The Dotted Line

I'm not a huge Morgan Spurlock fan. In retrospect, "Super Size Me" is a silly premise and I certainly don't subscribe to his Michael Moore-esque anti-corporate message.

That being said, Mr. Spurlock made the brave choice by focusing on Eugene Lee, an agent who tries to lock up the lower-rung of NFL clients. We're talking 5th, 6th, and 7th round prospects where commissions pay in the four-figure range.

There is something off about Eugene Lee, but he seems to do things the right way, albeit with little results He also goes to the opposite end of the spectrum, to David Faulk, Michael Jordan's agent. Mr. Faulk is impressive how he details the weaknesses in agents today and how they are intimidated by clients.

Finally, Josh Luchs brings us to the shady side of being a sports agent. He shows us how he prospected for players and how the NCAA and colleges turn a blind eye to these practices.

The lesson is every agent cheats to some degree.

Dotted Line, The (2011)

*** (out of 4)

Morgan Spurlock (SUPER SIZE ME) directs this look at the sports agent and how they impact the games as well as the culture. The documentary takes a look at the different aspects of an agent including how they helped make Michael Jordan a sports star. Another aspects looks at how Johan Santana became the highest paid pitcher and how various agents are looking for the next big thing including scouting kids as young as thirteen. The film also takes a look at former agent Josh Luchs who was busted for paying student athletes to sign with him, which went against NCAA rules. Finally, we get to see the workings of Eugene Lee, an up-and-coming agent who is trying to get his clients selected in the 2011 NFL draft. THE DOTTED LINE is certainly a mixed bag and I think its biggest problem is that it tried to do way too much in its short running time and in the end the film just feels as if it didn't get around to everything it wanted to. The stuff dealing with agents being dirty and breaking NCAA rules isn't anything shocking and we really don't learn anything new here so this entire segment just seems useless. The stuff dealing with Michael Jordan and David Falk aren't all that interesting either. The scouting of young kids who make $850 a month for five months was an interesting piece but sadly this here doesn't last too long. I think the best portion of the film was Lee and seeing how an agent works to try and get his client drafted. During the draft Spurlock keeps a camera in the agents room and another with the players and the amount of drama that builds up was certainly entertaining. I thought the film probably would have benefited by keeping these guys as the entire focus because that's where the heart and energy of the film comes to life. With that said, considering some of the masterpieces ESPN has delivered with these documentaries you can't help but feel somewhat letdown by this one. It's certainly a good piece but we've come to expect a lot more.

ESPN'S "30 for 30" series is interesting. It is made up of a bunch of sports-related films of varying lengths by many different filmmakers--all of which seem REALLY skilled at telling a story. In the case of "The Dotted Line", however, I was more interested in seeing this one than usual because it was written, directed and narrated by Morgan Spurlock--a VERY interesting young filmmaker. While I was only moderately impressed by his "Super-Size Me", his other recent film "The Greatest Movie Ever Sold" is simply one of the best documentaries I've ever seen--and I have seen probably a couple thousand.

Spurlock's focus is on the benefits of the often-hated sports agent. And, while I despise the impact that agents have had on the game, he makes a very compelling argument for them. In addition, I have long realized that the agents are PAID to be greedy and most of the problem rests on owners who pay players so much that many fans simply can no longer afford to attend games. But, as I said, he's very compelling and makes some excellent arguments. Plus, if we are a capitalist system, what is more capitalist than this system where greed is good. A challenging and well-reasoned film that tends to humanize people who many fans love to hate. Well worth seeing.