Kendrick needs to learn that didacticism isn't a film aesthetic.
Comment
09/26/09
Facing the Giants (2006)
9
%
Tomatometer
How does the Tomatometer work 
Reviews Counted:23
Fresh:2
Rotten:21
Average Rating:4.1/10
Consensus: The tropes of both football and evangelical movies are gracelessly on parade in this banal, insipid drama.
Runtime: 1 hr 52 mins
Genre: Dramas
US Box Office: $10,127,352
Synopsis: A high school football coach (played by actor/director Alex Kendrick) uses some unorthodox methods to motivate his team in FACING THE GIANTS. A devoted Christian, the coach turns to God for... [More]
Starring: Alex Kendrick, Jim McBride, James Blackwell, Shannen Fields
Director: Alex Kendrick
Reviews for Facing the Giants
The separation of church and cinema amounts to a long yard at most in this high school football sermon from Georgia-based Baptist pastor Alex Kendrick.
08/27/09
Earnest but amateurish.
01/30/07
In a season in which Invincible and Gridiron Gang already have laid claim to the title of inspirational football movie, this looks like an also-ran.
12/15/06
Its feel-good storyline, shopworn message, and bottomless sermonizing would have played better in Sunday school than on the big screen, which is -- let’s face it -- Babylon’s turf.
11/25/06
Here's a badly acted movie with a terrific story line that makes it well worth seeing.
11/14/06
A sermon much more than it is a movie.
11/10/06
Most of the actors read their lines earnestly but flatly, and Kendrick has done them no favors by pushing them to play broad comedy in some scenes and anguished drama in others.
10/27/06
Fitfully entertaining… To reach a broader audience, though, the filmmakers will have to scrap their playbook and learn a whole new set of rules.
10/27/06
Would seem sincere enough, but it's just a chain of ludicrous cliches of both the sports and religious variety.
10/08/06
For it to have any appeal for persons who do not share the movie's beliefs would indeed be miraculous -- it's appallingly bad as anything other than a sermon.
10/04/06
By preaching to the converted so heavy-handedly, the filmmakers fumble an opportunity to reach beyond their target demo of devout churchgoers.
10/02/06
Top CriticFacing the Giants feels like an overly earnest church sketch of the type many evangelical congregations use as a teaching tool on Sunday between the worship music and pastor's message.
09/30/06
Top CriticFacing the Giants falls victim to the tell-don't-show brand of filmmaking, in which every character always says exactly what he's feeling and every time a character's flaws are pointed out to him, they are immediately corrected.
09/29/06
Those looking for an evening's diversion will find it an amateur exercise that has the feel of a film-school project.
09/29/06
The wholesomeness of the message and the movie's cast make it feel 1950s retro.
09/29/06
If it cannot avoid the clichés of both the sports film and the inspirational film, at least Facing the Giants leavens its message with good humor.
09/29/06
I'm not about to argue with the message, but the delivery system sinks below the level of after-school special, and the acting matches.
09/29/06
When a film is as unintentionally corny as this one, it's anyone's guess as to how many viewers can stomach all the schmaltz for the positive message at the end.
09/29/06
This time, Jesus rather than Burt Reynolds or The Rock gets the credit for leading an underdog team of football players to victory.
09/29/06
What’s Hot On RT
Other News
Fresh Links
Featured
40 Best Films of the 2000s 
Last week, Moviefone offered us their worst films of the 2000s. Now see their 40 best!
Competitions
Win Funny People on DVD
We're giving away copies of Judd Apatow's latest.
RSS Feeds