Cast: Woody Harrelson, Antonio Banderas, Lolita Davidovich, Tom Sizemore, Lucy Alexis Liu, Robert Wagner
Director: Ron Shelton
Producer: Stephen Chin
Screenplay: Ron Shelton
Cinematography: Mark Vargo
Music: Alex Wurman
U.S. Distributor: Touchstone Pictures
Play It to the Bone is a mediocre sports movie crossed with a bad road picture. The result, aside from being less than satisfying, is uninspired. The film comes from the dean of sports movies, Ron Shelton, who has brought nearly every major sport to the screen - from golf (Tin Cup) to baseball (Bull Durham) to basketball (White Men Can't Jump). Play It to the Bone isn't Shelton's first venture into the boxing ring. He was previously there with the barbed satire, The Great White Hype. Although Shelton only wrote, and did not direct, that picture, it presents a significantly more entertaining look at the sport (and its associated business) than the one offered here.
The fatal flaw in Play It to the Bone is the way the time is divided between the co-plots. Had the film been predominantly about boxing, it might have worked, but Shelton only accords a quarter of the bloated running time to ring action. The other 90 minutes transpires during a long car trip between Los Angeles and Las Vegas. Someone should have clued Shelton into the simple truth that the road picture is a threadbare genre - approaching it in a traditional manner, as he does here, quickly leads to cliches and tedium. These days, perhaps the only filmmakers capable of making an engaging road picture are those who are willing to throw all caution to the wind.
Play It to the Bone offers up the dubious scenario of two LA-based boxers who hop in a car and head to Vegas after a promoter named Joe Domino (Tom Sizemore) offers them the chance of a lifetime: if they agree to fight each other on the undercard of the latest Mike Tyson match, they'll split a $100,000 purse and the winner will get a guaranteed middleweight title shot. For the money and the dream, Vince Boudreau (Woody Harrelson) and Caesar Dominguez (Antonio Banderas) are willing to risk their physical well-being and their friendship, despite the fact that both of them are well beyond their boxing prime. In the car with these two is Caesar's current girlfriend and Vince's ex, Grace (Lolita Davidovich), who finds herself torn when it comes to determining her rooting interest. Along the way, the trio becomes a foursome when the oversexed and drug-addled Lia (Lucy Alexis Liu) decides to take Vince for a ride.
On the way to Vegas, we get a fair amount of lame character development, unconvincing drama, and sporadic comedy that's low on the laugh meter. It turns out that both boxers are fighting their own demons and looking for redemption in the ring. Grace, meanwhile, is hoping to find a few investors for one of her hare-brained inventions, such as a periscope for watching TV in bed. Conversations in the car and at rest stops tend to be profane and trivial. There are also a couple of "shocking" revelations: Caesar went through a period where he experimented with gay sex (this revolts confirmed homophobe Vince) and Vince has had visions of Jesus (this amuses atheist Caesar). Things get a little more interesting once Lia joins the group, but she's not around for very long. After an energetic and supposedly comedic bout of sex with Vince and some catty interaction with Grace, she's outta here.
To give credit where it's due, the boxing match near the end is enjoyable in a visceral sense, and the characters have been sketched with enough balance that it's not clear who will emerge victorious (although Shelton's ending is a monumental cheat). Play It to the Bone also pays attention to the little details surrounding the bout. For example, although the arena will be full for the Tyson fight, the crowd is only beginning to trickle in as Vince and Caesar's match gets under way. During the first few rounds, there's a profound sense of disinterest. Celebrities like Kevin Costner and Rod Stewart hardly pay any attention to what's happening in the ring, and the sparse crowd gives a lustier cheer to the skimpily clad girl holding up the round placard than to the actual fight.
The action itself is well choreographed and photographed, and both Banderas and Harrelson do capable jobs mimicking fighters. While the level of realism isn't close to what Martin Scorsese achieved in Raging Bull, Shelton milks enough blood and adrenaline from the situation to keep the audience involved. Occasionally, he gets a little too artsy in the way he frames parts of the fight (maybe he solicited advice from Oliver Stone), but these lapses serve only as brief distractions. There are also moments when we catch glimpses of how brutal the sport can be, but, since this isn't a "message" film, the storyline quickly moves on.
Harrelson and Banderas are adequate in the lead roles - they have the necessary physicality and presence, but their acting comes across as flat. Less successful is Lolita Davidovich, whose bland work makes one wonder what Vince and Caesar see in Grace. However, while none of the primary actors shines, there are some colorful supporting performances: Tom Sizemore is over-the-top as Joe, Lucy Alexis Liu (currently hot because of her involvement in "Ally McBeal") plays the consummate slut, and, as a casino owner, Robert Wagner trumps Trump.
With The Hurricane currently playing in theaters, Play It to the Bone becomes the second boxing-related film in less than a month to unspool in multiplex auditoriums. Neither movie is really about the sport - a fact that's to The Hurricane's credit and Play It to the Bone's detriment. Regardless of what qualifications an individual employs, there isn't any question which is the more worthwhile motion picture. The Hurricane makes Play It to the Bone look like an afternoon drizzle.
© 2000 James Berardinelli