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Blue Chips
Paramount // PG-13 // March 29, 2005
List Price: $14.99 [Buy now and save at Amazon]
Introduction
If you are anything like me, you are currently wrapped up in the annual tradition we call March Madness. Entire weekends are lost, girlfriends put on hold, and families scorned for the opportunity to watch hours and hours of college basketball. Keeping this annual mecca to the television in mind, Paramount has decided that now would be a good time to release a college-basketball-focused classic to its faithful DVD viewers. Thus we have the 1994 cinemeatic gem, Blue Chips.
Now, when you think of a good wholesome movie about the journey of a few high school players to the ranks of the college elite, what cast comes to mind? Lebron and Kobe as players? Maybe Bobby Knight in the role of the coach? Of course not! You should be thinking of Shaq, Penny Hardaway and Nick Nolte! I challenge you to find a better cast anywhere in America! Throw in J.T. Walsh, Ed O'Neill, and Mary McDonnell along with a host of cameos, and you have yourself a film.
The story revolves around Pete Bell (Nolte), who has a great reputation as the hard-nosed, yet wildly successful college basketball coach of the Western University Dolphins. On a side note, I must admit that the dolphin was an interesting choice as the mascot for this supposed "power house" of a program, but that's neither here nor there. So anyway, Pete has a long history at this school and has had success, but at the outset of the movie he is coaching a struggling program that is on the verge of experiencing it's first losing season under Bell's reign. Naturally, the team loses the game and Coach Bell is forced to speak to the press about his first losing season amid all the questions of whether or not he is still fit to coach the team. It is during this press conference that the foreshadowing begins as one of the beat writers ("Married with Children" star Ed O'Neill) asks Bell about an "alleged" point shaving incident from a few years back. Well, Bell adamantly denies such an incident ever occured and storms out of the press conference. The stage has been set.
Not long after the explosion at the press conference Bell takes a trip to the local watering hole where he is met by Happy (Walsh) who has a scantily clad busty woman on each arm...oh, so he must be one of the rich alumnist right??? Bingo. Sure enough, Happy is the evil, caniving booster who is dead set on seeing the Western basketball program rise to prominence once again, and he will stop at nothing to see that it is done. He tries to tell Bell that the football team is "bought and paid for by friends of the program", and that "he owns them." Happy really has a way with words, let me tell you. So yet again Bell storms out claiming that his program is clean and he is not at all interested in such shenanigans!!! By the next day he's hot on the trail to find the best young ball players in the country and bring his program back to the top!
After a breif meeting with their recruiting scout (played by Robert Wuhl of Arli$$ fame, or infamy I should say) Bell is dead set on snagging Western's top two choices. They've narrowed it down to Butch McRae (Hardaway) and Ricky Roe who are the nation's top "Blue Chip" prospects. After visit's with the families of McRae and Roe the foreshadowing reach's a fevered pitch as it is clear that neither one of these families is well-off financially. Bell still refuses to give in. In one additional moment of brilliance, another one of his scouts takes him to the heart of the bayou and shows him a "raw, never been coached" athlete playing in a run down warehouse in the swamps. "Neon" (Shaq) is shown dominating the competition with a series of under the basket slams to the delight of the crowd (incidentally bringing on my favorite moment in the film, watch the little kids reaction to one of Shaq's dunks...words cannot begin to describe how funny it is...). Now the stage is set and the recruits make their trip to the Western campus where they are floored by all the hot ladies, sunny weather, etc. It is clear that Bell is on his way back to the top, and on the shoulders of three of the best recruits in the nation. Will he get there? What price will he have to pay? Was the point shaving incident he keeps getting questioned about real? Will he corrupt Western's program? Is it already corrupt? Buy this DVD and find out!!!
Since my love and adoration goes beyond what I should really put in this review, I'm just gonna add it in after my plot synopsis here. First of all, Nick Nolte deserves all the credit for carrying this film. Nolte is as much like we percieve Bob Knight to be, as Bob Knight himself actually is; which is ironic because the final game in the film is a head to head match up between Nolte's character and Bob Knight himself! The intensity and vigor with which Nolte takes on the role of a sweet-talking recruiter, in your face motivator, and caring teacher really allows him to mold this role into something of substance. Also perfectly cast is the late J.T. Walsh as the evil booster who will stop at absolutely nothing to see "his" program succeed. Thankfully though, this film has a lot more to draw on than the performances of the lead roles, as countless action game sequences, moments of comedic genius, and a slew of cameos pepper the film and fill in any gaps that one might find in the product as a whole.
