Invincible (2006)
Director Ericson Core
Written by Brad Gann
Starring Mark Wahlberg, Greg Kinnear, Elizabeth Banks, Kirk Acevedo
Release Date August 25th, 2006
Published August 24th, 2006
The Disney sports movie has become an annual experience. From Remember The Titans to The Rookie to Miracle to Glory Road, they aren't just reliably rousing sports adventures they are also consistent money makers. The latest in this long line of sports underdog stories is called Invincible and it stars Mark Wahlberg in the role of real life NFL walk-on Vince Papale, a teacher /bartender who rose from the streets of South Philly to the turf of old Veterans stadium.
In 1975 the Philadelphia Eagles were getting booed out of town by their own fans in venerable Veterans stadium. The team was a woeful 3 and 13 in 1975 which lead to the firing of their head coach and the hiring of UCLA wunderkind Dick Vermeil (Greg Kinnear). Moving from the cozy confines of college football to the NFL city where fans once booed Santa Claus off the field, is quite the culture shock for the new coach.
Desperate to spark fan interest in the new look Eagles, Vermeil launched a wild idea. In his first press conference, Vermeil offered open tryouts to anyone in Philly who felt they had the talent to become an Eagle. Of the hundreds who took the chance, only one man, Vince Papale, a teacher and part time bartender, had the guts and talent to be offered a shot at a training camp.
For Vince the opportunity could not come along at a better moment. His wife (Lola Glaudini) has left him. His part time teaching job has just eliminated the need for subs like him and his bartending gig is not paying the bills. He has been reduced to borrowing money from his father (Kevin Conway) who is facing the possibility of a lengthy strike at the plant where he works.
Even given his desperate circumstances Vince does not approach training camp with great optimism and it is in fact the surprisingly dark pessimism with which Mark Wahlberg plays Vince Papale that separates Invincible from typical Disney sports flicks. Wahlberg and director Ericson Core take risks in allowing Vince to be a real glass half empty type who is not concerned with being likable. Vince is a good guy, a nice guy but he does not have the typically lovable characteristics of your average feel good movie hero.
That is not to say that Invincible in any way breaks the mold of the typical Disney feel good sports movie. It lives comfortably within the genre's conventions. What director Ericson Core, writer Brad Gann and star Mark Wahlberg do is simply apply the formula better than other similar films like the saccharine Remember The Titans, the unfocused Glory Road or the simpleminded rah rah enthusiasm of Miracle.
The best thing about Invincible is Mark Wahlberg who continues to mature into a combination of character actor and superstar. Wahlberg has the star power to open a picture and the talent to make it memorable beyond that opening. Two years ago he dazzled as a thug hero in the highly underrated Four Brothers. Now in a 180 degree turn from that blood and guts actioner, Wahlberg courts family audiences, without simply pandering, in a piece of genre product. He brings more to the role of Vince Papale than most other actors would such an uncomplicated role.
The football scenes in Invincible are not groundbreaking but they more than pass as believable because star Mark Wahlberg actually performs his own football stunts.. Especially entertaining are Vince's games against his neighborhood pals in the rain on a sandlot lit by car headlights. These scenes have a music video quality to their rapid fire edits timed to the music of the scene whether its BTO or Grand Funk.
The music video feel also applies to the slick cinematography of director Ericson Core who slows the street ball scenes down, speeds them up and brightens the images just a little to make them stand out from the rest of the picture which has a sepia quality.
Invincible doesn't break the mold of the Disney sports movie. Rather, it just makes a more quality version of the product within that mold. This is not an entirely satisfying experience for a discerning audience. However, given the realities of modern studio filmmaking you have to grade on a curve. On that curve Invincible's ability to do what's been done before better than it's been done before is a welcome change of pace.
