-numbing plot development that's straight out of a desperate sitcom. Read more

Stephen Holden, New York Times: If the movie were a farcical free-for-all ridiculing the hyper-competitive world of college football, it might be amusing. But it can never decide whether to be an athletic answer to National Lampoon's Animal House or icky-inspirational like Rocky. Read more

Owen Gleiberman, Entertainment Weekly: Avoid it because it's the sort of soporific cliche-fest in which every player gets exactly one measly trait, and the suspense about who's going to win the big game registers at absolute zero. Read more

Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times: The movie doesn't try to pump itself up into more than it is, a good-humored entertainment. Read more

Time Out: Cue endless football montages, interspersed with a load of drivel about finding fulfilment, making real friends, and rediscovering the joys of pure sporting endeavour. Read more

Variety Staff, Variety: This gridiron comedy piles up cliches the way Notre Dame racks up yardage, with an option-variety screenplay that promiscuously pitches the story in multiple directions. Read more

Rita Kempley, Washington Post: An infectious albeit formulaic game of Cinderella football, this happy athletic romp seems to know just how wheezy it is, but the team grunts "hut, hut," and puts it right on the numbers anyway. Read more