Film 52 (Goal: 300) of 2024

Continuing the streak of sports films leading up to the Superbowl, with another unexpected selection (thanks to the NETFLIX screensaver) in Brian Banks. I can't say I was overly looking forward to this, but it had a great rating on IMDB so I decided to give it a chance.

Boy I'm glad I did. I'm surprised how much I loved this. I've only seen him prior in Black Adam but man I need to see more Aldis Hodge on screen. He is fantastic in this role. I've always loved Greg Kinnear since As Good As It Gets and Mystery Men, and have felt he's been criminally underrated in Hollywood. And this film continues that trend. He's excellent as the lawyer who is eventually won over to try and overcome the insurmountable odds in Brian Banks case. Morgan Freeman has a tiny but impactful role throughout this film. It's better than some of things he's done lately with 10 times the amount of screen time.

There is a scene or two towards the end of Act 2, involving a key person in Banks' case that doesn't quite click. I'm not sure if it's the actress or the writing but it took me out a bit. But I'm nitpicking because otherwise I enjoyed everything in this film thoroughly.