really not a great showing of what texas high school football is about. But how would I know I only played there, coached there, played college ball there and then played pro baseball in that state but what would I know I just escaped from Taurine and I am trapped inside amazon's website being forced to watch ridiculous nonsense. It is a cool movie if you are a senior in high school but it is so fictional it is funny. Friday night lights is so much better, but if you watch a movie like Gladiator with Russ Crowe then you really get a feel for what it is like to get kicked in the head and eat dirt at the same time.

Okay, this is not a deep thought provoking documentary; it is, however, an uncannily accurate depiction of small town life in general and small town football in particular. Of course there are the riotous moments of teen insanity specifically unique to small towns (have you ever played quarters with a pet pig in your vicinity?) and Tweeder stealing the police car is just classic, no matter where you are from. Underneath the comedy, though, there is a lot of truth to these characters and this story. Football is a small town religion, and every Friday night is a worship service at the altar of the pigskin. The movie captures this feeling well, along with the frustration of feeling trapped in a small town and wondering if you will ever get out -- and if you do get out, where will you go? Nevermind that Van der Beek's accent is not terribly authentic, or that this ***spoiler alert*** has a somewhat sappy ending. If you grew up in a small town, you can probably put a name on each of these characters; if you didn't, get the movie and find out what it's like.

The movie is based on a "piece" of everyone's life, in some small way, who have ever played football. Does it matter that HS kids get in a strip club and drink till 6:00am ? "NO" Does it matter that Hoss is sitting on a tailgate, drinking Jack like its water ... and shooting a shotgun, with the HS Football Field lights on ? "NOOOOO" !!!!

It is "Rocky" + "Friday Night Lights" + "Rudy" + "Stand By Me" = Varisty Blues.

If you played football, or ever hung out with the guys after a game, or ever LAUGHED at the guys who couldn't leave HS even after they graduated 9 years ago ... Then buy the movie, its worth it, and the soundtrack ROCKS !!!!

This is by far my favorite movie about football. It is about football players playing in a small town where the dads wished they were still playing and the coach is mean son of a gun that has to get his way. It is very entertaining and and has some funny parts and some serious ones too. BillyBob and Tweeder provide tons of laughs in this movie. James Van Der Beek does a good job in this movie as the backup quarterback that becomes the star starting quarterback when the starter gets hurt. Jon Voigt also does a good job in this movie playing the mean coach. All in all this movie was extremely good with some great football action and some very funny moments.

by Aaron Miller.

The starting quarterback Lance is injured. The second string quarterback steps up and takes his team to the playoffs.

A good action scene was when the offensive guard Billy Bob blocks for a game-winning touchdown. The football game showed great action when second string quarterback Mox goes and wins the game after the first string quarterback gets hurt.

I enjoyed the suspense of Varsity Blues, when quarterback Lance gets hurt. You didn't know if he will come back into the game. I also enjoyed the suspense in the scene where quarterback Mox takes his team to the playoffs and out of nowhere wins the game.

A good comedy scene is when Tweeter stole the cop car after getting drunk. A romance scene would be when Mox and his girlfriend went on a date. Another scene of drama would
be when Mox and his girlfriend make up.

If you enjoy football movies you should rent and watch Varsity Blues.

Okay, I know this was a James Van Der Beek geared movie, but I wish it had shown more of Paul Walker's character. One of the most interesting things about the story was that Lance and Jonathan were best friends. We never really got to see how these guys actually worked through the strains that were put on their friendship by everything that happened - before and during the movie.

Jonathan had been in Lance's shadow for years. Everyone in town worshiped Lance, young and old. Then Jon became the star because Lance got hurt. Lance's girlfriend dropped him and went after Jon. Jon got into Brown Univeristy while Lance's dreams went down the drain. I mean, one trip to the the strip club and everythings okay?

Paul Walker is a good actor and could have done great with some meatier scenes and a bigger role. Too bad the director couldn't see that.

But that aside, Van Der Beek is good and Jon Voight was perfect as the coach.

I watched this movie in the theatre in 1999 and have to say that it was a good movie. It made me cry a bit because I at that time I was out of work and wondering how I was going to make ends meet. Let's not get personal here.

The movie begins with four boys playing football. They are having fun. Then it goes back to the present. The same boys are now teenagers and playing high school football. It's not all fun and games. It's about winning the championship and glorifying the coach. I can't believe that they even have a statue of him! He is no Abraham Lincoln. Give me a break.

