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A Slice of Life
by Francine Brokaw
Invincible
Everyone has a dream. The important thing is to follow your dream because you never know how far it will take you. That is what happened to Vince Papale who, in 1976, was a bartender in Philadelphia. He was also a big Philadelphia Eagles fan. Along with his friends in South Philly, he would play football in the local parking lot. Little did he know that one day he would be playing in the NFL!
With a losing team, the Eagles management brought in a new coach who was supposed to shake things up and hopefully turn the Eagles into a winning team. Dick Vermeil (Greg Kinnear) did just that. He really shook things up. When he arrived in Philly he called for an open tryout for anyone who wanted to see if they had the right stuff. It was just a way to get the people excited about the team, but when Vince (Mark Wahlberg) showed up he realized he might have a real football player in the midst.
The team had been losing for a long time and therefore had the toughest fans who even “threw snowballs at Santa Clause.” Well, who could blame them? Their team stunk! Bringing a local guy in for training camp was a strange thing to do, but Vermeil saw something in Vince and deep down he knew he should follow his instinct. “He’s got heart,” he said. But he was told, “People don’t want heart, Dick. They want to win.”
Vince was the “old man” of the team, and had literally no experience. His only games were in the parking lot. But he had speed, determination, and knew how to play, and that was exactly what the team needed.
Against all odds, Vince earned a place on the NFL team and led them to victory. This is all history, and football fans know the story. Yes, this is another “feel good” story about an underdog. But the fact that it is based on a real man makes it that much more inspiring.
When the final game was being played out on the screen I looked around the room. It was filled with seasoned movie critics, and many of them were on the edge of their seats watching the game as if it were happening at the moment, not like it was a film. That in itself says something about this movie.
Invincible is inspirational, motivating, and heartwarming. Even those who don’t care for football will enjoy the story of the ordinary man who makes it big. After all, we all have dreams, and seeing someone actually achieve his dream is promising to us all. With a great soundtrack from the 70’s, this film will leave you happy and hopeful.
© 2006 Francine Brokaw
All pictures ©Disney Enterprises. All rights reserved .
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