This faith-based biopic works by emphasizing the relationships over the gridiron action
This review of “American Underdog” first published on Dec.17. Zachary Levi gets to act a little in the sturdy football pic “American Underdog”, a better-than-average sports drama that mainly works as a showcase for its solid ensemble cast, including Anna Paquin and Dennis Quaid. Levi brings an unflashy credibility to his starring role as Kurt Warner, the St. Louis Rams quarterback who became one of the NFL’s biggest and/or most-publicized success stories. Co-directors Andrew and Jon Erwin (“I Still Believe”) were smart enough to make Levi and his co-stars’ performances the thing that convinces viewers of Warner’s canned triumph-of-the-human-spirit narrative. The Erwins sometimes rely too much on tight close-ups of their actors’ faces, but they otherwise succeed where so many other feel-good hagiographers have failed simply by giving Levi and his co-stars room enough to sell their corny sports drama. Soon after we meet Warner, he starts to woo Brenda (Paquin), a romantic prospect who’s always presented to viewers as an unlikely but sensible choice since, in her preliminary scenes, we learn that she’s a divorcée and the mother of two children (one of whom is blind); she’s also pretty charming on the dance floor and genuinely interested in Warner and his “Brian’s Song”–esque passion for football. The Erwins give Paquin and Levi time, in these early unsporty scenes, to get to know each other and even talk seriously about their relationship’s potential. So it’s easy to believe Warner’s worth caring about when he takes an offer from folksy Arena Football League commissioner Jim Foster (Bruce McGill) to play for the Iowa Barnstormers. To Warner, the AFL may seem more like a “circus” than the NFL, but it’s one of many hurdles that he clears without many (or memorable) complaints.