As I was saying, the main character Jonathan "Mox" Moxon, played by James Van Der Beek (with dyed brown hair) plays high school football and reads literature on the side. He is more concerned about his academic abilities than he is about the game. When the QB Lance Harbour, played by Paul Walker (Fast and Furious series)is injured, Moxon has to take his place. The spotlight at first, is engrossing. But he realizes that it will jeopardize the person that he--trustworthy and understanding. The last thing he wants is to steal his best friend's girl.
The movie doesn't only focus on Moxon, but his friends--Lance, Billy Bob, Charlie Tweeder, and Wendell Brown are also affected by the pressures of football and their relationship with the coach.

"Varsity Blues" focuses on the pride of school sports in small-towns that sometimes gets out of control. Parents have high expectations of what their son or daughter should be--an athlete or a cheerleader. And Mox's father wanted his son to live up to his expectations because he was never able to live up to his dream.

This movie is a cathartic. Whenever you feel like life is throwing you a curveball, watch this movie. Jonathan Moxon never allowed anyone or anything to get in his way. He knew what he wanted and was determined to go after it and also help his fellow teammates.

Varsity Blues was to the late 1990s moviegoer what Friday Night Lights is to today's movie-watcher: the ultimate underdog story of a team from Texas who can overcome the obstacles tossed at them both on and off the field to prove that they are the best around.

The film focuses on the kids who play for the West Camen Coyotes, who are making their way towards trying to win their 23rd State football championship in the last 30 years under their hard-nosed coach, Bud Kilmer (Jon Voight). But when the team's star quarterback (Paul Walker, before he went "Fast and the Furious") is taken down and injured on a play, the duty gets passed to backup QB Jonathan "Mox" Moxon (James Van Der Beek), who is more concerned with proving himself academically than on the field.

When Moxon shows that he's no bench-warmer and leads the team while showing compassion for his fallen teammate and his active players, his down-home charm and unconventional tactics on the field (like setting a hook-and-ladder play using the team's 350-pound linebacker) clash with Kilmer's take no prisoners attitude.

Add on the fact that he has to deal with trying to maintain his relationship with his girlfriend and dealing with the new celebrity that comes with his success on the field, while avoiding the advances of a cheerleader who just happens to be the girlfriend of his friend (Ali Larter)and the fact that his is trying to escape from under the shadow of his father who also played under Kilmer and you get a guy that has the biggest task in bringing the championship home while showing that one individual can make the ultimate difference.

This film has moments and plot points that to many may seem extremely hokey (Admit it...don't we all wish we had or remember that one teacher that we WISHED was an exotic dancer on the side?), and some moments contain elements that might seem just unintentionally appropos (During the scene when Ali's character tries to seduce Mox with the now-famous whipped-cream "bikini" the song If Your Girl Only Knew by Aaliyah played in the background. Coincidence? I think not...), but this is what Friday Night Lights would become 6 years later...a feel-good movie with the right tough of angst and fun in one sweet package.

SO if you want a little bit of FNL with a laugh or two thrown in for good measure, the hit the field for a case of the Varsity Blues...

Varsity Blues isn't a brilliant film. What it does well is depict the small town obsession with high school sports in a way that few films have done before. Having grown up part of my life in small town America, knowing how the coach of the local team can be often more powerful than the mayor or the police, this is a frightening portrait that touches a real nerve.

The story itself, the acting, etc. -- those things are unremarkable. It makes sense that another movie, Friday Night Lights, is reattempting the story of a small town football team, because Varsity Blues doesn't quite nail the whole package.

In any event, it is entertaining, it has some great dramatic moments, and if you went into it expecting very little (like I did), you will be quite pleasantly surprised. If you're expecting a great sports movie, then there are many others for you to discover.

I was suprised at how good this movie was. Well, I was suprised at James Van Der Beek's performance. I am not really sold on him as an actor, but I have to give him props for this one.

Ok, so James Van Der Beek's Texas accent isn't all that great. So what if no football coach in their right mind would run a hook-and-ladder play to a 350 pound lineman. What does it matter that very few of us ever have a teacher as hot as Miss Davis...much less one that works in a strip club? It's still a great movie.