As for those cameos...I don't even know where to begin. From greats like Bob Cousy (Western Athletic Director) to "White Jesus" himself, Larry Bird (playing himself in a wasted scene) this film is just chock full of guys well known in the athletic world in what I can only guess is an attempt to lend credibility to this film. The list of college coaches that make an appearance is quite impressive in the form of Bobby Knight, Rick Pitino, Jim Boeheim, Lou Campinelli, and "the shark" (sans towel) Jerry Tarkanian. College basketball personality Dicky V even has a 90 second soliloquy to open up the final game of the film. Louis Gossett Jr. gets an uncredited nod as "Father Dawkins" who is in charge of watching over Butch McRae's future. Let's not forget about the opposing team player cameos. Thomas Hill (famous Duke reaction guy from the Kentucky game in '92), Rodney Rogers (current NBA journeyman), Allan Houston (NBA All-Star), Calbert Cheaney (former Indiana great), Bobby Hurley (Duke All-American), Keith Smart (another IU legend), Rick Fox (NBA journeyman), and George Lynch (NBA journeyman) all had roles for the teams opposing Western, which was a delight for me. None of them had any lines, and only a few were even highlighted enough that you could tell who they were, but it is a move by the producers that will probably bring in some die-hard basketball fans. Hell, even the Lakers trainer Gary Vitti is credited...now THAT is what cameos are all about.
My final note on this movie would be that if you've seen it as many times as I have, it becomes one of those "quotable" films that you can annoy your friends with. "Alright, what movie is this from?" will be a line you'll be repeating over and over again much to the chagrin of your family and co-workers. In the final climatic scene, Bell is asked what his best coaching job was, and he replied that it was the previous year, when he had a losing season. He then delivers what is easily the most quotable line in the film: "But Goddamnit those kids played with their heart! They gave everything they had! They played up to the MAXIMUM of their ability! They gave it everything! And you know it wasn't good enough! It wasn't good enough for me, wasn't good enough for you, wasn't good enough for anybody!" I would also list his next couple of lines, but that woud give away too much! In case I haven't mentioned it yet: Buy this DVD!
Video
This film is presented in widescreen format and as a whole looks pretty sharp. I don't claim to be an authority on audio or video so I'll just tell you that the picture looked better on the DVD then the first 10 times I watched it on HBO in high school. The opening screen has well defined lines and graphics, as do the sub screens for chapter skipping, etc. Most importantly, to the average sports fan viewing this DVD, the in-game action sequences are able to hold up the vivid color scheme and lead to no blurry lines or spotty "sports" filming. Basically, the visual action is as if you are at the arena, and the rest of the film is of standard quality. Just get the damn movie.
Audio
Your standard Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround packs a pretty tight walloping punch during some of the action sequences. Every foul is not only heard, but felt on the low channels. Some of the more intimate conversation scenes got a little quiet, but that may have been because the dishwasher was running in the background as I watched. English subtitles and French audio are also available, in case you're using this movie for a college paper for your French 101 class. There are a variety of scenes where background audio comes to the forefront, and in these cases, it is wise to hide the women and children as Paramount ensures that the royalty fees they are paying for the use of those songs is not going to waste.
Conclusion
I'm gonna make this easy on you guys. This is, hands down, the greatest basketball film of all-time. Yes, I have seen Hoosiers, but this movie has too much star power and too many memorable quotes to play second fiddle to that Gene Hackman tripe. Action sequences, Nolte's greatest role, learning the ins and outs of how a college basketball program is run, and that's all before mentioning that this is two years before Shaq came out with Kazaam...he's raw in this film people, raw! I could go on for hours about the greatness of this film, and give you a run down of the impressive roles that each character plays in this film, but then I'd be taking time away from you watching it. Just go get it, this movie is a classic that is not to be missed. Highly highly Recommended.
