THIRD & LONG ... IN THE TOOTH
UNLIKE PRO SPORTS, 80 FOR BRADY PROVES IT’S POSSIBLE FOR ACTING TO GET BETTER WITH AGE
80 for Brady
Cast: Jane Fonda, Lily Tomlin, Tom Brady Director: Kyle Marvin
Duration: 1 h 38 m
You won’t see Tom Brady on the field at the Super Bowl this year, or any year. The 10-time participant, seven-time winner and five-time MVP had to sit this one out after his team, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, failed to make it past the first round of post-season play. And he’s just announced his retirement from the sport.
But you can see him relive the glory that was 2017’s Super Bowl LI alongside a quartet of superfans played by Jane Fonda, Lily Tomlin, Rita Moreno and Sally Field.
They are an accomplished bunch. Moreno alone is an EGOT winner — Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony awards — while the four combined have five Oscars, 17 Emmys and a host other accolades, including Kennedy Center Honors and a Mark Twain humour prize for Tomlin. Also, their combined age — 335 — is the same as Alexander Pope, who has none of those prizes and hasn’t even written anything new since 1744. (And, no, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind doesn’t count.)
All of which is to say that 80 for Brady is an easygoing watch for anyone old enough to remember when two of its stars teamed up with Dolly Parton for 9 to 5. There’s some mild objectification of men and exactly one F-bomb — well earned, I’d say.
There’s also a running gag that’s about as raunchy as a Harlequin romance, when we find that Fonda’s character has been writing erotic fan fiction featuring Brady’s teammate Rob “Gronk” Gronkowski. I do love that the, um, climax of one such story takes place at Gillette Stadium with the words: “The best a man can get.”
The plot is based on a true story, although loosely, very loosely — like, the way football-is-based-on-soccer loosely. The foursome are longtime pals with a love of the game and in particular its seasoned star Brady, who was 39 when the film is set, and 45 now. They hatch a plan to win tickets to the big game, then head to Houston to see it.
This necessitates breaking Moreno’s character out of her retirement home with a bit of Ocean’s Eleven trickery; the 1960 version, not that upstart remake from 2001.
On the ground in Houston, the ladies’ escapades threaten to turn into a kind of Hangover reboot, as they accidentally ingest drugs, manage to lose their game tickets, and interact with a bunch of as-themselves celebrities including Patton Oswalt and Guy Fieri. But first-time feature director Kyle Marvin manages to pull things back from the edge, with help from writers Emily Halpern and Sarah Haskins, whose credits include Booksmart and TV’S Black-ish.
There’s not a lot of suspense in the plot, and even less on the field, where history records that the New England Patriots went into the third quarter down 28-3 against the Atlanta Falcons before coming back to win it 34-28.
Though you may be surprised by what the movie suggests was the pivotal moment that started the rally. You probably won’t be surprised by the news that Fonda et al can still deliver comic and heartfelt moments in equal measure.
Unlike pro sports, acting is an endeavour where it’s possible to just keep getting better with age. ★★★1/2