Look people, this isn't supposed to be a drama. This is a comedy-drama. Some dramatic parts, but it's supposed to be funny overall. That's why the movie has Tweeder! There are a few dramatic parts to the film, but it's mostly comedy. The intended audience is obviously the high school and college age, but can be enjoyed by nearly everyone...especially football fans.

Who knew that MTV Films was capable of making a movie like this? It did very well at the box office, and the DVD has sold well too...for good reason. Come on....everyone has to laugh when Tweeder steals the police car.

Does anyone know if the story behind Varsity Blues is related or drawn from the book, 'Friday Night Lights: A Town, a Team, and a Dream' by H. G. Bissinger?
It's about the Permian High School Panthers of Odessa, TX; where the the team, for better and for worse, is the town.

Anyone know?

Thanks in advance...

When I first saw Varsity Blues, I wasn't expecting it to be a great movie. But overall, I enjoyed it very much. This movie, created by MTV, only cost $16 million bucks to make and brought in over $52 million at the box office, because this movie is mainly aimed at high school juniors and seniors or in the age range of 16-21.

The story takes place in a fictional town called West Canaan, Texas, a small, steamy town in southwestern Texas where high school football is a way of life. The town is the home of the West Canaan Coyotes, a football team which has won 22 consecutive district championships and 2 state championships. The head coach of the team, Coach Kilmer (Jon Voight), has a "win-at-all-costs" attitude, meaning he has a reputation of playing his players injured or sick. He has also coached many of the current players' fathers, who seem to be re-living their glory years through their sons. When the all-Texas star quarterback Lance Harbor (Paul Walker) goes down with a season-ending knee injury, backup quarterback Jonathan "Mox" Moxon (James Van Der Beek from Dawson's Creek) reluctantly assumes the duties of filling Lance's shoes. Once he miraculously leads his team to victory, his life begins to drastically change. He becomes very popular in school, gets free under-the-counter alcohol, and even easy sex from the former quarterback's girlfriend. So as the movie goes on, Mox continues to lead his team to victory, while dealing with the pressure of his coach and the love triangle that he has gotten himself into. In the final game at the end of the movie, he shows what it is like to be a high school hero after the coach abandons the team. As the movie ends, we hear a voiceover of what became of the characters.

So in conclusion, it's a pretty good movie from MTV which shows what high school life mixed with football is really all about. That is why I mentioned that this film should mainly be viewed by high school/college students. There are some really funny scenes in this movie; the most notable would probably be when one of the players hijacks a police car and parades around town with a bunch of naked girls in the backseat, and when they discover that their science teacher has a job at a local strip club. Adults might want to stay away from this one. 3 1/2 stars.

This movie almost defines so-bad-it's-good. My friends and I repeatedly watch this movie simply to hear James Van Der Beek's bad Texan accent and his insipid speeches. We constantly quote "I will not live your life" to each other. Quite frankly this movie is hilarious for its over the topness. If it weren't for James Van Der Beek, I'm fairly certain this film never would have seen the light of day. It's a shame that the only real value this film has is for camp humor.

This movie almost defines so-bad-it's-good. My friends and I repeatedly watch this movie simply to hear James Van Der Beek's bad Texan accent and his insipid speeches. We constantly quote "I will not live your life" to each other. Quite frankly this movie is hilarious for its over the topness. If it weren't for James Van Der Beek, I'm fairly certain this film never would have seen the light of day. It's a shame that the only real value this film has is for camp humor.

MTV Films has an amazing track record for churning out films that are low in cost and turn a tidy little profit. In the case of "Varsity Blues", the film cost about $16 million to produce and it raked in more than $52 million in domestic box office.

They have the formula down pat. Take an actor/actress that's the current phenomenon. In this case it was James Van Der Beek of the wildly popular "Dawson's Creek" TV series. Throw in a few familiar faces (Scott Caan, Paul Walker & Jon Voight). Mix in a dash of raunchy behavior. Spice it all up with a bunch of popular songs and flashy shots. It all equals...A HIT!!

Did you notice the one thing missing from the above description? Yup. That silly little thing called a decent plot. Luckily, there are a bunch of mindless people out there who don't care about something like that and they just throw their money into MTV and Viacom's overflowing pockets.

