Invincible is the true story of a 70s athlete who battled the odds - as they do – to become quite the popular player... as they do.
Vince
Papale (Mark Wahlberg) is a thirty-something bartender who answers an
open tryout call for the Philadelphia Eagles. He’s had no football
experience, so he doesn’t expect to get in… especially as it’s revealed
that the try-out call was merely a publicity stunt.
Thing is,
the coach (Greg Kinnear) takes a shine to Papale – so decides to take
him on. It’s then up to Papale to prove the media and public –
convinced he’s a publicity-created no hoper – that he’s more than a PR
tool.
“People don’t want heart”, says one character in the film. “They want wins”.
And
therein lies the biggest problem of the film. There’s a large chunk of
heart missing from the movie. Unlike say, the similarly themed Rudy,
you just don’t feel as connected to the lead character as the
filmmakers would’ve liked. At the same time though, the sports
sequences – the ‘wins’ in this case – are both enthralling and
amazingly choreographed.
What saves the film from being a wholly
clichéd event (a lot of the story is fairly formulaic, but all these
films are to an extent) is Wahlberg. This guy has been rockin’ the
house lately. His performance isn’t quite of the calibre of the turn he
gave us in The Departed,
but he’s still damn good in it. You can’t take your eyes off this guy.
He’s one of today’s most interesting performers. And yes, you mightn’t
‘feel’ as much for the character’s plight as you’d like – but you still
‘know’ the character by mid-way, and that’s still saying a heck of a
lot.
Not quite an even playing ground, but Invincible is still an entertaining family-friendly piece that helps cement the artist formerly known as Marky Mark in Hollywood.
EXTRASThe
DVD (which, by the way, includes commentaries and an OK "Making Of")
looks rather divine (lots of bright colours), but that’s typical of
Disney who seem to take a lot of pride in their disc ventures. Conclusion:
Movie 60% Extras: 60% 
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