Campeões

Another sports comedy film I thought to myself, well, was I pleasantly surprised how enjoyable this little gem was. It actually had many laugh out loud moments, even a few rolling on the floor laughing moments, but it also had tons of heartwarming moments. Literally all casting and performances were spot on, and kudos to Harrelson for the excellent portrayal of his character. The directing was on point, but the writing had some dragged out scenes that made the 124 min runtime feel much longer. A faster pace and/or some scene trimming would've gone a long way, but nevertheless, the story had great cohesion and flow to it. If you're looking for a movie that will tear you up - both through humor and heart, this is a must see. It's a well deserved 8/10 from me.

Got to see this on an early limited screening

Had no idea what to expect

Liked it - it's a sweet film with a unique ending - no spoilers here as always but it left you with a really warm feeling and faith in human kind

If I was to compare it to another film it's a bit like Eddie the Eagle or Cool Runnings - with a touch of Dodge Ball - it's a story of the underdog.

It's a human story of triumph over adversity but also a story of people realising what's in their soul and what really is success - success comes in many forms

Acting was top notch , Woody Harrelson on form as always and backed up by Kaitlin Olson playing a strong female role who's real life husband is a kind of Ted Lasso character by co owning with Ryan Reynolds a minor league UK football ( soccer ) team so there's a bit of art imitating life here !

Seeing the team who are ... I never know the correct pc term this week ... a team of 'special needs' really warms your heart and it's their individual characters and styles that really draw you in - it's a truly lovely story - it's directed by 1/2 of the Farrelly brother so the humour is there too , I haven't seen the original Spanish / Saudi film but I'd love to see it now .

It's not perfect but it's really good and it's a feel good film that leaves you with a warm feeling .

The fact that the coach wasn't there voluntarily but you can see that the experience changed him makes you feel good and gives you a sense of accomplishment.

A sweet film

Pad. A 7/10.

Veteran director Bobby Farrelly's warm basketball dramedy "Champions" (remaking Spain's 2018 "Campeones") twists an over-used theme to charming effect. Thru impersonal surliness coach Woody Harrelson's career's slumped to being Ernie Hudson's assistant at a minor Iowa team - which he's fired as, then arrested, then forced via community service to coach Cheech Marin's team of learning disabled misfits inc Kevin Iannucci, Madison Tevlin (hilarious) & James Day Keith. Clichés of course ensue, but Mark Rizzo's writing blends them in well, and support from the likes of Kaitlin Olson (so good) & Matt Cook add fine polish. It's fun, uplifting and inspiring.

Comedy, Drama, Heart Warming. This film ticks all the boxes. Has you laughing, has you cheering, has you annoyed and gets you gripped.

Managed to get to an advance screening of this with my 11 year old boy and we were both unsure of what we was about to watch, was it a comedy, was it an underdog story, was it a drama, was it a sports film and we were both amazed at what was a well spent hour and half. It was all of the above. We laughed, we teared up, we were engrossed in it all. The acting is superb the jokes are both laugh out loud and chuckle to yourself. You love the characters at times you hate them at times and you enjoy the ride.

It's not going to win any Oscars and it's not going to get rave reviews but if you want to escape from the troubles of life and have a damn good time you can't go wrong with seeing this.

Oh, and Woody plays the role perfectly.

As my title states, I am a retired high school SPED teacher and I was also a Special Olympics coach for several years in different sports. When I read an interview with Woody Harrelson about this movie, I was intrigued to see it because I wanted to see how Hollywood would portray these very real people with intellectual disabilities.

While there are certainly and understandably elements of Hollywood in this movie, the realness of the Friends team was very authentic. And all throughout the movie it's the authenticity of the Friends team that makes this such an enjoyable movie. Personally, I thought it was just a bit too long, but that aside, I just kept saying to myself, "Yes, that is exactly what probably would happen in that situation." The absolute clincher of this was at the very end of the championship game and the team's reaction to the final shot. I promise you, that was very realistic. I've seen that play out in my classroom and in the field or court dozens of times. So, I hope many will watch this movie and enjoy these folks for who they really are, warts and all. Isn't that really what we all want?