"Varsity Blues" is supposedly about how fanatical some locals get in western Texas over high school football. It goes through all of the motions it is supposed to. The parents are overzealous and just don't understand. The football players spend their time drinking, going to wild parties, attending strip clubs and being treated like royalty because they play football. The coach is a maniac whose only goal in life is to win championships. So on and so forth. Not a single breath of fresh air to be found in this stale film.

When I first saw this film, I hated it. I could not find a single likeable character in the movie: the backup quarterback who couldn't seem to make up his mind whether to be ambivalent or committed to football; an obsessed, fanatical head coach; shallow, self-absorbed, hedonistic jocks; a whipped cream cheerleader; a little brother with an identity crisis; and moronic football dads wanting to do nothing more than live vicariously through their sons. Outside of a headbanging soundtrack and sensational football action, I was anything but impressed with VARSITY BLUES.

Then I caught the film on cable recently, and watched it. Then I rented it, and watched it again. Perhaps I had been too judgmental my first viewing: VARSITY BLUES was slowly but surely revealing itself to me as a very entertaining movie. I came to appreciate Jonathan "Mox" Moxon (James Van Der Beek), a second string quarterback with aspirations to go to an Ivy League college suddenly thrust into the spotlight of his west Texas town as the new starting signal caller. I came to loathe Bud Kilmer (Jon Voight), the epitome of the abusive, cruel, vindictive, win-at-all-costs head football coach. I came to enjoy the small town "feel" of this film, where high school football players are placed on a pedestal and allowed to run wild. And what can you say about Billy Bob (Ron Lester) and Tweeder (Scott Caan), other than these two raunchy characters flavor this movie whenever they appear like onions in Texas chili?

Setting aside a hopelessly unrealistic player revolt (Where were the other coaches to take over when Kilmer left?), director Brian Robbins furnishes fast-moving, high-octane football scenes guaranteed to make those of us who have played the game (and still love it) want to strap on the pads again. VARSITY BLUES is less than perfect, like a six-pack of warm beer, but still satisfying to the last drop.

This movie is not only a great achievement, but touches the heart of teenagers everywhere. Being a teenager in a high-school where football is a way of life, I can relate to this movie on several levels. I have recently graduated myself, and during my senior year, our football team went to state for the first time in 20 years. Just as we were getting ready for the state game, Varsity Blues was released. This is an amazing "roller coaster" ride through the life of a group of American high-school students who only want to do what is right. Varisty Blues is, and probably always will be, my favorite movie of all-time.

I thought it was the best teen movie ever. it made me mad whent NOT ANOUTHER TEEN MOVIE made fun of it this movie is a classic i seen it 87 times.and "james van der beek" said these 5 minits do not make the rest of are lives. I think this movie inspiers you to get threw high school. It helps me.

Varsity Blues is aimed at teenagers, where it has found a sizable audience. That it was produced by MTV is reason enough for it to be fairly hip and more than a little raunchy. It begins as a scathing satire of the politics of high school football , but it nearly fumbles the theme toward the end. Still, it has its moments, won't do permanent damage to young audiences and tends to be better than most recent movies in this genre.

West Cannon, Texas, a fictional place, is a community obsessed with football. The picture begins with a silent montage of home movies of little kids playing Pee Wee football. We see their parents faces contort as they yell and scream. Then we move on to the same boys playing varsity football. Coach Kilmer [Jon Voight] has lead the team to twenty-two divisional titles and two state championships. He's been there so long that he's coached some of the boys' fathers, all of whom seem to be trying to relive their glory days through their sons. The town has become blinded to the fact that Coach Kilmer is a bully, a tyrant and a bigot, whose only concern is whether or not the boys will win him another championship. They are just puppets to him.

The main character, Mox, is played by teen idol James Van Der Beek from TV's Dawson's Creek. For some reason, Van Der Beek does not seem as sure of himself as he does in his TV role. His performance is hardly more than adequate. Mox is the only team player who sees the coach as he really is. Kilmer is instinctively aware of this, but when star quarterback Lance [Paul Walker] is badly injured, coach has no choice but to use Mox as a replacement. What follows is basically a battle of wills that threatens the team's chances of winning.

Much of the movie works. Only Mox and his girlfriend seem interested in getting an education, but, after all, there are communities where scholastics really do take a back-seat to athletic achievements. These teens party a lot, but what's new about that? Unlike many recent films, Varsity Blues works hard to show these kids as basically worthwhile, even the ones who are far from bright or physically attractive. They care about each other. The team's eventual revolt against the coach's tyranny borders on being noble.

