Review: Draft Day

Release date: April 11, 2014

Running time: About 105 minutes

Starring: Kevin Costner, Jennifer Garner, Ellen Burstyn, Denis Leary, Chadwick Boseman
Who to see it with: Your football friend, maybe someone from Cleveland

David:

How great is it to see Kevin Costner back on the big screen? After a long, Costner-less drought of films, he's back in three movies in the first third of the year. Draft Day follows a newer manager of the Cleveland Browns as he strategizes, manages, and handles the most stressful day in professional sports. 

The story of the film is predictable with enough twists to keep it interesting. The dialog is serviceable but won't win any awards for writing. Kevin Costner's acting is the main draw, playing an experienced but disregarded football manager trying to get his bearings and make a name for himself. Denis Leary is a great addition as the team coach trying to deal with the decisions Costner is making. Garner is mostly forgettable as his girlfriend / salary manager, popping in to solve random problems here and there but without enough of a relationship to make her meaningful. 

One of the interesting aspects of the film is the amount of NFL influence. The sponsors are all NFL sponsors (GM, Dominos, etc). The managers and GMs emphasize player character over all other aspects. You can tell that the NFL was heavily involved in the movie, but if you like the league it probably won't bother you. Draft day isn't a great movie, heck it might not even be a good movie. But, it's an interesting sports movie that follows the game from a different perspective. It's not really a first round draft pick, but it's a fun movie that you might want to check out in the later rounds.

Rent it.