If you are anything like me, you are currently wrapped up in the annual tradition we call March Madness. Entire weekends are lost, girlfriends put on hold, and families scorned for the opportunity to watch hours and hours of college basketball. Keeping this annual mecca to the television in mind, Paramount has decided that now would be a good time to release a college-basketball-focused classic to its faithful DVD viewers. Thus we have the 1994 cinemeatic gem, Blue Chips.
Now, when you think of a good wholesome movie about the journey of a few high school players to the ranks of the college elite, what cast comes to mind? Lebron and Kobe as players? Maybe Bobby Knight in the role of the coach? Of course not! You should be thinking of Shaq, Penny Hardaway and Nick Nolte! I challenge you to find a better cast anywhere in America! Throw in J.T. Walsh, Ed O'Neill, and Mary McDonnell along with a host of cameos, and you have yourself a film.
The story revolves around Pete Bell (Nolte), who has a great reputation as the hard-nosed, yet wildly successful college basketball coach of the Western University Dolphins. On a side note, I must admit that the dolphin was an interesting choice as the mascot for this supposed "power house" of a program, but that's neither here nor there. So anyway, Pete has a long history at this school and has had success, but at the outset of the movie he is coaching a struggling program that is on the verge of experiencing it's first losing season under Bell's reign. Naturally, the team loses the game and Coach Bell is forced to speak to the press about his first losing season amid all the questions of whether or not he is still fit to coach the team. It is during this press conference that the foreshadowing begins as one of the beat writers ("Married with Children" star Ed O'Neill) asks Bell about an "alleged" point shaving incident from a few years back. Well, Bell adamantly denies such an incident ever occured and storms out of the press conference. The stage has been set.
Not long after the explosion at the press conference Bell takes a trip to the local watering hole where he is met by Happy (Walsh) who has a scantily clad busty woman on each arm...oh, so he must be one of the rich alumnist right??? Bingo. Sure enough, Happy is the evil, caniving booster who is dead set on seeing the Western basketball program rise to prominence once again, and he will stop at nothing to see that it is done. He tries to tell Bell that the football team is "bought and paid for by friends of the program", and that "he owns them." Happy really has a way with words, let me tell you. So yet again Bell storms out claiming that his program is clean and he is not at all interested in such shenanigans!!! By the next day he's hot on the trail to find the best young ball players in the country and bring his program back to the top!
After a breif meeting with their recruiting scout (played by Robert Wuhl of Arli$$ fame, or infamy I should say) Bell is dead set on snagging Western's top two choices. They've narrowed it down to Butch McRae (Hardaway) and Ricky Roe who are the nation's top "Blue Chip" prospects. After visit's with the families of McRae and Roe the foreshadowing reach's a fevered pitch as it is clear that neither one of these families is well-off financially. Bell still refuses to give in. In one additional moment of brilliance, another one of his scouts takes him to the heart of the bayou and shows him a "raw, never been coached" athlete playing in a run down warehouse in the swamps. "Neon" (Shaq) is shown dominating the competition with a series of under the basket slams to the delight of the crowd (incidentally bringing on my favorite moment in the film, watch the little kids reaction to one of Shaq's dunks...words cannot begin to describe how funny it is...). Now the stage is set and the recruits make their trip to the Western campus where they are floored by all the hot ladies, sunny weather, etc. It is clear that Bell is on his way back to the top, and on the shoulders of three of the best recruits in the nation. Will he get there? What price will he have to pay? Was the point shaving incident he keeps getting questioned about real? Will he corrupt Western's program? Is it already corrupt? Buy this DVD and find out!!!
Since my love and adoration goes beyond what I should really put in this review, I'm just gonna add it in after my plot synopsis here. First of all, Nick Nolte deserves all the credit for carrying this film. Nolte is as much like we percieve Bob Knight to be, as Bob Knight himself actually is; which is ironic because the final game in the film is a head to head match up between Nolte's character and Bob Knight himself! The intensity and vigor with which Nolte takes on the role of a sweet-talking recruiter, in your face motivator, and caring teacher really allows him to mold this role into something of substance. Also perfectly cast is the late J.T. Walsh as the evil booster who will stop at absolutely nothing to see "his" program succeed. Thankfully though, this film has a lot more to draw on than the performances of the lead roles, as countless action game sequences, moments of comedic genius, and a slew of cameos pepper the film and fill in any gaps that one might find in the product as a whole.