Other elements are weak. The team visits a strip club and discovers that one of their teachers is moonlighting as a show girl. Since nothing comes of this in the movie, it is just an excuse to show some skin. The satirical elements fizzle because the writers apparently love football after all. This creates a situation where the coach must be defeated while the game has to triumph. This divided attitude weakens the plot and makes the observations from the early scenes a little hollow.

I secretly rate this in my top twenty movies. I'm too old too fall in love with the Dawson's Creek boy, so no, I don't like it because of him. Sure, it's a bit of your typical sports movie, but it's a bit off edge as well. It's funny as hell. The characters are completely amusing and the southern hick accents top the charts. I may live in Nebraska, but I am not a football fan at all, yet this football movie is great for any movie fan.
Believe me, you'll smile a lot, laugh a ton and sometimes wonder just what is going on. Enough, I better get off before someone I know sees me writing this good review about a movie most critics didn't like.

Excellent movie. It shows the true side of football, how dirty the sport really is. The movie is very funny, and the characters are well developed. I love Billy Bob(stupid fat guy but very funny). James Van Der Beek does an excellent job in his movie. I think he is terrible on Dawson's Creek so I was surpise he did so well. If for nothing else in the movie you must see the whipped cream girl. Verrrry nice.

Surprisingly better than the standard teen sports movie, bascially it's about how a footbal town's team grows from the steroid-induced pranksters to mature (as high schoolers can be) team players. Although this was a fairly well conceived teen movie, it was still at heart, a teen movie. However if you want a movie with the same imapct aimed at a more adult auidience, try "Mystery, Alaska"

unrealistic. In real life, the school's principal would have
bolted to the sidelines as soon as he found out that his head
football coach was not on the sidelines.

I read the book Friday Night Lights about four years ago and this
is extremely close to a movie version of it. Many of the characters in the book can be easily matched to the ones on the
screen.

This movie had appeal for me because I am in the sports medicine
field and have had to deal with coaches like those seen in this
movie, and at times have felt the same way that Jon Moxon did
about winning another district title for that coach: "If we
win on Friday night, then Kilmer is still the greatest coach that
ever lived, and nothing ever changes. He can just go on making up
his own rules and treating players like cattle."

Enough of the soapbox. The soundtrack is awesome and I enjoyed the movie

"Varsity Blues" is a reasonably good movie, based loosely upon the book "Friday Night Lights" (which gets its own film version very soon).

At any rate, the high school football players portrayed in "Varsity Blues" were every bit as obnoxious, arrogant and juvenile as those in my football-fanatic Texas home town -- but they didn't appear to be nearly as dumb.

I usually don't care for youth movies. I only saw Brian Robbins' "Varsity Blues" because I have recently become interested in Jon Voight. "Varsity Blues" is not much more than a passable time killer.

High school football player Jonathon "Mox" Moxon(James Van Der Beek) goes for the glory of victory while rebelling against his own coach, the tyrannical and win-at-all costs Bud Kilmer(Jon Voight).

Robbins' "Varsity Blues" is basically another forgettable youth movie. The film isn't particularly exciting or interesting. The audience doesn't develop any real concern for the characters. Jon Voight is the only saving grace of the picture. One of Hollywood's most sensitive males, Voight proves himself to be one of the great chameleons of present-day cinema. I am astonished that the same actor who earned an Oscar for playing the sensitive paraplegic Vietnam veteran of Hal Ashby's "Coming Home" was now playing the ruthless, berating, and badmouthing football coach of "Varsity Blues." Voight's performance elevates Robbins' film.

Brian Robbins' "Varsity Blues" is only for big fans of youth movies and Jon Voight.

I don't know what the residents of Texas did to the folks responsible for Varsity Blues but, on behalf of my home state, let me say that I sincerely apologize for whatever it was that led you to make this truly awful, truly stupid, truly useless film. Now, get over it!

Anyway, with that off my chest, Varsity Blues is basically the story of an intellectual high school football jock played by James Van Der Beek. We know he's an intellectual because we see him reading Slaughterhouse Five on the sidelines. Oh, and he doesn't like his small town's revered high school football coach. We know he's evil because he's played by Jon Voight. After the school's star quarterback is injured, Van Der Beek takes his place and soon becomes the town's biggest hero. But, as stated previously, Van Der Beek reads Slaughterhouse Five so, of course, he's above such petty things. He's going to play football but he's going to do it HIS way (no, make no doubt about it, in this film James Van Der Beek is anything but unstuck in time).

