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Analyzing Any Given Sunday

15 September 2004

Contemporary Film and Pop Culture

Instructor: Aaron Baker

Grade: A

By: Todd Bauerle

Any Given Sunday, directed by Oliver Stone, is an extremely typical Hollywood story. Being typical does not mean it is outstanding, as it is far from flawless. But Any Given Sunday is a good example of a typical Hollywood movie because of its classically simplistic storytelling and formula through the exploitation of outlaw and official heroes, containing a thematic duality, and thematic avoidance of choice.

Any Given Sunday uses the age-old story telling tool of the official and outlaw heroes. The obvious embodiment of these character typologies exists in the two quarterbacks. Dennis Quaid portrays the starting quarterback for the Miami Sharks, Jack 'Cap' Rooney, who gets badly injured at the very start of the movie. ‘Cap’ possesses all the classic elements of the official hero. He has the official role to fill; he is the quarterback. He follows and respects the rules and hierarchy of the sport. Finally, he is a team player, putting the interests of the group first.

In contrast to Quaid’s character, Willie Beamen, third string quarterback played by Jamie Foxx, represents the outlaw hero. Beamen is an outsider, not part of the first string team. He has a disregard for the chain of command as revealed when he changes plays in the huddle. Finally, once successful he becomes cocky, feeling his efforts alone make the team victorious. According to Ray (55-69), we are, supposedly, torn between which hero to cheer for. Both are sympathetic characters; ‘Cap’ is injured struggling to recover and Beamen is nervously inexperienced. This contrast and struggle allegedly mirrors the struggle society has to be either communally minded or individualistic and personally successful.

This struggle is also embodied in the two doctors. Dr. Harvey Mandrake (James Wood) is willing to turn a blind eye toward player injury, bolstering their career success. In opposition, Dr. Ollie Powers (Matthew Modine) adheres to medical ethics, having more regard for the player’s well being than their career. These types of character struggles are often used in storytelling.

Any Given Sunday also has two thematic centers: what the movie is about, and what the movie is really about. On the surface, Any Given Sunday is an "Oliver Stone" football movie. This is its interest center. People want to see Stone's gritty, harsh style applied to the game of football. The interest center is the device used to attract the audience to the film. The moral center, or theme of the film, is about the conflicting values of being communally or individualistically minded; the struggle embodied in the Quaid and Foxx characters. Other characters contribute to this team vs. individual success such as the greedy owner, Christina Pagniacci (Cameron Diaz), who is willing to sell out her team in favor of profit, and the rough head coach, Tony D'Amato (Al Pacino), struggling unite the players by promoting ideal of individual sacrifice for the greater glory of the team.

During the course of this film, the audience waits for a resolution between these opposing characters, and in turn the values they embody. This leads to the third typical Hollywood element, thematic avoidance of choice. Ray (55-69) argues Hollywood strives to avoid promoting a dominant value in favor of pleasing the widest audience, even though it favors the individual. Any Given Sunday makes an attempt to satisfy both the value of the individual and team in several ways.

Overall, the outlaw hero, Beamen, is forced to become a team player, yet is allowed to individually win the game at the last touchdown. Dr. Mandrake is fired for his individualism, but Dr. Powers must sacrifice his medical ethics in over-medicating at a patient’s request. Finally, D’Amato succeeds by leading the Sharks toward victory through the promotion of team values, but follows his own career aspirations by changing teams and stealing away Beamen. This is what is meant by thematic avoidance of choice; the satisfaction of both values and presenting the idea that both values can coexist.

Seen through the lens of outlaw vs. official hero, interest and moral centers, and thematic avoidance of choice, Any Given Sunday is nothing new. If you subscribe to Ray (55-69), it is the retold story of individualism versus collectivism in the form of a football movie.

Works Cited

Ray, Robert B. A Certain Tendency of the Hollywood Cinema, 1930 – 1980. Princeton: Princeton UP, 1985.