In a captivating story of struggles and successes, a boy named Todd Marinovich is raised by his father, Marve Marinovich, to be the perfect quarterback. Todd struggles with drug abuse and his relationship with his father while aspiring to be the best he could be in USC, the LA Raiders, Matre Dame, and other places in his life. The film demonstrates that good things don’t come easily, and begs the questions that if you’re good at something, whatever it is, should you do it as an occupation for the rest of your life?
Drugs abuse, sports, and his relationship with his father all pose a problem in his life. Todd uses drugs at first to escape life and all his problems with football and his father. His use of drugs soon becomes abuse, leading to an addiction that causes him to go into severe withdrawal and act out at people when he doesn't get the drugs when he wants them, such as biting his sister. His love for football started strong, but slowly faded away as time went on. His use of drugs gets him in trouble with the USC coach, which compounds itself into a repetitive state. The fact that his relationship with his father is more coach - athlete doesn't help with his life either. As a viewer--and as a critic--, I would have to say that I did find it slightly interesting, wanting to find out what happens to him as his life progresses, waiting for the "super athlete" to reach his downfall.
Drugs, as with almost every story, compounded the problems Todd is(in the movie, at least) having with his football career and his relationship with his father. As the drug addiction got worse, so did his relationship with his football career. Eventually, that in turn effected his family, causing them to split apart. It took an old friend and another visit to jail to finally turn his life around. At rehab, Todd meets a girl, and they eventually get married.
The author reflects on their experience towards the end as tiny little clips of each person speaking, talking about all of the good things that they learned and that happened out of this experience. Most of it was Todd himself, reflecting on what he learned from that experience, and what he gained from it. He gained the love of his father over time, as well as a wife and kids. This inspiring film left me with final thoughts of what happened to him, whether his life just went on the way it was when the film ended. At the end, he had finally fixed his addiction and had gotten a life outside of them and football. That is where they left it. It made me feel happy for him, even though I was thinking he would never get out of the addiction or he would relapse.
A sports person, addict/ recent addict, or a person who loves recovery stories would indeed enjoy this fixating film. This story includes Todd's progression in football, from pee-wee football to his NFL career, as well as his progression into addiction and his regression out of it. Anyone who doesn't like sob stories or films about other people's lives would absolutely not feel connected. Besides those people, everybody else would feel somewhat connected to this film. Is this film worth your time? It really does depend on who you are and what you like. It may be worth you time, yet it also might not be worth it either.
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