This is a film that wants to have it both ways -- high school football is condemned as being essentially a fascist pursuit that destroys the young but at the same time, isn't it great to see Van Der Beek lead the team to victory? There's more to life than just attending keggers and having meaningless sex with cheerleaders but, just for the sake of argument, let's fill the entire film with keggers and meaningless sex with cheerleaders. The film, in short, is an MTV production and the director makes sure we never forget this by keeping his camera constantly and continually spinning around as if desperately trying to fool us into thinking there's actually something interesting happening on screen. As bad as the direction is, the script actually manages to be even worse by giving us a collection of stereotypical, one demensional characters and scenes that have appeared in just about every other sports film ever made. With a script this bad, its unfair to penalize the actors for giving awful performances but who ever said life was fair? Voight glowers as if he can't believe he's doing this while his daughter wins an Oscar. Scott Caan, as Van Der Beek's wild friend and teammate, lets his smirk carry him through the film. As the token fat guy, Ron Lester is so believably pathetic that you'll want to smack some sense into him. Van Der Beek, meanwhile, plays his role with a fatal combination of intensity and smugness and, sadly, seems to be convinced that he's making a truly important film. Since this film is set in Texas, we get a lot of cowboy hats and a lot of overdone drawls that, whatever they are, certainly aren't Texan. Van Der Beek's accent is, without a doubt, one of the worst attempts at a southwestern drawl I have ever heard. Yes, Texans do speak with a drawl and we do have a very noticeable accent (myself certainly included). But, like everyone else on the planet, we also have our own individual speech rhythms with the occasional variations in tone and pitch. Unlike Van Der Beek's intellectual jock, we do not deliver every sentence in the exact same drawling monotone! Still, trying to figure out just where exactly Van Der Beek's accent came from is probably the most entertaining part of the film which is so simpleminded and by-the-numbers, it doesn't even succeed at achieving a level of camp. Some bad movies you can at least laugh at. Varsity Blues, on the other hand, is one of the dullest films I've ever seen. Its a great cure for insomnia if nothing else.

This is one of the greatest movies of all time. Any Highschool football players can either relate to this movie or goes to bed wishing they could relate to this movie. This movie however, does not just pertain to highschool football players because anyone can understand the struggles they go through and the more than obvious sucess the find.

I thought this movie was a snoozer..It got play because of James Van DerBeak of dawsons creek..It was like a few of the teenager movies that all come out at the same time had been rolled up into one..Football, fat kid drinkin syrup, star quarterback hurt, my father doesn't think Im good enough...That sums up the whole film...I gave it a thumbs down...

This is an excellent movie from the beginning to the end. James van Der Beek was a sensational actor in this movie. High school kids can interperet this more since its all about high school and playing football. The level of intensity is a big plus for watching this movie. This movie portrayed life conflicts that you did not know, but really do go on. Ron Lester plays Billy Bob, Paul Walker plays Lance Harbor, and Jon Voight as Coach Kilmer. Billy Bob is the one that makes this movie. When you see this movie you will know what i mean. I gave this 5 stars because it has everything involved in it that needs to be there. This movie has alot of action and some drama and lttle romance. The football scenes are full of intense and impacting plays and action. I recommend this movie for everyone to watch.