As for those cameos...I don't even know where to begin. From greats like Bob Cousy (Western Athletic Director) to "White Jesus" himself, Larry Bird (playing himself in a wasted scene) this film is just chock full of guys well known in the athletic world in what I can only guess is an attempt to lend credibility to this film. The list of college coaches that make an appearance is quite impressive in the form of Bobby Knight, Rick Pitino, Jim Boeheim, Lou Campinelli, and "the shark" (sans towel) Jerry Tarkanian. College basketball personality Dicky V even has a 90 second soliloquy to open up the final game of the film. Louis Gossett Jr. gets an uncredited nod as "Father Dawkins" who is in charge of watching over Butch McRae's future. Let's not forget about the opposing team player cameos. Thomas Hill (famous Duke reaction guy from the Kentucky game in '92), Rodney Rogers (current NBA journeyman), Allan Houston (NBA All-Star), Calbert Cheaney (former Indiana great), Bobby Hurley (Duke All-American), Keith Smart (another IU legend), Rick Fox (NBA journeyman), and George Lynch (NBA journeyman) all had roles for the teams opposing Western, which was a delight for me. None of them had any lines, and only a few were even highlighted enough that you could tell who they were, but it is a move by the producers that will probably bring in some die-hard basketball fans. Hell, even the Lakers trainer Gary Vitti is credited...now THAT is what cameos are all about.
My final note on this movie would be that if you've seen it as many times as I have, it becomes one of those "quotable" films that you can annoy your friends with. "Alright, what movie is this from?" will be a line you'll be repeating over and over again much to the chagrin of your family and co-workers. In the final climatic scene, Bell is asked what his best coaching job was, and he replied that it was the previous year, when he had a losing season. He then delivers what is easily the most quotable line in the film: "But Goddamnit those kids played with their heart! They gave everything they had! They played up to the MAXIMUM of their ability! They gave it everything! And you know it wasn't good enough! It wasn't good enough for me, wasn't good enough for you, wasn't good enough for anybody!" I would also list his next couple of lines, but that woud give away too much! In case I haven't mentioned it yet: Buy this DVD!
Video
This film is presented in widescreen format and as a whole looks pretty sharp. I don't claim to be an authority on audio or video so I'll just tell you that the picture looked better on the DVD then the first 10 times I watched it on HBO in high school. The opening screen has well defined lines and graphics, as do the sub screens for chapter skipping, etc. Most importantly, to the average sports fan viewing this DVD, the in-game action sequences are able to hold up the vivid color scheme and lead to no blurry lines or spotty "sports" filming. Basically, the visual action is as if you are at the arena, and the rest of the film is of standard quality. Just get the damn movie.
Audio
Your standard Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround packs a pretty tight walloping punch during some of the action sequences. Every foul is not only heard, but felt on the low channels. Some of the more intimate conversation scenes got a little quiet, but that may have been because the dishwasher was running in the background as I watched. English subtitles and French audio are also available, in case you're using this movie for a college paper for your French 101 class. There are a variety of scenes where background audio comes to the forefront, and in these cases, it is wise to hide the women and children as Paramount ensures that the royalty fees they are paying for the use of those songs is not going to waste.
Conclusion
I'm gonna make this easy on you guys. This is, hands down, the greatest basketball film of all-time. Yes, I have seen Hoosiers, but this movie has too much star power and too many memorable quotes to play second fiddle to that Gene Hackman tripe. Action sequences, Nolte's greatest role, learning the ins and outs of how a college basketball program is run, and that's all before mentioning that this is two years before Shaq came out with Kazaam...he's raw in this film people, raw! I could go on for hours about the greatness of this film, and give you a run down of the impressive roles that each character plays in this film, but then I'd be taking time away from you watching it. Just go get it, this movie is a classic that is not to be missed. Highly highly Recommended.
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