There are two fundamental reasons why the Paramount Pictures film directed by Brian Robbins, Varsity Blues is one of the greatest movies made in this time. First of all it is the best depiction of high school life in a small town I have ever seen in a movie. Secondly, not only is the film frank and outspoken when dealing with the truths of growing up in a small town, but Varsity Blues is 105 minutes of film packed with diligently planned dramatic photography. The fact that each scene is pumped so full of emotion only amplifies the possible reality of the script. The story told by the movie Varsity Blues appeals to me for more reasons than one. First of all, the film is humorous, thrilling and full of emotion. Secondly, I grew up in a small town like West Canaan, Texas, where the story takes place, so much of the story is very real to me. For example, in my town, football games on Friday nights were more like religious ceremonials or rituals than simply high school athletics. This excerpt from the movie portrays this image perfectly: "In America we have laws; laws against killing, laws against stealing and it is just accepted that as a member of American society you will live by those laws. In West Canaan, Texas there is another society, which has its own laws. Football is a way of life. As a boy growing up in West Canaan, Texas, you never questioned the sanctity of football; you just listened to what the coaches said and tried as best as you could to win; win at all costs." After each game, the football team would have a party to celebrate whether the final score represented victory or defeat. These parties included alcohol, drugs, sex and probably much more that I was unaware of at the time. Nearly the entire school would attend these parties. It would have been unusual for the cops to not show up a couple of times a night to order everyone to keep it down even if the closest neighbors were miles away. Even if the cops had caught someone underage who had been drinking they couldn't really arrest them because then they wouldn't be welcome at Saturday's barbeque. Another similarity between West Canaan and my hometown was that the football coach had the most power in the town with players as close seconds. This meant that if a player was falling behind in class, the coach would have a talk with the teacher and soon the player would have one of the highest grades in the class. As in Varsity Blues, there was an abundance of racism in my town. Confederate flags were a common sight and racial slurs could be heard frequently. The truth is that although many people think that Varsity Blues is far fetched and unrealistic it is just the opposite. People do not want to admit that this type of community, with these problems still exists, but it does and Varsity Blues does an excellent job of illustrating what it is like to grow up in this sort of environment. Lastly, Varsity Blues is exponentially enhanced by the incredible photography portrayed throughout. This film includes scenes that I would go as far as to deem them the best I've seen. The extraordinary photography takes the film to a whole new level, where it becomes not only a movie, but art captured on film. Each scene was thoughtfully constructed and designed ahead of time so that it could display as much energy as possible making each picture worth much more than merely a thousand words. One of my favorite parts of the movie is during the game against Elway, after the team had spent the night at the strip club. This is because each fleeting incident, each motion, each flicker of film is bursting with power and vigor that it feels more real than if you had been a part of it. All of these aspects are what make Varsity Blues such an outstanding film. I am glad that someone was brave enough to confront facts that exist that most people do not want to believe are true, such as racism, premarital sex, underage drinking, cheating, etcetera. Varsity Blues does all this and more by presenting it in a way that appeals to people and causes them to feel as if they are in West Canaan, Texas as all of this is taking place.

The movie is extremely predictable. The second line of the movie is like, "That would be a disaster if Lance (starting QB) got hurt", and I'm like, "Lance is gonna die." The characters are all extremely one dimensional, that said they are pretty accurate stereotypes because it reminded my a lot of my old team and I've heard other people say the same. The football scenes are probably the best I've seen, though, and the movie mainly offers vicarious thrills to those who want to live through another high school football year. The ending was a stinker.

However, in true football movie tradition, the quarterback throwback pass is still unbeatable! Ha!

What do you get when you cross teen angst, high school football and a whipped cream bikini? You get "Varsity Blues", MTV Production's witty yet poignant look at the life of high school footballers. James Van der Beek plays the lead, and does a good job portraying the smart, quick-witted Jon "Mox" Moxon. John Voight does an incredible job as the antagonistic head coach of the school's team. The rest of the cast thrive in the wonderful blend of comedy and drama that make the flick well worth seeing.

It often has the feel of an 80s brat pack movie, but with a more modern twist. Though I doubt it will ever join the ranks of "Ferris Beuller" or "The Breakfast Club", it certainly has a rightful place near the top of the genre.

Tweeder and Billy Bob make the movie funny whild Dawson's Creek's James Van Der Beek makes an amazing performence. Bad accent and all! The movie has a great performence and interpretation of a coach and his football team. Mox (Van Der Beek) is 2nd string qb and is put into the action when 1st string Lance Harbour is injured. With the coach out to get him Mox has to prove to everybody and himself that coach is wrong and that the team would be better off without him. Watch it but it rent it whatever, you'll love it if your 13-25. Girlies look for hotties Scott Caan(Tweeder), Van Der Beek(Moxon), Paul Walker(Lance Harbour) and loads more!

A great film from start to finish. The sports aspect mixed with teenage life made for an excellent film. The comedy was funny, and the serious moments were impactful. James Van Der Beek, plays the strongest character I have ever seen him play. He played the character to perfection, particularily at his serious moments involving his inspiring speeches. The football action was real, and well shot. An overall great movie.